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Long Beach is a coastal city in southeastern
Los Angeles County, California Los Angeles County, officially the County of Los Angeles and sometimes abbreviated as LA County, is the List of United States counties and county equivalents, most populous county in the United States, with 9,663,345 residents estimated in 202 ...
, United States. It is the 44th-most populous city in the United States, with a population of 451,307 as of 2022. A
charter city Home rule in the United States relates to the authority of a constituent part of a U.S. state to exercise powers of governance (i.e., whether such powers must be specifically delegated to it by the state—typically by legislative action—or a ...
, Long Beach is the 7th-most populous city in
California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...
, the 2nd-most populous city in Los Angeles County, and the largest city in California that is not a
county seat A county seat is an administrative center, seat of government, or capital city of a county or parish (administrative division), civil parish. The term is in use in five countries: Canada, China, Hungary, Romania, and the United States. An equiva ...
. Incorporated in 1897, Long Beach lies in
Southern California Southern California (commonly shortened to SoCal) is a geographic and Cultural area, cultural List of regions of California, region that generally comprises the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. Its densely populated coastal reg ...
, in the southern part of Los Angeles County. Long Beach is approximately south of
downtown Los Angeles Downtown Los Angeles (DTLA) is the central business district of the city of Los Angeles. It is part of the Central Los Angeles region and covers a area. As of 2020, it contains over 500,000 jobs and has a population of roughly 85,000 residents ...
, and is part of the Gateway Cities region. The
Port of Long Beach The Port of Long Beach, administered as the Harbor Department of the City of Long Beach, is a container port in the United States, which adjoins Port of Los Angeles. Acting as a major gateway for US–Asian trade, the port occupies of land wi ...
is the second busiest container port in the United States and is among the world's largest shipping ports. The city is over an oilfield with minor wells both directly beneath the city as well as offshore. The city is known for its waterfront attractions, including the permanently docked and the
Aquarium of the Pacific The Aquarium of the Pacific (formerly the Long Beach Aquarium of the Pacific) is a public aquarium on a site on Rainbow Harbor in Long Beach, California, United States. It is situated across the water from the Long Beach Convention Center, Sho ...
. Long Beach also hosts the Grand Prix of Long Beach, an
IndyCar IndyCar, LLC (stylized as INDYCAR), is an auto racing sanctioning body for American open-wheel car racing headquartered in Indianapolis, Indiana. The organization sanctions two racing series: the premier IndyCar Series with the Indianapolis ...
race and the Long Beach Pride Festival and Parade.
California State University, Long Beach California State University, Long Beach (CSULB), also known in athletics as Long Beach State University (LBSU), is a public teaching-focused institution in Long Beach, California, United States. The 322-acre campus is the second largest in the ...
, one of the largest universities in California by enrollment, is within the city.


History


Tongva period

Indigenous people There is no generally accepted definition of Indigenous peoples, although in the 21st century the focus has been on self-identification, cultural difference from other groups in a state, a special relationship with their traditional territ ...
have lived in coastal Southern California for over 10,000 years, and several successive cultures have inhabited the present-day area of Long Beach. By the 16th-century arrival of Spanish explorers, the dominant group was the
Tongva The Tongva ( ) are an Indigenous peoples of California, Indigenous people of California from the Los Angeles Basin and the Channel Islands of California, Southern Channel Islands, an area covering approximately . In the precolonial era, the peop ...
, who had established at least three major settlements within the present-day city. ''Tevaaxa'anga'' was an inland settlement near the
Los Angeles River The Los Angeles River (), historically known as by the Tongva and the by the Spanish, is a major river in Los Angeles County, California. Its headwaters are in the Simi Hills and Santa Susana Mountains, and it flows nearly from Canoga Park ...
, while ''Ahwaanga'' and '' Povuu'nga'' were coastal villages. Povuu'nga was particularly important to the Tongva, not only as a regional trading center and hub for fishermen, but for its deep ceremonial significance, being understood as their place of emergence as a people from which their lives began.


