‘Summer on Sunset’ will bring roller skating to the Strip

The Sunset Business Improvement District will present “Summer on Sunset’ and has secured the parking lot next to Carney’s for a Roller Rink. The special programming event will begin right after Pride and continue though the end of summer.

Details are being worked out and have not yet been made public. Final touches and a press release are expected in the next ten days.

Brett Latteri, Chair of the Sunset Business Improvement District, explained how this idea came out of subcommittee and was pushing forward. The rink will be approximately 80 x 40, and will be paid for from the BID.

The Sunset Strip Business Improvement District was created 20 years ago with the goals to enhance Public Safety and Cleanliness of the Sunset Strip. Over the past 5 to 8 years, their mission has expanded to include marketing.

Revenues to support the BID come from two sources. Business along the Strip are assessed fees and the BID sells advertising on it’s street pole signage. The BID’s goals are to bring awareness and people to the Sunset Strip.

The Sunset Business Improvement District used to be managed by the West Hollywood Travel and Tourism Bureau. In April 2020 in the peak of the Covid pandemic Genevieve Morrill, President and CEO of the West Hollywood Chamber of Commerce assumed the role as the managing administrator of the BID. The Chamber assumed the role as the managing agency for the Sunset Strip BID.

Morrill explained, ” Our first job was to stabilize and find funding sources since the businesses were mostly shut down and collections and assessments were low. We now have a fiscally strong BID and are pouring that revenue into a program that we feel will benefit the businesses of the Sunset Strip.”

Brett Latteri, Chair Sunset Strip Business Improvement District and owner of the Den on Sunset, put it this way:

“The last time we had an event was in 2019 at the old Tower Records site and its been almost 3 years. This is 3 months long so its a heck of an activation. It will give a lot of people the opportunity to visit us and have a blast! It’s going to be a really cool activation.”

Latteri continued, “there is an admission fee, we are still working on the details, but we are not fully expecting it to pay for itself. But, optimistic it will cover a good portion of the costs. The BID is a non profit so any money made goes back to marketing and public safety needs of the Sunset Strip. We are self funding.

“Summer on Sunset” will also be available for corporate events, birthday parties, album release, launch party and more. Final renderings are expected in the next few days, “and you will be the first to know.”