The Future Of Long Beach Outlined In Mayor's 100 Day Plan

LONG BEACH, CA — Mayor Rex Richardson presented his and his team's plan for the next 100 days in the city at Tuesday's State of the City Address that he identified as being crucial to Long Beach's future success and prosperity.

The 48-page document — which outlines plans to address rising housing prices and homelessness, economic growth, community safety, youth programs and sustainability — shed light on the challenges the city has faced and what is planned to help tackle them.

"It’s time to step up to solve the challenges ahead," Mayor Rex Richardson said. "Let’s use the energy and momentum of the city’s new leadership to propel our city to new heights, so that all who call Long Beach home live in a safe, healthy, and thriving community."

Coined the Opportunity Beach Agenda, the city's plan for the next 100 days in Long Beach included the following updates:

Ensuring Quality And Stable Housing For All

In December, Richardson said he planned to declare a state of emergency on homelessness in Long Beach. On Tuesday the City Council approved the declaration, allowing the city to move forward on plans to address the 123 percent increase of people experiencing homelessness since 2020.

The large increase of unhoused people in Long Beach inspired plans for mobile access centers, new emergency shelters, transitional housing, supportive housing and affordable housing targeted at the homeless population. Currently, the city's has fewer available beds for unhoused people than the number of people in need of them.

The last Homelessness Point-In-Time Count was conducted in 2020 and recorded 2,034 people according to city data. The count increased to 3,296 in 2022 according to city data.

The city also plans to support new mental healthcare and substance use facilities to help unhoused residents achieve stability. New social service centers, food banks and personal storage facilities will also help address the increase in deaths among people on the streets, according to the plan.Plans to create new safe parking sites for cars and RVs look to give people who live in vehicles a safe place to stay.

Richardson said he plans to have roundtable discussions with local stakeholders within his first 100 days to further develop plans to address the largest concentrations of homelessness that exist throughout the city.

Along with proposing plans to help unhoused people, Richardson said his team will work to create housing opportunities for residents to keep Long Beach's workforce local. Through the Long Beach Housing Promise, the city will work with local schools and colleges to establish more affordable housing for those who learn and work in the city.

In addition to the Promise, the city will also streamline the ADU ordinance to allow for more ADU models. There will also be a new Downtown Plan to prevent displacement and guide development and design standards that includes building new housing for all income levels in the downtown area.

“The top priority for my administration will be pursuing bold, evidence- based, and sustainable solutions to address the root causes of homelessness and the housing affordability crisis impacting our city and region,” Richardson said.

Building An Economy Where Everyone Thrives

To create a more sustainable and equitable economy, the mayor announced he would launch the Grow Long Beach Initiative to support new and diverse startups within identifies growth sectors.

Representatives from different growth industries will work to identify strategies that support the growth, retention and success of industries deemed to be keys to unlock Long Beach's future prosperity. The industries include aerospace, ports/logistics/supply chain, entertainment and hospitality and educational institutions.

“The health of our economy, and the health of our community are not mutually exclusive,” Richardson said.

The mayor's office also plans to invite small business to listening sessions to understand the challenges they faces during thee COVID-19 pandemic to learn how to help the businesses grow. The effort will focus on reaching out to businesses owned by women and people of color.

A formal designation will also be created for businesses identified as local, historic and family-owned to recognize their contribution to the fabric of the city.

The city will also broaden access for local college students and graduates to work with the City of Long Beach with a new Public Pathways Program. In the sam vein, the city will also propose a Second Chance Program to remove hiring barriers for people with prior offenses before the age of 25 to seek employment with the City of Long Beach.

In the first 100 days, the city will also look for funding opportunities in its budget to support permanent cultural centers that serve Latino, African American, Cambodian and LGBTQ+ residents.

Creating Safe And Healthy Communities

Concerns about community safety inspired the city to create safer streets through the launch of Quality of Life Officers, the formation of a bicycle detail and the launch of the city's first Community Service Response team to respond to priority calls for service.

“If we are going to ensure every resident feels safe walking around their neighborhood at night, then we have more work to do,” Richardson said.

A Police Oversight Commission will support efforts to create greater accountability and transparency with the community. The commission will have full access to police department record and data, the ability to be on scene during investigations and give briefings regarding critical incidents.

The city will also protect and support immigrant communities by providing options in the city budget to expand the Long Beach Justice Fund and increase efforts to help undocumented residents enroll in Medical-Cal.

Expanding Opportunities For Youth To Succeed

At the State of the City Address, Richardson said he believes the youth are the future of the Long Beach and wants to expand youth engagement.

The mayor said he would look to fund a $1 million youth fund and explore creating a Mayor's Youth Council and a future Youth State of the City.

Richardson also said he would explore creating a fellowship program years and that would allow youth in the community opportunities to experience city government and trade school and apprenticeship programs for LBUSD students.

Supporting A Sustainable And Resilient City

The city of Long Beach has taken multiple steps to foster a healthy environment and that sustainability over the year and in 2023 Richardson said he plans to continue that trend.

The Open Space Element Plan will create more community parks which will improve air quality in north, Central and West Long Beach.

Long Beach Airport will also take steps toward being more sustainable by working with federal partners to advocate for mandates to eliminate lead-based pollution in fuels.

At the port, efforts will be expanded by establishing a $10 million vehicle electrification fund, establishing a timeline for the creation of 100 public charging stations within three years and calling on the Board of Harbor Commissioners to double the clean truck rate within a year.