Spanish and Mexican period

In 1784, the
Spanish Empire The Spanish Empire, sometimes referred to as the Hispanic Monarchy (political entity), Hispanic Monarchy or the Catholic Monarchy, was a colonial empire that existed between 1492 and 1976. In conjunction with the Portuguese Empire, it ushered ...
's King Carlos III granted Rancho Los Nietos to Spanish soldier Manuel Nieto. The Rancho Los Cerritos and Rancho Los Alamitos were divided from this territory. The boundary between the two ranchos ran through the center of Signal Hill on a southwest to northeast diagonal. A portion of western Long Beach was originally part of the Rancho San Pedro. Its boundaries were in dispute for years, due to flooding changing the
Los Angeles River The Los Angeles River (), historically known as by the Tongva and the by the Spanish, is a major river in Los Angeles County, California. Its headwaters are in the Simi Hills and Santa Susana Mountains, and it flows nearly from Canoga Park ...
boundary between Rancho San Pedro and Rancho Los Nietos. By 1805, what had been the major Tongva village of Puvunga was thoroughly depleted of villagers, most of whom were brought to Mission San Gabriel for conversion and as a labor force. Many villagers died at the mission, which had a high rate of death, particularly among children, attributed to many factors like diseases that spread quickly in the close quarters of the mission's walls, as well as torture, malnourishment, and overworking. In 1843, Juan Temple bought Rancho Los Cerritos, having arrived in California in 1827 from
New England New England is a region consisting of six states in the Northeastern United States: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. It is bordered by the state of New York (state), New York to the west and by the ...
. He built what is now known as the " Los Cerritos Ranch House", a still-standing
adobe Adobe (from arabic: الطوب Attub ; ) is a building material made from earth and organic materials. is Spanish for mudbrick. In some English-speaking regions of Spanish heritage, such as the Southwestern United States, the term is use ...
which is a
National Historic Landmark A National Historic Landmark (NHL) is a National Register of Historic Places property types, building, district, object, site, or structure that is officially recognized by the Federal government of the United States, United States government f ...
. Temple created a thriving cattle ranch and prospered, becoming the wealthiest man in Los Angeles County. Both Temple and his ranch house played important local roles in the
Mexican–American War The Mexican–American War (Spanish language, Spanish: ''guerra de Estados Unidos-México, guerra mexicano-estadounidense''), also known in the United States as the Mexican War, and in Mexico as the United States intervention in Mexico, ...
. On an island in the San Pedro Bay,
Mormon Mormons are a religious and cultural group related to Mormonism, the principal branch of the Latter Day Saint movement started by Joseph Smith in upstate New York during the 1820s. After Smith's death in 1844, the movement split into several ...
pioneers made an abortive attempt to establish a colony (as part of
Brigham Young Brigham Young ( ; June 1, 1801August 29, 1877) was an American religious leader and politician. He was the second President of the Church (LDS Church), president of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) from 1847 until h ...
's plan to establish a continuous chain of settlements from the Pacific to
Salt Lake A salt lake or saline lake is a landlocked body of water that has a concentration of salts (typically sodium chloride) and other dissolved minerals significantly higher than most lakes (often defined as at least three grams of salt per liter). I ...
).


