TITLE
Recommendation to refer to the Planning Commission for recommendation of a zone change for the City-owned property on the southeast corner of 49th Street and Long Beach Boulevard (4800 - 4870 Long Beach Boulevard) to Park zone and conduct the appropriate outreach to the surrounding neighborhood to receive public input.
DISCUSSION
The Redevelopment Agency acquired the blighted and nuisance properties on the southeast corner of 49th Street and Long Beach Blvd. (4800-4870 Long Beach Blvd.) in 2007. The site is approximately
1.1 acres and had previously been the location of two motels and an auto repair shop that were responsible for more than 1,000 calls for service and 150 violent crimes during a four-year period. The buildings were demolished in December 2007.
The property became the site of the City's first Mulch-a-Lot in April 2009. Five hundred tons of tree-trimming debris are used as ground cover on the vacant lot to provide beautification, weed control, stormwater retention and landfill diversion of green waste.
In the spring of 2010, the Redevelopment Agency commissioned artist Gregory Pickens to create a mural on the property. The artwork, titled "Ancient Diverse Similarities" is a 374-foot long mural on a 6-foot tall fence.
The mural theme presents Long Beach as the most diverse city in the nation and features ancient imagery from diverse cultures to create a tapestry of ancestries. Inspiration is drawn from Aztec and Mayan architecture, Angkor Wat, Egyptian, Central and South American pyramids, cathedrals and ancient myths about the sun's creation.
The mural project involved 280 students from nearby Dooley Elementary and more than 100 community volunteers.
In the fall of 2010, the Redevelopment Agency and the Long Beach Housing Development Company entered into a six-month exclusive negotiating agreement with United Cerebral Palsy for the possible development of housing for people with disabilities. However, when another Redevelopment property became available north of Del Amo, the UCP began to explore that site as a potential location.
In March 2011, the property was conveyed from the Redevelopment Agency to the City of Long Beach.
During the work on the mural, many neighbors, children, parents and school officials commented on the lack of safe places for children to play in the neighborhood.
According to the 2010 Census, there are 1,084 people under the age of 18 in the census tract where this property is located, which is 29.5% of the total population in that area. In the census tracts immediately adjacent to the west and east of this property, there are an additional 3,409 children, which is 32.6% of the population of those census tracts.
Residents in the neighborhood have discussed options such as a skate park, playground and open space for possible uses for the site.
As the City's Successor Agency and the Oversight Board determine the fate of this lot and other former Redevelopment properties, it is important to preserve the option for this vacant parcel to be utilized as future park space to serve the surrounding neighborhoods. The City Attorney's office has determined that it is appropriate to pursue a zone change for the property at this time.
FISCAL IMPACT
There is no anticipated fiscal impact.
SUGGESTED ACTION
Approve recommendation.
Respectfully Submitted,
COUNCILWOMAN RAE GABELICH
EIGHTH DISTRICT
COUNCILMEMBER STEVEN NEAL
NINTH DISTRICT