Laserfiche Unveils New Global Headquarters in Long Beach
On Tuesday, April 12, 2022, Laserfiche unveiled its new global headquarters. Laserfiche is the Long Beach-based software company that specializes in business management products. The new facility is a 102,840-square-foot, four-story building located at 3443 Long Beach Blvd. The project, according to the developers, was built with a “biophilic” vision, which is a design philosophy that looks “to increase occupant connectivity to the natural environment.” The concept won the Los Angeles Business Journal 2022 Commercial Real Estate Award.
The building achieves that vision with natural light throughout the entire building by way of floor-to-ceiling windows that offer 270-degree views, a roof cooling system that reduces the heat-island effect and the reintroduction of greenery to the site, which is a remediated oil field. To mitigate solar heating, the project was built with features like vertical and horizontal fins around windows to help shade the interior, which has created an environment less reliant on electric heating and cooling systems.
The workspace can accommodate 550 employees at one time, and though it was planned before the COVID-19 pandemic, it includes features that will enable a hybrid workforce. Meeting rooms were specifically designed to accommodate video conferencing with employees at home, for example, by setting up V-shaped tables with a camera at the end for full visibility.
For more information about Laserfiche, please see their website.
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Cambodian New Year, April 14-16 2022
On Tuesday, April 12, the Long Beach City Council recognized the 2022 Cambodian New Year, that started on Thursday April 14, and commences Saturday, April 16th. The Cambodian or the Khmer people have a long and rich cultural heritage symbolized by the temple city Angkor Wat, considered one of the Wonders of the Ancient World, built between the 9th and 12th centuries, stands as a living icon of the endurance and genius of all Cambodians throughout the world.
Early connections between the United States and Cambodia began in the 1950s, when Cambodia sent bright and talented college students to universities, including California State Universities in Long Beach and Los Angeles, to study technical trades, engineering, and agriculture with the assistance of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID).
After the overthrow of the Khmer Rouge regime in 1979, over 140,000 Cambodians came to the United States as refugees, making the City of Long Beach home to the largest Cambodian population in the United States.
The Cambodian New Year Festival, which is also known as Sangkranti, is also celebrated by Laos, Thailand, Myanmar, Sri Lanka, and some part of India. It is a three day celebration and this year it begins on April 14 and ends on April 16.
Long Beach prides itself on its diversity, inclusion, and support of all race, ethnicities, cultures, faiths, and experiences. Therefore, the Long Beach City Council should receive and file a presentation in recognition of Cambodian New Year to support diverse cultural celebrations.
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City of Long Beach Housing Element Update Receives State Certification – Among the First Cities certified in SCAG region
The City of Long Beach General Plan Housing Element update has been certified by the California Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD), signifying the City’s compliance with State Housing Element law. The certification enables the potential for considerable grants and State funding opportunities for various implementation efforts in Long Beach, including the production of additional affordable housing.
Long Beach is now among the first cities in the Southern California Association of Governments (SCAG) region to have a certified Housing Element update. SCAG is the nation’s largest metropolitan planning organization, representing six counties, 191 cities and more than 18 million residents. Other certified jurisdictions include the City of Duarte, City of San Gabriel, City of Westlake Village, County of Imperial and County of Ventura.
Adopted by the Long Beach City Council in February 2022, the 2021-2029 Housing Element is the sixth update and guides the City’s policies and programs related to housing through 2029. The Housing Element update builds on previous City plans, goals, objectives and strategies to ensure that the City meets the housing needs of current and future Long Beach residents and provides fair housing options for all.
The plan aims to achieve several overarching goals and provides the City with a roadmap for accommodating projected housing demand, increasing housing production, improving housing affordability, preserving existing affordable housing, improving housing conditions, and facilitating the development of housing for all income levels and household types. The update focuses on removing barriers to housing production to address challenges related to housing shortages and homelessness in the city, and introduces important new strategies to address documented fair housing disparities in Long Beach, including inequities in access to quality, affordable housing.