Post-Conquest period

Following the U.S.
Conquest of California The Conquest of California, also known as the Conquest of Alta California or the California Campaign, was a military campaign during the Mexican–American War carried out by the United States in Alta California (modern-day California), then part ...
, Temple had his Rancho Los Cerritos deeded to him by the
Public Land Commission The California Land Act of 1851 (), enacted following the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo and the admission of California as a state in 1850, established the California State Lands Commission to determine the validity of prior Spanish and Mexican l ...
. In 1866, Temple sold Rancho Los Cerritos for $20,000 to the Northern California sheep-raising firm of Flint, Bixby & Company, which consisted of brothers Thomas and Benjamin Flint and their cousin Llewellyn Bixby. Two years previous Flint, Bixby & Co had also purchased along with Northern California associate James Irvine, three ranchos which would later become the city that bears Irvine's name. To manage Rancho Los Cerritos, the company selected Llewellyn's brother Jotham Bixby, the "Father of Long Beach". Three years later, Bixby bought into the property and would later form the Bixby Land Company. In the 1870s, as many as 30,000 sheep were kept at the ranch and sheared twice yearly to provide wool for trade. In 1880, Bixby sold of the Rancho Los Cerritos to William E. Willmore, who subdivided it in hopes of creating a farm community, Willmore City. He failed and was bought out by a Los Angeles syndicate that called itself the "Long Beach Land and Water Company". They changed the name of the community to Long Beach at that time.


