Preview: Medical Main Street in Lancaster?

From the top of a building on the campus of Antelope Valley Hospital, Lancaster City Councilman Raj Malhi can look out over medical office buildings, apartments, a scattering of retail malls – and 107 acres of empty land. That vacant land – owned by the hospital, city and private hands – is one of the biggest assets the city has in fulfilling its vision for a massive development project called Medical Main Street. “We have all this land and can do so much more with it,” said Malhi, a restaurant owner. “Medical Main Street will make this dream come true.” Lancaster officials are looking to replicate around the hospital what it did to the city’s downtown, which was to take an underutilized area and inject new life into it. Just as downtown has become a gathering place for residents with its collection of shops and restaurants, Medical Main Street would become a walkable area catering to the staff and patients at the hospital and associated medical buildings. Malhi would like to see a hotel where relatives of patients and visiting physicians could stay. Read the full story in the May 16 issue of the San Fernando Valley Business Journal.