Why Focus on Economic Resiliency?

The Downtown Shoreline has functioned as a visitor-serving hub for Long Beach residents since modern development was first proposed. It has featured leisure piers, beaches, an amusement park, and more. Rainbow Harbor, as we know it today is largely the result of the Queensway Bay Development Plan, adopted by the City in the 1990s, and developed over the interceding 30 years. The Plan envisioned the central part of the district as a major-waterfront attraction, providing affordable recreation and entertainment for residents and visitors. This vision complemented the existing convention center, theater and arena, and firmly positioned the district first and foremost as a tourism destination.

Since the 1990s the great recession, changing patterns in how people shop and recreate and the COVID-19 pandemic, highlighted the economic vulnerabilities of a plan reliant on retail and tourism. As part of our Vision for 2050 it is critical to consider and address these challenges, as we prepare for the next thirty years of change.

What is economic resiliency?

Economic resilience is a community’s ability to foresee, adapt to, and leverage changing conditions to their advantage.

Resiliency has three primary attributes:

  • The ability to recover quickly from a shock;
  • The ability to withstand a shock; and
  • The ability to avoid the shock altogether.

Shocks may include:

  • Downturns in the national or global economy;
  • Downturns of particular industries critical to local economic activities; and
  • External impacts (e.g. natural disasters, global health crisis, major employer closing, etc.

What are we talking about?

  • What types of jobs should be provided in the Shoreline area?
  • How can the City make the Downtown Shoreline economically sustainable in the future?
  • What types of revenue-generating uses are appropriate for Downtown Shoreline?
  • How do we balance the need for Downtown Shoreline to generate revenue with the need for free and public access?
  • How prominent a role should tourism have as a part of future uses in the Downtown Shoreline?
  • How can Downtown Shoreline balance tourism opportunities with other sources of revenue and strike a harmony between the two?

What uses should be included along the waterfront that are reflective of the local character, support local businesses and create community or interesting places to visit and are authentic to Long Beach?

  • How should we plan for a diversity of housing types to accommodate a variety of lifestyles and affordability and where should it be located?
  • Are there creative ways to integrate new affordable housing opportunities in the waterfront district for employees working in the Shoreline area?

Note: Talking points are subject to change.