Incorporation

The City of Long Beach was officially incorporated in 1897. The town grew as a
seaside resort A seaside resort is a city, resort town, town, village, or hotel that serves as a Resort, vacation resort and is located on a coast. Sometimes the concept includes an aspect of an official accreditation based on the satisfaction of certain requi ...
with light agricultural uses. The Pike was the most famous beachside amusement zone on the West Coast from 1902 until 1969; it offered bathers food, games and rides, such at the ''Sky Wheel'' dual
Ferris wheel A Ferris wheel (also called a big wheel, giant wheel or an observation wheel) is an amusement ride consisting of a rotating upright wheel with multiple passenger-carrying components (commonly referred to as passenger cars, cabins, tubs, gondola ...
and ''Cyclone Racer''
roller coaster A roller coaster is a type of list of amusement rides, amusement ride employing a form of elevated Railway track, railroad track that carries passengers on a roller coaster train, train through tight turns, steep slopes, and other elements, usua ...
. Gradually the oil industry, Navy shipyard and facilities and port became the mainstays of the city. In the 1950s it was referred to as "Iowa by the sea", due to a large influx of people from that and other
Midwestern The Midwestern United States (also referred to as the Midwest, the Heartland or the American Midwest) is one of the four census regions defined by the United States Census Bureau. It occupies the northern central part of the United States. It ...
states. Huge picnics for migrants from each state were a popular annual event in Long Beach until the 1960s. Another Bixby cousin, John W. Bixby, was influential in the city. After first working for his cousins at Los Cerritos, J.W. Bixby leased land at Rancho Los Alamitos. He put together a group: banker I.W. Hellman, Llewellyn and Jotham Bixby, and him, to purchase the rancho. In addition to bringing innovative farming methods to the Alamitos (which under Abel Stearns in the late 1850s and early 1860s was once the largest cattle ranch in the US), J.W. Bixby began the development of the oceanfront property near the city's picturesque bluffs. Under the name Alamitos Land Company, J.W. Bixby named the streets and laid out the parks of his new city. This area would include Belmont Heights, Belmont Shore and Naples; it soon became a thriving community of its own. J.W. Bixby died in 1888 of apparent
appendicitis Appendicitis is inflammation of the Appendix (anatomy), appendix. Symptoms commonly include right lower abdominal pain, nausea, vomiting, fever and anorexia (symptom), decreased appetite. However, approximately 40% of people do not have these t ...
. The Rancho Los Alamitos property was split up, with Hellman getting the southern third, Jotham and Llewellyn, the northern third, and J.W. Bixby's widow and heirs keeping the central third. The Alamitos townsite was kept as a separate entity, but at first, it was primarily run by Llewellyn and Jotham Bixby, although I.W, Hellman (who had the largest single share) had a significant veto power, an influence made even stronger as the J.W. Bixby heirs began to side with Hellman more and more. When Jotham Bixby died in 1916, the remaining of Rancho Los Cerritos was subdivided into the neighborhoods of Bixby Knolls, California Heights, Los Cerritos, North Long Beach and part of the city of Signal Hill. Pine Avenue near 4th became the center of a large shopping district. Besides upscale Buffums (1912; expanded 1926), in 1929 alone Barker Brothers, the Hugh A. Marti Co., and
Wise Company The Wise Company (stylized The Wise Co., a.k.a. The Wise Store) was a department store in Long Beach, California founded in the early 1900s by W. H. ("Herb") Wise. In 1894 Wise opened a grocery store at Cherry Ave. and Third Street in Long Beach ...
and Famous department stores built large new stores, Walker's (1933), and nearby at American and 5th,
Sears Sears, Roebuck and Co., commonly known as Sears ( ), is an American chain of department stores and online retailer founded in 1892 by Richard Warren Sears and Alvah Curtis Roebuck and reincorporated in 1906 by Richard Sears and Julius Rosen ...
(1928) and
Montgomery Ward Montgomery Ward is the name of two successive U.S. retail corporations. The original Montgomery Ward & Co. was a mail-order business and later a department store chain that operated between 1872 and 2001; its common nickname was "Monkey Wards". ...
(1929). It would remain popular until suburban malls sprung up starting in the 1950s. (see also: History of Retail in Southern California) Oil was discovered in 1921 on Signal Hill, which split off as a separately incorporated city shortly afterward. The discovery of the Long Beach Oil Field, brought in by the gusher at the Alamitos oil well#1, made Long Beach a major oil producer; in the 1920s the field was the most productive in the world.Schmitt, R. J., Dugan, J. E., and M. R. Adamson. "Industrial Activity and Its Socioeconomic Impacts: Oil and Three Coastal California Counties." MMS OCS Study 2002-049. Coastal Research Center, Marine Science Institute, University of California, Santa Barbara, California. MMS Cooperative Agreement Number 14-35-01-00-CA-31603. 244 pages; p. 47. In 1932, the even larger
Wilmington Oil Field The Wilmington Oil Field is a prolific petroleum field in Los Angeles County, California, Los Angeles County in southern California in the United States. Discovered in 1932, it is the third largest oil field in the United States in terms of cumu ...
, fourth-largest in the United States, and which is mostly in Long Beach, was developed, contributing to the city's fame in the 1930s as an oil town. The M6.4
1933 Long Beach earthquake The 1933 Long Beach earthquake took place on March 10 at south of downtown Los Angeles. The epicenter was offshore, southeast of Long Beach, California, on the Newport–Inglewood Fault. The earthquake had a magnitude estimated at 6.4 , and ...
caused significant damage to the city and surrounding areas, killing a total of 120 people. Most of the damage occurred in unreinforced masonry buildings, especially schools. Pacific Bible Seminary (now known as Hope International University) was forced to move classes out of First Christian Church of Long Beach and into a small local home due to damage. The
Ford Motor Company Ford Motor Company (commonly known as Ford) is an American multinational corporation, multinational automobile manufacturer headquartered in Dearborn, Michigan, United States. It was founded by Henry Ford and incorporated on June 16, 1903. T ...
built a factory called Long Beach Assembly at the then address in 1929 as "700 Henry Ford Avenue, Long Beach" where the factory began building the Ford Model A. Production of Ford vehicles continued after the war until 1960, when the plant was closed due to a fire, and January 1991 when the factory was demolished partially due to air quality remediation efforts. Ford had earlier opened a factory in Los Angeles at 12th Street and Olive, with a later factory built at East Seventh Street and Santa Fe Avenue after 1914. Come 1938, the creation of Housing Authorities for both the City and County of Los Angeles were complete — and North Long Beach was to be home to the County Authority's first order of business: the Carmelitos Housing Project, Southern California's first affordable housing complex.


