On Kenneth Road, the storefront underneath the "Audrey K" awning is empty. A few doors down, the words painted on the window glass read "Emma Bloomfield's," but nothing else remains of the boutique.
Across the street, the Village Market has been closed since February.
While merchants and owners say Kenneth Village is doing alright, they acknowledge the small shopping center off the beaten path, set among the tidy single-family homes near Brand Park, needs a shot in the arm.
"You can't bring customers from far away to here," said Arthur Charkoobian, owner of the local meat market and a merchant on Kenneth for 26 years. "It's all local."
Each vacancy tells a different story.
The Village Market changed hands a few years ago, according to Oscar Pallares, longtime owner of Kenneth Village Pharmacy and the entire south side of Kenneth between Sonora and Grandview avenues.
He leased the store to new owners, he said, but they quickly fell behind in their rent.