Saturdays are usually busy at Alma’s Place, a soul food restaurant in Compton across from the city courthouse.

But about an hour after opening on June 22, Corina Pleasant, who runs the store with her mother, Alma, noticed no customers were coming. Her parking lot, shared with other small businesses in a strip mall, was jammed with cars and chaos reigned as hundreds of people flocked to the courthouse to catch a glimpse of rap star Kendrick Lamar, who was there to film the music video for “Not Like Us.”

Alma’s Place and other nearby businesses say they lost thousands of dollars that day. The business owners blame city officials for not making an announcement about the video shoot, which ultimately forced them to shut down. Now they’re demanding that Lamar, the production company pgLang or the city compensate them for their losses.

Daryl Hurlic places a morning order at Alma’s Place in Compton on July 11.

(Michael Blackshire / Los Angeles Times)

“It was really daunting to have electricity and gas,” Pleasant said. “I run everything myself and make no money. I was literally there for free because the little money I made was to pay my employees.”

If she had been informed in advance, Pleasant said she could have preemptively closed for the day or set up a pop-up tent with a special menu.

She estimates she lost between $1,800 and $2,200 that day. Other business owners in the area told similar stories in testimony before the City Council and in interviews with the Times.

A spokesman for the city of Compton said in a statement that the city would explore “options for more efficient communication with our community regarding filming permits” in the future.

“Compton businesses, especially small businesses, are the backbone of our city,” the statement said. “We want to continue to maintain an open line of communication and do everything we can to support economic growth.”

Representatives for Lamar and pgLang did not respond to multiple requests for comment.

There were rumors about Lamar’s video shoot circulate on the Internet and increased anticipation for the rapper’s performance in his hometown after his much-publicized feud with Drake.

Compton authorities issued filming permits on June 21 for several downtown locations: the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial at the courthouse, the Compton Courtyard and parking garage, Tam’s Burgers on Rosecrans Avenue, Compton College, Central Avenue, Willowbrook Avenue and Compton Boulevard.

The next day, more than 700 people came to the courthouse to participate in the video. The nearby parking lots were filled to the brim, with some people even parking their cars on grass.

Lamar began filming at Tam’s Burgers and other locations in the early afternoon before making his way to the courthouse around 3 p.m., where the large crowd was waiting for him.

Pleasant had closed her restaurant hours earlier. The mall parking lot was flooded with onlookers, turning it into a one-way street that blocked fire access and dumpsters and trapped vehicles already parked, she said. Customers, many of whom often come from Riverside and Orange County on weekends to eat at Alma’s Place, turned around and left.

“A day counts,” Pleasant said. “It counts when you’re there wasting your time. It counts when your Edison bill is $1,000. It counts when two weeks’ labor for three people is almost $3,000. It counts when gas is $800. You’re there, all these things going on, and you have nothing to show for it.”

Adelfo Antonio Garcia, co-owner of Sunny Express Gourmet Fast Food, said he also lost about $2,000 that day. And customers still believe he’s closed on Saturdays.

Garcia called the situation frustrating as his restaurant was already struggling to survive. The city’s lack of communication was unacceptable, he said.

“The ones who suffer are small businesses,” he said in Spanish.

Alma Pleasant attended a city council meeting the following Tuesday to express her disappointment to city officials, who she said needed to “get their act together.”

“I’m here because three things affected me on Saturday,” she said during a public address. “And when those three things affect me, I intervene with full force. First: my children. Second: my money. Third: my food.”

According to Kathryn Arnold, a producer and entertainment consultant not affiliated with Lamar, production companies are not required to pay affected companies, although filmmakers sometimes compensate companies as a sign of goodwill.

“Everything is better with clear communication,” said Arnold. “Nobody likes to be surprised by something like this.”