World War II and contemporary history

Long Beach, as a port city, had a relationship with the U.S. Navy even before the war. The city was part of the Battle of Los Angeles during
World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
when observers for the
United States Army Air Forces The United States Army Air Forces (USAAF or AAF) was the major land-based aerial warfare service component of the United States Army and ''de facto'' aerial warfare service branch of the United States during and immediately after World War II ...
reported shells being fired from the sea. Anti-aircraft batteries fired into the night sky, although no planes were ever sighted. Long Beach's population grew substantially during and after the war, with workers being needed for wartime manufacturing and
G.I. bill The G.I. Bill, formally the Servicemen's Readjustment Act of 1944, was a law that provided a range of benefits for some of the returning World War II veterans (commonly referred to as G.I. (military), G.I.s). The original G.I. Bill expired in ...
recipients seeking out homes in California. Suburbs were built by the Bixby land companies and others.
Douglas Aircraft Company The Douglas Aircraft Company was an American aerospace manufacturer, aerospace and military, defense company based in Southern California. Founded in 1921 by Donald Wills Douglas Sr., it merged with McDonnell Aircraft in 1967 to form McDonnell D ...
's largest facility was its Long Beach plant, totaling . The first plane rolled out the door on December 23, 1941. The plant produced C-47 Skytrain transports,
B-17 Flying Fortress The Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress is an American four-engined heavy bomber aircraft developed in the 1930s for the United States Army Air Corps (USAAC). A fast and high-flying bomber, the B-17 dropped more bombs than any other aircraft during ...
bombers, and A-20 Havoc attack bombers simultaneously. Douglas merged with the McDonnell Aircraft Company in 1967 where the
Douglas DC-8 The Douglas DC-8 (sometimes McDonnell Douglas DC-8) is an early long-range Narrow-body aircraft, narrow-body jetliner designed and produced by the American Douglas Aircraft Company. Work began in 1952 towards the United States Air Force's (USA ...
and the
McDonnell Douglas DC-9 The McDonnell Douglas DC-9 is an American five-abreast, single-aisle aircraft designed by the Douglas Aircraft Company. It was initially produced as the Douglas DC-9 prior to August 1967, after which point the company had merged with McDonnell ...
were built. In 1997 McDonnell Douglas merged with
Boeing The Boeing Company, or simply Boeing (), is an American multinational corporation that designs, manufactures, and sells airplanes, rotorcraft, rockets, satellites, and missiles worldwide. The company also provides leasing and product support s ...
, which made C-17 Globemaster transport planes in Long Beach until the closure of the manufacturing facility in 2015. Long Beach also saw an instance of the Chicano(a) movement in 1968.


Geography

Long Beach is about south of downtown
Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...
. According to the
United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau, officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the Federal statistical system, U.S. federal statistical system, responsible for producing data about the American people and American economy, econ ...
, the city has a total area of , of which is land and (36.8%) is water. Long Beach completely surrounds the city of Signal Hill.


