Downtowns across the state are struggling to bounce back after the pandemic, but in Long Beach there has been successes that have caught the eye of the state.
“(Long Beach is) building housing, investing in the waterfront, and people are coming to visit,” said Assembly Matt Haney, the head of the California Downtown Recovery Select Committee, who toured the promenade area Tuesday afternoon.
Long Beach has built 6,500 new housing units in the downtown area, up from 5,000 units projected.
But with those successes come continuous problems that residents and business owners deal with daily,
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“Just last night, one of our residents was mugged,” said Joe Harding, Long Beach property manager. “(The suspect) took her purse, used her fob to break into the building and broke into a few storage units.”
Harding said it’s just another example of the crime and chaos residents and business owners have had to deal with since the pandenic.
“(We) deal with the petty theft, the swinging bags of urine and feces everywhere … needles, sex, drugs and screaming,” said Harding. “Businesses have had windows broken four to five times a year.”
Harding welcomes Haney’s visit but hopes he looks beyond the area toured with city officials and talk to locals about safety and security.
“If people don’t feel safe, we’re not going to be successful anywhere and especially not in our downtowns,” said Haney.
Haney and his committee are visiting several downtowns across the state to see what is working and what needs help.
They hope to take the data and create legislation next session to help these downtowns thrive again.
Long Beach Mayor Rex Richardson said progress is being made downtown, touting less homeless encampments at the city’s Lincoln park, down from five encampments to one.
Richardson also said businesses need all the help they can get as the city works toward making the area safer.
“We know (businesses have) had a hard time, but we are proud of the collaboration between police department, health department and small improvement districts that are really making a difference.”
