Market Street Before the Cones Go Up: What's Changing in Downtown Inglewood This Fall

Most coverage of the Inglewood Transit Connector focuses on what gets built: a pedestrian bridge, mobility hubs, event-day bus lanes. For anyone who eats or runs errands on Market Street, the bigger issue is which current businesses will still be open when the work ends in Spring 2028.

Most of the new construction is aimed at stadium crowds. The street that has to live through it is the everyday one. That street lost several longtime storefronts in the past year, and one recent Inglewood cafe opening took longer to get permitted than the construction is scheduled to last. The Market Street that reopens in 2028 will depend a lot on which current businesses make it through the next 18 months.

The Calendar the City Has Published

The city's ITC construction notice says Phase 1 work begins in November and is expected to run through Spring 2028, with possible full or partial street closures inside the project boundaries. Pulling that together with recent reporting, here is the timeline so far:

1. February 2026. The City Council started eminent domain proceedings covering eight parcels, according to LAist's reporting with The LA Local.
2. July 1, 2026. Tenants of the shopping center at Market Street and Florence Avenue received a 90-day notice. A project adviser said a second 30-day notice would follow in early September.
3. October 1, 2026. This was the date the city planned to take over the property.
4. Mid-November 2026. Site work at Market/Florence is expected to begin, and some streetscape work could start earlier, per the project FAQ.
5. 2027. Roadway work for dedicated event bus lanes begins.
6. Spring 2028. Phase 1 is expected to be complete.

The FAQ names the work areas: the Market/Florence hub plus the pedestrian bridge to the Downtown Inglewood Metro Station, a Market/Manchester hub, a La Brea/Kelso hub, and streetscape improvements along Market Street, Queen Street, and Manchester Boulevard. It also says not every area will be affected at once. The city hasn't yet said which blocks close first. The FAQ says schedule updates will come "in the next few months." Expect temporary lane closures, sidewalk detours, parking restrictions, and construction noise near active work areas.

Ground Zero Is a Shopping Center at Market and Florence

The first major site is a block many locals know well. LAist and The LA Local reported in August that the city plans to take over and demolish the shopping center at Market Street and Florence Avenue. More than 20 businesses operate there, from restaurants to a jeweler. In its place, the city plans a parking structure and a bus loop with bays to carry concert and game crowds south to SoFi Stadium. Project designs show it taking up almost an entire city block.

As of that August reporting, Red's Flavor Table, House of Tacos, and Inglewood Beauty Salon were still open there. The family behind Fiesta Martin Bar & Grill and Inglewood Pedicab told the outlet they were working with the city on relocation but hadn't secured new space for the five units they rent. Mayor James Butts told The LA Local that "the city feels for the people that don't want to relocate" and that the city is making every effort to help businesses move. According to the same report, the city budgeted $125 million for property purchases and business relocation.

We haven't found any reporting from after October 1 confirming that the takeover happened or saying where these businesses went. Fiesta Martin's ordering site lists a location at 7929 S. Van Ness Ave., but nothing published says whether that's a relocation or a separate location. If one of these is your regular spot, check the business directly before you drive over.

Published figures for the project's size differ. The city's August 25 partnership release describes a $261 million grant-funded project with three mobility hubs and more than 1,000 parking stalls. LAist's September 1 explainer puts the figure at $287.5 million with four hubs, adding one at Hawthorne Boulevard and 111th Street. No public source we found explains the difference.

A Street That Was Already Thinning

Construction is arriving on a corridor that was already losing businesses. Stuff I Eat, the plant-based restaurant that opened at 114 N. Market St. in 2008, closed its physical space on April 26, 2026. The Los Angeles Times reported that the building's new owner had raised the rent and the restaurant didn't have a lease. Sip & Sonder closed its flagship at 108 Market St. just after Christmas 2025. In late July, The LA Local reported that Cuban Leaf Cigar Lounge was preparing to leave its Market Street space by the end of August after the building sold. We haven't seen confirmation that it moved.

That same LA Local story included an estimate from the Downtown Inglewood Association's president that about 10 businesses had left Market Street in nine months. Mayor Butts disputed having information that 10 had closed. The exact count is contested. The named closures above are not.

The Restaurants the City Is Betting On

The city's other downtown investment matters as much as the transit hub. The LA Local reported in March that Destination Market Street is an $8.5 million effort covering storefront improvements and streetscape work, with individual awards of up to $250,000. The restaurants that received grants make up much of the corridor's everyday dining. Most of them sit on the same streets the ITC FAQ lists for streetscape work.

Dulan's is the clearest case of the two projects overlapping. In July, The LA Local reported that the owner was seeking plan approval for a renovation he hoped to finish within six months. The restaurant is on Manchester Boulevard, one of the three streets named for streetscape work, and a Market/Manchester mobility hub is also part of Phase 1. A posted website schedule doesn't prove a dining room is open on a given day, so call ahead once the work moves onto these blocks.

How Long a Replacement Can Take

New openings can take a long time to arrive. When Gio's Cafe opened on Century Boulevard in September, co-owner Zoyla Pinacho told The LA Local it had taken two and a half years to get through the city's permit process. The outlet said it asked the city about permit timelines but hadn't heard back by publication.

If a replacement business takes that long, a storefront that closes during construction could still be empty after Spring 2028. Sip & Sonder shows the other side. The owners brought a coffee cart to 300 S. Market St. for pop-ups on July 10 and 11 and said they're aiming for a permanent return to Inglewood in early 2027. They haven't announced an address.

Two Dates Before the Work Begins

There are two city events before site work starts. The Harvest Festival is this Saturday, October 17, from 1 to 5 p.m. at the Inglewood City Hall South Mall. On October 30 and 31, the city calendar lists a Halloween Haunted House at Darby Park, 3400 W. Arbor Vitae St., from 5 to 8 p.m. each night.

After that, the city says it will give advance notice before major work begins near homes and businesses. The project has a monthly newsletter, an email address at [email protected], and a hotline at (424) 799-1989. The block-by-block closure schedule hasn't been published yet. Once it is, it will show which of the businesses in the table above end up behind a sidewalk detour and when.

If you own a home near the downtown core and want to understand how 18 months of work on Market Street might affect your own plans, Lisa Potier is glad to talk it through with no pressure. A free home valuation is an easy place to start.