Climate

Long Beach has a climate that can either be described as a
hot semi-arid climate A semi-arid climate, semi-desert climate, or steppe climate is a dry climate sub-type. It is located on regions that receive precipitation below potential evapotranspiration, but not as low as a desert climate. There are different kinds of sem ...
or a
hot-summer Mediterranean climate A Mediterranean climate ( ), also called a dry summer climate, described by Köppen and Trewartha as ''Cs'', is a temperate climate type that occurs in the lower mid-latitudes (normally 30 to 44 north and south latitude). Such climates typic ...
. In general, the city features hot summers and mild to warm winters with occasional rainfall. Days in Long Beach are mostly sunny, as in Southern California in general. Temperatures recorded at the weather station at the
Long Beach Airport Long Beach Airport is a public airport northeast of downtown Long Beach, California, Long Beach, in Los Angeles County, California, United States. It is also called Daugherty Field, named after local aviator Earl Daugherty. The airport was an ...
, inland from the ocean, range more greatly than those along the immediate coast. During the summer months, low clouds and fog occur frequently, developing overnight and blanketing the area on many mornings. This fog usually clears by the afternoon, and a westerly sea breeze often develops, keeping temperatures mild. Heat and high humidity can sometimes coincide in summer, which may cause discomfort due to the heat index. According to data analysis provided by the NWS, The annual average temperature of Long Beach is , of which August is the hottest month with an average temperature of , while December is the coldest month with an average temperature of . In terms of temperature, Long Beach and other California cities such as
Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...
and
San Francisco San Francisco, officially the City and County of San Francisco, is a commercial, Financial District, San Francisco, financial, and Culture of San Francisco, cultural center of Northern California. With a population of 827,526 residents as of ...
have the hottest month of the year usually in August and the coolest month in December. Long Beach has 23 days of afternoon temperatures above each year, and about two days a year are above . Long Beach's location directly east of the
Palos Verdes Peninsula The Palos Verdes Peninsula () is a peninsular subregion of the Los Angeles metropolitan area, located within southwestern Los Angeles County, California. It is often called simply "Palos Verdes", and is made up of a group of cities in the Palos ...
, paired with its south facing coastline, results in the city sometimes experiencing different weather patterns than the Los Angeles metropolitan area coastal communities to the northwest and southeast of Long Beach, which largely have west facing coastlines. The 1200 ft Palos Verdes hills block west to east airflow and a significant amount of the coastal moisture that marks other coastal cities, such as Manhattan Beach,
Santa Monica Santa Monica (; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Santa Mónica'') is a city in Los Angeles County, California, Los Angeles County, situated along Santa Monica Bay on California's South Coast (California), South Coast. Santa Monica's 2020 United Sta ...
, and
Newport Beach Newport Beach is a coastal city of about 85,000 in southern Orange County, California, United States. Located about southeast of downtown Los Angeles, Newport Beach is known for its sandy beaches. The city's harbor once supported maritime indu ...
. As in most locations in Southern California, most rainfall in Long Beach occurs during the winter months. Storms can bring heavy rainfall. The annual precipitation in Long Beach is , of which the precipitation from December to March of the following year accounts for 81% of the whole year. June to September is usually rainless, especially August.


Neighborhoods

Long Beach is composed of many different neighborhoods. Some neighborhoods are named after thoroughfares, while others are named for nearby parks, schools, or city features.


