Long Beach Says It's Not Trying To Close MLK Center

LONG BEACH, NY — The City of Long Beach has responded to claims online that it is trying to oust the tenant of the Martin Luther King Community Center, saying they are untrue rumors. The city blamed a former City Council member for spreading the rumors.

An online petition — which has received 2,400 signatures as of Wednesday morning — claims that the city is trying to oust the MLK Center's sole tenant, the non-profit MLK Center, Inc. The city owns the MLK Center itself, but MLK Center, Inc. leases the building and runs the services there.

Online, people claim that the city is trying to oust the non-profit so that it can rent out the building and make more money, or so it can turn the building into condos.

“We can’t be clearer about this: the city is fully prepared to partner with the MLK Center, Inc. to bring programs and services to the residents, especially our youth and seniors," City Council President John Bendo said in a release. "The city and MLK Center, Inc. have a long history together that we want to see thrive.”

According to the city, a new lease agreement was delivered to the MLK Center, Inc.'s lawyers two weeks ago for review. The city said the lease calls for a "modest rent payment and other conventional lease terms not unlike previous agreements between the parties." Representatives from the city and the non-profit are set to meet on Dec. 17 to try to finalize the agreement.

The city said that the claims that it's trying to oust MLK Center, Inc. are false. It said that the "intentional fabrications" are being disseminated online by former City Councilwoman Anissa Moore. Moore shared the link to the petition on her Facebook page.

"The Long Beach City Council and City Manager have decided to suspend the Long Beach Martin Luther King Center's sole resident for over 40 years, MLK Inc," the petition reads. "This grassroots community-based organization has served the most marginalized residents within the city for decades, especially during times of crisis, when the city has abdicated or failed to serve residents of the North Park community. It is unconscionable that they have opted to do this when residents disproportionately affected by a worldwide pandemic need services most!"

The city shuttered the MLK Center for months during the coronavirus pandemic. It was first closed when the city closed nearly all of its other facilities in March. It didn't reopen when others did, though, as the city said the leadership of the center didn't have a coronavirus safety plan in place. It finally reopened in September.

Mack Graham, the executive director of the MLK Center, was unable to be reached for comment.

In a statement to Patch, Moore said she would not retract her statement. According to Moore, developers had been trying to buy up property in the North Park area for years, going back to when she was on the City Council.

"Before I left the city council in the fall of 2019, it was already a known fact that developers were reaching out and were looking into the North Park community," Moore told Patch. "They were already seeking permission from the zoning board. So for the council now to say that they don't know why I would make the statement, that's really irresponsible of them."

According to Moore, development in the North Park community is already pricing out people who have lived there for years.

Moore said there are two things the city can do to prove it's not trying to push out the tenants of the MLK Center: either gift the center back to the community, or give MLK Center, Inc. a long-term lease. But Moore acknowledged that the city's financial problems may force its hand in giving property to developers to expand the tax base.

"Why give people false hope?" she said. "Say what it is. Say we're struggling as a city, and we may or may not be able to continue the work we've done in North Park."