SEASP APPROVED
A Smart Plan For Our Future
Dear Neighbor,
I am excited to announce that tonight my City Council colleagues supported my motion to approve a plan for future development in Southeast Long Beach that will get us through the next 40 years while preserving more wetlands habitat than ever before.
Since I came into office in 2014 this has been a project I have been intimately involved in. My commitment to the residents throughout this process has always been very strong as I personally met with countless residents whenever they requested a meeting at any hour of the day or night, as well as weekends. These meetings included discussions of opportunities for improvements, as well as concerns. I also met with and worked continually with city staff as this plan moved through the process becoming more and more detailed because the shaping of this plan, designed to guide development for the next several decades, is very important to the future of Southeast Long Beach. Finding strong middle grounds that take into account all points of view and provide a reasonable approach moving forward is essential to me. The community has expressed its desires, and city staff have been responsive throughout this process leading to good policy.
This plan ensures the entire Los Cerritos Wetlands is restored and is never touched by developers. These wetlands are some of the last remaining in Long Beach and with this plan they will finally be able to be restored.
The new plan also makes significant updates to the previous development plan from 1977 and sets up new standards for public benefit that are needed in order for developers to build. It also reduces the amount of proposed residential development as well as commercial development that would be allowable over the next 40 years.
Most of the 1,000 acres in this plan will remain unchanged, single family residential, community serving commercial properties, and most other parts of the area. Less than 20% of the developed area is seeing any change in what would be allowed for a private property to build. And for those few that want to build, they will be required to provide things the community has again and again said they want throughout the outreach and input process. Including major view corridors, real public space improvements with parks and art, new roads to minimize traffic impacts at 2nd and PCH, commitments to continue improving the surrounding wetlands, and accommodations for bird and wildlife safety in the wetlands.
U
pdating this plan has involved community meetings, surveys, financial analysis, multiple City Council study actions, eight Planning Commission study sessions and considerable staff and consultant work. And today
, much of the area has not seen major improvements to the privately owned properties for many years.
So, with the goal of reinvigorating this area to make it more representative of the desires of the community the city has created a new set of rules developers must follow if they want to build in this area, and those rules are based on the input from the community over the past three years.
The public input on this plan has led to a number of positive changes that ensure the public receives the benefits of these new rules for development in the SEASP area, while also significantly reducing the total amount of allowable development.
Not related to the vote tonight, the SEASP area is also home to a pending new retail project which, if approved, will replace the outdated and blighted Seaport Marina Hotel on the corner of 2nd St. and PCH. This will be an additional project that will become a beautiful location that highlights the natural beauty of the wetlands and the marinas.
Helping develop our communities is an essential responsibility of the city, and doing so involves careful planning and comprehensive public processes where residents are involved and plans are improved as a result. This was certainly the case with SEASP as it passed the City Council tonight with unanimous support.
Again, if you have any questions or comments please feel free to contact my City Hall Office at (562)570-6300 or [email protected].
Sincerely,
Suzie Price
Councilwoman, Third District