Environment


Pollution

Long Beach suffers from some of the worst air pollution in the entire
United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...
. Most of the city is in proximity to the twin ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach, and the prevailing westerly-to-west-south-westerly winds bring a large portion of the twin ports' air pollution directly into Long Beach before dispersing it northward then eastward. Heavy pollution sources at the ports include the ships themselves, which burn high-sulfur, high-soot-producing bunker fuel to maintain internal electrical power while docked, as well as heavy diesel pollution from drayage trucks at the ports, and short-haul tractor-trailer trucks ferrying cargo from the ports to inland warehousing, rail yards, and shipping centers. Long-term average levels of toxic air pollutants (and the corresponding
carcinogenic A carcinogen () is any agent that promotes the development of cancer. Carcinogens can include synthetic chemicals, naturally occurring substances, physical agents such as ionizing and non-ionizing radiation, and Biological agent, biologic agent ...
risk they create) can be two to three times higher in and around Long Beach, and in downwind areas to the east, than in other parts of the Los Angeles metropolitan area, such as the Westside,
San Fernando Valley The San Fernando Valley, known locally as the Valley, is an urbanized valley in Los Angeles County, Los Angeles County, California. Situated to the north of the Los Angeles Basin, it comprises a large portion of Los Angeles, the Municipal corpo ...
, or
San Gabriel Valley The San Gabriel Valley (), sometimes referred to by its initials as SGV, is one of the principal valleys of Southern California, with the city of Los Angeles directly bordering it to the west and occupying the vast majority of the southeastern ...
. While overall regional pollution in the Los Angeles metropolitan area has declined in the last decade, pollution levels remain dangerously high in much of Long Beach due to the port pollution, with diesel exhaust from ships, trains, and trucks as the largest sources.Additionally, Long Beach is directly downwind of several of the South Bay
oil refineries An oil refinery or petroleum refinery is an industrial process plant where petroleum (crude oil) is transformed and refined into products such as gasoline (petrol), diesel fuel, asphalt base, fuel oils, heating oil, kerosene, liquefied pet ...
. Any refinery process or chemical upset that results in the atmospheric release of refinery by-products (commonly
sulfur dioxide Sulfur dioxide (IUPAC-recommended spelling) or sulphur dioxide (traditional Commonwealth English) is the chemical compound with the formula . It is a colorless gas with a pungent smell that is responsible for the odor of burnt matches. It is r ...
) will usually impact air quality in Long Beach due to the west-south-westerly prevailing wind. Similarly, the water quality in the Long Beach portion of San Pedro Bay, which is enclosed by the Federal Breakwater, commonly ranks among the poorest on the entire West Coast during rainy periods. Long Beach beaches average a D or F grade on beach water quality during rainy periods in the ''Beach Report Card'' published by Heal the Bay. However, during dry periods the water may have an A or B rating in the same reports. The
Los Angeles River The Los Angeles River (), historically known as by the Tongva and the by the Spanish, is a major river in Los Angeles County, California. Its headwaters are in the Simi Hills and Santa Susana Mountains, and it flows nearly from Canoga Park ...
discharges directly into the Long Beach side of San Pedro Bay, meaning a large portion of all the
urban runoff Urban runoff is surface runoff of rainwater, landscape irrigation, and car washing created by urbanization. Impervious surfaces (roads, parking lots and sidewalks) are constructed during land development. During rain, storms, and other Precipitati ...
from the entire Los Angeles metropolitan area pours directly into the harbor water. This runoff contains most of the debris, garbage, chemical pollutants, and biological pathogens washed into storm drains in every upstream city each time it rains. Because the breakwater prevents tidal flushing and
wave action In fluid dynamics, a wind wave, or wind-generated water wave, is a surface wave that occurs on the free surface of bodies of water as a result of the wind blowing over the water's surface. The contact distance in the direction of the wind is k ...
, these pollutants build up in the harbor. The water enclosed by the breakwater, along most of the city's beaches, can be subject to
red tide A harmful algal bloom (HAB), or excessive algae growth, sometimes called a red tide in marine environments, is an algal bloom that causes negative impacts to other organisms by production of natural algae-produced toxins, water deoxygenation, ...
s due to this stagnation as well. Because of these factors, the water in Long Beach is sometimes unsafe for swimming, up to weeks each year.


Ecology

The area has historically included several ecological communities, with coastal scrub dominating.


