Big year for downtown business?

It will be headlined by the opening (finally!) of a 50,000-square-foot Ralphs on the ground floor of the Market Lofts on Ninth and Flower. The absence of a downtown supermarket is often cited as a drag on downtown development efforts - so much so that the Downtown News says it's considered "a practical and psychological turning point." Well, maybe, but at this point I'd be just as concerned about a pronounced pullback in the condo market - not to mention the ongoing problems on Skid Row. Until Ralphs opens around mid-year, downtowners are stuck with a newly opened Famima!! at Eighth and Figueroa streets, Little Tokyo's Mitsuwa, the Bunker Hill Market, Grand Central Market and four weekly farmers markets. Apparently, there's buzz that once Ralphs opens its doors, Trader Joe's will follow with a South Park store.