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Plans reveal huge LA Apple Store expansion
The Santa Monica (California) Planning Commission is considering a proposal tomorrow for what appears to be a new, giant Apple Store for the L.A. area. While the building permit application delivered to the commission and architectural renderings don't specifically mention Apple as a tenant, the design of the proposed building is a dead giveaway that the company is planning to replace the existing Third Street Promenade store with this new location. ifoAppleStore reports that the new facility would encompass almost 12,500 square feet of space, covered with a 34 foot tall arched glass roof. The existing Third Street Promenade store opened in July 2003 about two blocks away from the new location, and has been one of the Apple Store's busiest locations. It helps that the average household income within five miles of the store is $106,012, almost double the average for other Apple Stores. The architecture of the proposed store is very similar to the Upper West Side store in NYC that opened in 2009, although that store has an angled front due to the shape of the property on which it is located. We'll keep you updated on the status of the proposed store after the meeting tomorrow.
iPad launch: Santa Monica Apple Store
It was actually a low-key affair at the Santa Monica Apple Store on the Third Street Promenade this morning. About an hour before the store opened for business at 9am PST, there were only about 100 people in line, and by the time all of the Apple employees moved outside, clapping and trying to get the sedate crowd to show a little excitement about emptying their wallets for the Church of Jobs, there were probably at most 500 people. But the gathered took the launch in stride -- the mood was cordial, the media were few, and most everybody just walked in, grabbed their iPad, and headed out without fanfare. You can see pictures of the goings-on in the gallery below. This store is usually frequented by at least a few celebrities, but we didn't recognize anybody specific, so see if you can catch one we missed in the pictures. All in all, it was about as smooth a launch as you could ask for -- aside from the folks who walked by asking what the line was about, and then turned away in an eye-rolling huff when they were told about "some iPad doohickey," everybody had a pretty good time. %Gallery-89689%
