Rezoning Plan Helps Fuel Development

LONG BEACH—Downtown Los Angeles might be the biggest renaissance in the Los Angeles market, but it certainly isn't the only. Downtown Long Beach is seeing an influx of smart money. For Downtown Los Angeles, the adaptive reuse ordinance was the catalyst for much of the growth in that market. In Downtown Long Beach, the new Downtown Plan, which decreases parking requirements and increases the possibility for density has fueled growth in a similar way, according to Jeff Coburn and Greg Gill of Lee & Associates Long Beach office.

"The city passed a very smart, very pro business Downtown Zoning plan, and it has worked so well that they are actually pushing is up to the 405 freeway and Atlantic and Long Beach Blvd., to create a high density corridor up there," Gill tells GlobeSt.com. "That is really important." Gill notes that the plan was first applied to the Promenade, and has been incredibly successful. "The Promenade used to be a north-south street, but they made it a pedestrian access street, and what has happened is that it has turned out to be a super cool place to be," he adds. 

When asked if the new downtown zoning plan was a similar catalyst as the adaptive reuse ordinance in Downtown Los Angeles, Coburn and Gills agreed that it is. "The Downtown Plan in Downtown Long Beach was really a big catalyst," Coburn, a principal in Lee & Associates Long Beach office, tells GlobeSt.com. "For them putting that is was a big move and really opened the door for a lot of stuff. That really helped bring new development and energy to Downtown Long Beach."

The new Downtown Plan, however, isn't the only factor attracting developers. The government—from the mayor's office to the city staff—is supporting development and growth in the market. "Robert Garcia, the Mayor of Long Beach is very pro development," adds Coburn. "The things that are happening were in Robert's vision when he came into office. HE has had think-tank meetings with owners and developers, both on the residential and the commercial side to come in a figure out how to make downtown a better place. The city staff is doing everything that they can, and they are making it so easy. Some of my clients are saying that they roll out the red carpet. It is so easy. It is a well-oiled machine."