Pursuant to State law, the primary strategy for implementing the Housing Element is to update the City’s zoning code to demonstrate that the City has sufficient zoned capacity to facilitate its Regional Housing Needs Allocation (RHNA), which estimates the number of additional housing units, including affordable housing units, needed for current and future Long Beach residents over the eight-year cycle. This work is already currently underway in Long Beach through the City’s rezoning efforts to implement the 2019 Land Use Element (LUE) update, which provides sufficient zoning capacity to meet the RHNA.
As part of this effort, the City currently has two major planning efforts underway: the Uptown Planning Land Use and Neighborhood Strategy (UPLAN), a collaborative effort between the City and North Long Beach community to guide future development through new zoning; and Zone In: City Core (ACZIP), a collaboration between the City and community to update zoning regulations in the area bounded by Pacific Coast Highway, 10th Street, Magnolia and Ximeno Avenues. In late 2020, the City adopted 12 new zones and rezoned properties along major corridors in North Long Beach through UPLAN, and a second phase of rezoning is anticipated for adoption later this year. Adoption of new zones through the Zone In: City Core (ACZIP) effort is anticipated in early 2023.
The two-year planning process for the Housing Element update consisted of extensive technical analysis, community outreach and engagement with residents, businesses, community-based organizations, affordable housing developers and advocates, homeless services providers, neighborhood associations and stakeholders. City staff conducted various community forums, workshops, community listening sessions, focus groups, a survey and a mailer and social media campaign to solicit public participation and input on the plan. Information was provided in English, Spanish, Khmer and Tagalog.
The City of Long Beach remains committed to improving access to safe, quality housing for residents across all income levels, promoting a diversity of housing types and increasing the feasibility of development of underused sites throughout the city such as underutilized strip malls, as well as focusing new housing near transit and jobs. Since 2019, the City has had nine new affordable housing developments completed or currently underway citywide. Last month, the City celebrated the groundbreaking of Long Beach Senior, a 67-unit affordable housing development and community resource center along Pacific Coast Highway in Midtown. In February, the City also celebrated the grand opening of Vistas del Puerto, a new 48-unit affordable housing project in the Midtown community.
The Housing Element is one of nine mandatory elements of the City’s General Plan, a long-range policy document that provides guidance for future development in Long Beach, and is updated every eight years as mandated by the State. For more information about the Housing Element, visit the Long Beach Development Services website.
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Long Beach is Now the Home of One More Aerospace Startup.
Odys Aviation, which is striving to cut regional air travel times in half and drastically reduce carbon emissions with its new vertical takeoff and landing (VTOL) craft, has moved its headquarters to Long Beach.
The firm recently raised $13.7 million in seed funding to accelerate the development of its hybrid-electric aircraft. While still in the early development stages, the Odys craft’s current design features a wingspan of fewer than 50 feet with 16 helicopter-like rotor systems that will allow for vertical takeoff and landing, and then rotate to propel the vehicle forward. While there may be a larger craft in the future, Dorris said the current configuration accommodates nine passengers along with two pilots.
The company is currently developing a one-seater version of the craft, which will be flown remotely, for a six-to-nine-month testing period set to begin this fall, Dorris said. Simultaneously, the firm is working on the first full-scale prototype, with the first flight slated for late 2023. The company expects the craft to be certified in late 2026 and to enter into service in 2027.
Standard security screening by the U.S. Transportation Security Administration is only required for the craft that carries 30 or more people. Since the new VTOL craft’s capacity is under that threshold, it will not require passengers to undergo TSA security checks, but rather a faster screening process, reducing travel time. The utilization of smaller municipal and general aviation airports such as Long Beach will ease travel time and stress for passengers without the need for new infrastructure to be built.
Odys is the second air mobility company to announce its interest in Long Beach in the last month and a half. In early March, Wisk Aero, which is developing an all-electric autonomous air taxi, teamed up with the Long Beach Economic Partnership to study the feasibility of the tech in the city and across the region. The company recently signed a lease for 15,000 square feet of office and hangar space with Ross Aviation at Long Beach Airport.
For more information about Odys Aviation, please see their website.
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For more information, please contact Mary Frances Torres, SR/WA, Acting Real Estate Development Bureau Manager, Economic Development Department, at mary.torres@longbeach.gov.
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