Efforts to invest in Little Saigon are gaining ground, with Westminster recently awarded a $250,000 grant to help strengthen the area’s local economy.
Little Saigon, a major business and cultural center for the Vietnamese community, is home to more than 700 businesses that generate nearly $1 billion in collective annual sales. Yet a 2020 study commissioned by the city looking at the commercial heart of the enclave pointed out a widening technological and generational gap, one only exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Whether it’s older business owners who are slow in adopting credit card processing software or fail to claim or promote their own business on digital platforms such as Yelp and Google Maps, the business district faces a growing risk of stagnation and economic decline, the city’s study said, while neighboring business areas in Garden Grove and Fountain Valley gain a competitive edge.
The incoming funds will be used to tackle some of the key initiatives outlined in the city’s 2021 “Little Saigon Blueprint for Investment” to strengthen the district’s regional economic and cultural foothold.
The grant was awarded through the Orange County Business Council’s California Jobs First initiative. So far, the OCBC says it’s invested more than $3 million toward projects in the county that support job creation and workforce development.
“I’m tight (on money), I laid off a lot of employees,” the 62-year-old owner of a wholesale fruit store in Little Saigon said as he and his wife tended to customers one recent morning. “This year was terrible.”
The business owner, who did not want to give his name, said they’ve had the business for 20 years. Tucked away on the corner of Brookhurst Street and Bolsa Avenue, a colorful neon sign with an assortment of fruits decorates the window of an otherwise unassuming storefront display.
His wife greets customers from behind the register, alongside a large spread of exotic fruits of various shapes and sizes, including durian, lychee and mangosteen, along with tropical plants. A vibrant assortment of colorful flower bouquets decorates the space.
“Every year the sales go down because there’s a lot of competition around here,” the store owner said.
The Westminster funds will prioritize several efforts, including hiring a Little Saigon outreach coordinator in City Hall, redeveloping and beautifying storefronts, and working with a landscape architect to assess the needs of public spaces along busy main streets.
Under the guidance of the city’s economic development manager, the outreach coordinator will serve as a liaison between businesses, city staff and private partners. The role is expected to be filled by early 2026.
Ahead of next year’s Lunar New Year celebrations, city leaders say they plan to launch a pilot “soap-and-water storefront improvement program” as part of an effort to address the “deteriorating conditions” of Bolsa Avenue, the heart of Little Saigon’s original business district.
Tenants and property owners with businesses in the Magnolia Avenue and Moran Street area will be eligible for power-washing and other publicly visible storefront improvements, such as lighting, new awnings and landscaping.
A landscape architect will also identify areas of improvement on Bolsa Avenue, with priority given to the Magnolia Avenue and Bushard Street corridor. Potential renovations include investing in “street furniture,” such as benches, trees, lighting and art installations.
City Manager Christine Cordon said Westminster is in the early stages of identifying “feasible” public-private partnerships in areas such as workforce development, which she said is “vital to economic growth.”
“We’d like to provide Career Technical Education opportunities for businesses and individuals through partnerships with (the Small Business Development Center), local community colleges, and chambers of commerce,” Cordon added.
While the funding will go toward promoting Little Saigon, officials said it will not be used toward plans to develop a historic archway at the city’s southern entrance on Bolsa Avenue. The project was first proposed in 2023 by former First District Supervisor Andrew Do, who allocated $1 million from his discretionary funds. Do later asked the money be returned, citing the city’s inability to contribute funds and design costs that had ballooned to nearly $2 million.
In August, the city received additional correspondence from the county counsel reiterating its request for the return of Do’s contribution. Even as overall funding for the project remains unclear, Westminster’s City Council recently voted to form an ad-hoc committee to select a design consultant for the archway.
But aligning with the city’s broader effort to promote tourism, a portion of the OCBC grant will go toward developing a district-wide branding and marketing strategy for Little Saigon, officials said.