University of Massachusetts Amherst ScholarWorks@UMass Amherst Masters Theses Dissertations and Theses April 2021 Petco Park: Evaluating Economic Health of the Dining Establishment Industry in the Vicinity of a Downtown Major League Baseball Stadium Georgy Shukaylo University of Massachusetts Amherst Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarworks.umass.edu/masters_theses_2 Part of the Regional Economics Commons, Sports Management Commons, and the Urban Studies and Planning Commons Recommended Citation Shukaylo, Georgy, "Petco Park: Evaluating Economic Health of the Dining Establishment Industry in the Vicinity of a Downtown Major League Baseball Stadium" (2021). Masters Theses. 1024. https://doi.org/10.7275/20394720 https://scholarworks.umass.edu/masters_theses_2/1024 This Open Access Thesis is brought to you for free and open access by the Dissertations and Theses at ScholarWorks@UMass Amherst. 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PETCO PARK: EVALUATING ECONOMIC HEALTH OF THE DINING ESTABLISHMENT INDUSTRY IN THE VICINITY OF A DOWNTOWN MAJOR LEAGUE BASEBALL STADIUM A Thesis Presented by GEORGY SHUKAYLO Submitted to the Graduate School of the University of Massachusetts Amherst in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Master of Regional Planning February 2021 Landscape Architecture and Regional Planning © Copyright by Georgy Shukaylo 2021 All Rights Reserved PETCO PARK: EVALUATING ECONOMIC HEALTH OF THE DINING ESTABLISHMENT INDUSTRY IN THE VICINITY OF A DOWNTOWN MAJOR LEAGUE BASEBALL STADIUM A Thesis Presented by GEORGY SHUKAYLO Approved as to style and content by: _____________________________________ Henry Renski, Chair _____________________________________ Wayne Feiden, Member _____________________________________ Mark Hamin, Member _____________________________________ Emily Must, Member ________________________________________ Robert Ryan, Department Head Landscape Architecture & Regional Planning Foreword Before commencing my master’s thesis, I would like to express my appreciation and gratitude to my thesis committee, especially my chair, Dr. Henry Renski. The refinements and ideas coming from Dr. Renski, as well as Dr. Mark Hamin, Professor Emily Must, and Professor Wayne Feiden persuaded me to reflect in action and make my thesis topic more concentrated. By narrowing down the scope of research, I was able to discover things I never thought I would have. Reviewing my drafts and assisting me with my research has been especially strenuous under the current conditions (although none of my thesis committee members have shown it, a series of lockdowns issued in March of 2020 affected all). I would also like to thank my parents for their unwavering support, my fellow colleagues for the experiences shared in the LARP program in the Regional Planning Studio and beyond, and all professors that I have learned from in my eleven semesters at the University of Massachusetts Amherst. Without all of these people, it would not have been possible for me to become who I am today and for this thesis to be relayed to further generations of students and the whole wide world. - iv - Abstract PETCO PARK: EVALUATING ECONOMIC HEALTH OF THE DINING ESTABLISHMENT INDUSTRY IN THE VICINITY OF A DOWNTOWN MAJOR LEAGUE BASEBALL STADIUM FEBRUARY 2021 GEORGY SHUKAYLO, BACHELOR OF SCIENCE IN SPORT MANAGEMENT, BACHELOR OF BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION IN OPERATIONS & INFORMATION MANAGEMENT, MASTER OF REGIONAL PLANNING, UNIVERSITY OF MASSACHUSETTS AMHERST DIRECTED BY: DR. HENRY RENSKI This thesis analyzes the economic health of the dining establishments in Downtown San Diego, CA, specifically in the vicinity of Petco Park. Opened in 2004, Petco Park is home to the San Diego Padres, a Major League Baseball franchise. In addition, it serves as a venue for outdoor concerts and shows. The venue is used for most of the year due to an expanded Major League Baseball schedule, especially compared to other professional sports. Much of the transformation of San Diego’s Downtown can be attributed to the late 1990’s East Village Revitalization Plan, which included municipal anchors like the San Diego Central Library, the San Diego Convention Center, and Petco Park. By looking at the restaurant industry as of 2019, this thesis strives to provide a better understanding of how an urban entertainment anchor provides grounds for mutually beneficial conditions to small businesses. Additionally, this - v - thesis integrates the concept of economic health into the larger field of knowledge around urban professional sports stadia. Further, this thesis aims to burgeon a framework for taxonomic research of professional sports stadia. - vi - Table of Contents FOREWORD .................................................................................................................... iv ABSTRACT ....................................................................................................................... v LIST OF TABLES ............................................................................................................. ix LIST OF FIGURES ............................................................................................................ x CHAPTER 1. INTRODUCTION .....................................................................................1 Purposes & Goals of the Study ...........................................................................1 Research Questions ...............................................................................................2 Anticipated Outcomes ..........................................................................................4 Chapter Outline .....................................................................................................6 Glossary of Terms .................................................................................................8 CHAPTER 2. LITERATURE REVIEW .........................................................................10 Branches of Research within Professional Sports Stadia Impacts ...............10 The Evolution of Urban Anchors ......................................................................13 Professional Sports Franchises and Professional Sports Stadia ...................15 Sports Districts Overview ..................................................................................19 Dining Establishments in the Urban Setting ...................................................22 Economic Health: Definition & Adaptation ....................................................24 CHAPTER 3. SAN DIEGO: CASE STUDY & CONTEXT .........................................27 East Village Revitalization Project ....................................................................27 Downtown San Diego Overview ......................................................................31 Petco Park & Its Surroundings ..........................................................................38 CHAPTER 4. METHODOLOGY ...................................................................................41 Research & Analysis Methods ..........................................................................41 Research Assumptions .......................................................................................47 Research Limitations ..........................................................................................50 Summary of Variables ........................................................................................52 CHAPTER 5. EXPLORATORY ANALYSIS ................................................................54 Control Metrics ....................................................................................................54 Spatial Analysis ...................................................................................................56 - vii - Industrial & Sectoral Analysis ...........................................................................79 Sub-Categorical Analysis ...................................................................................91 Contributing Factors .........................................................................................104 CHAPTER 6. RESULTS & SYNTHESIS .....................................................................108 Observations & Elaborations ...........................................................................108 Testing against Hypothesized Relationships ................................................110 Role of the Stadium ...........................................................................................111 Perceived Magnitude of Contributing Factors .............................................114 CHAPTER 7. CONCLUSION ......................................................................................118 Policy Recommendations .................................................................................118 Further Research Opportunities .....................................................................122 Greater Implications for Urban Planning ......................................................125 Concluding Remarks ........................................................................................126 WORKS CITED ..............................................................................................................130 WORKS REFERENCED ...............................................................................................134