Palisades Village to reopen more than a year after the LA wildfires

It's another major milestone for the Pacific Palisades as the iconic Palisades Village is set to reopen in just a few days. 

Owner Rick Caruso said it's his deeply personal mission to help restore the area. 

"A couple of days after the fire, we planted a flag and said, 'We're coming back,'" Caruso said. 

When the Los Angeles County wildfires broke out last year, the Palisades Village remained largely unscathed after Caruso hired private firefighters to protect it. The crews were able to save some of the homes around the property, but many of the surrounding buildings were destroyed, and the mall has been shut down ever since. 

"This community became very personal very quick, because my daughter lost her home, my son lost his home," Caruso said. "Tina and I lost our home in Malibu."

Caruso said crews had to tear open the buildings in the Palisades Village to rebuild them from the inside out and to ensure there was no contamination from the fire and smoke. After the restoration work, the Palisades comeback is on track with his outdoor mall reopening this weekend. 

"Our goal is we want to be a very important chapter on the road to recovery," he said. "It's one chapter. I'm very mindful there are so many people that are still trying to get back to their homes, struggling with insurance and red tape, whatever the case is, we are not going to leave them behind."

While most of the stores and restaurants that were here before the fire struck will reopen, Caruso said there's a slew of new shop owners, many of whom are local mom-and-pop retailers.

"It was very important to me to bring back independent retailers who have been in the Palisades and who were beloved, who didn't have the financial resources to reopen," Caruso said.