Demographics

The top five countries of origin for Long Beach's immigrants are
Mexico Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United States to the north, and Guatemala and Belize to the southeast; while having maritime boundar ...
, the
Philippines The Philippines, officially the Republic of the Philippines, is an Archipelagic state, archipelagic country in Southeast Asia. Located in the western Pacific Ocean, it consists of List of islands of the Philippines, 7,641 islands, with a tot ...
,
Cambodia Cambodia, officially the Kingdom of Cambodia, is a country in Southeast Asia on the Mainland Southeast Asia, Indochinese Peninsula. It is bordered by Thailand to the northwest, Laos to the north, and Vietnam to the east, and has a coastline ...
,
El Salvador El Salvador, officially the Republic of El Salvador, is a country in Central America. It is bordered on the northeast by Honduras, on the northwest by Guatemala, and on the south by the Pacific Ocean. El Salvador's capital and largest city is S ...
and
Vietnam Vietnam, officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam (SRV), is a country at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of about and a population of over 100 million, making it the world's List of countries and depende ...
. The most common foreign languages spoken in Long Beach are Spanish, Khmer and Tagalog. There is a
Mexican American Mexican Americans are Americans of full or partial Mexico, Mexican descent. In 2022, Mexican Americans comprised 11.2% of the US population and 58.9% of all Hispanic and Latino Americans. In 2019, 71% of Mexican Americans were born in the Unite ...
/
Chicano Chicano (masculine form) or Chicana (feminine form) is an ethnic identity for Mexican Americans that emerged from the Chicano Movement. In the 1960s, ''Chicano'' was widely reclaimed among Hispanics in the building of a movement toward politic ...
community in Long Beach. Cambodian people and
Filipino Americans Filipino Americans () are Americans of Filipino ancestry. Filipinos in North America were first documented in the 16th century and other small settlements beginning in the 18th century. Mass migration did not begin until after the end of the Sp ...
also settled in Long Beach. There is a
Buddhist Buddhism, also known as Buddhadharma and Dharmavinaya, is an Indian religion and List of philosophies, philosophical tradition based on Pre-sectarian Buddhism, teachings attributed to the Buddha, a wandering teacher who lived in the 6th or ...
community in Long Beach.
Christianity Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion, which states that Jesus in Christianity, Jesus is the Son of God (Christianity), Son of God and Resurrection of Jesus, rose from the dead after his Crucifixion of Jesus, crucifixion, whose ...
is the most common religion.


2022

American Community Survey The American Community Survey (ACS) is an annual demographics survey program conducted by the United States Census Bureau. It regularly gathers information previously contained only in the long form of the United States census, decennial census ...
estimates, there were people and households. The
population density Population density (in agriculture: Standing stock (disambiguation), standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geog ...
was . There were housing units at an average density of .To calculate density we use the land area figure from the places file in The racial makeup of the city was 34.6% White, 20.1% some other race, 12.5% Asian, 11.8% Black or African American, 1.8% Native American or Alaskan Native, and 1.0% Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander, with 18.2% from two or more races. Hispanics or Latinos of any race were 44.0% of the population. Of the households, 27.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 25.9% had seniors 65 years or older living with them, 35.6% were married couples living together, 9.7% were couples cohabitating, 22.3% had a male householder with no partner present, and 32.5% had a female householder with no partner present. The median household size was and the median family size was . The age distribution was 20.0% under 18, 10.2% from 18 to 24, 30.7% from 25 to 44, 25.6% from 45 to 64, and 13.6% who were 65 or older. The median age was years. For every 100 females, there were males. The median income for a household was $, with family households having a median income of $ and non-family households $. The
per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or average income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. In many countries, per capita income is determined using regular population surveys, such ...
was $. Out of the people with a determined poverty status, 13.8% were below the
poverty line The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line, or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for ...
. Further, 17.9% of minors and 16.2% of seniors were below the poverty line. In the survey, residents self-identified with various ethnic ancestries. People of German descent made up 6.0% of the population of the town, followed by English at 5.2%, Irish at 5.0%,
Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, a Romance ethnic group related to or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance languag ...
at 3.1%, American at 1.8%, Polish at 1.3%, French at 1.1%, Scottish at 1.1%,
Sub-Saharan Africa Sub-Saharan Africa is the area and regions of the continent of Africa that lie south of the Sahara. These include Central Africa, East Africa, Southern Africa, and West Africa. Geopolitically, in addition to the list of sovereign states and ...
n at 0.8%, Swedish at 0.7%,
Greek Greek may refer to: Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor of all kno ...
at 0.6%, Scotch-Irish at 0.6%, Caribbean (excluding Hispanics) at 0.6%, Russian at 0.5%, Dutch at 0.5%, Danish at 0.5%, and Norwegian at 0.5%.


2020


2010

The 2010 United States Census reported that Long Beach had a population of 462,257. The population density was . The racial makeup of Long Beach was 213,066 (46.1%)
White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...
, 62,603 (13.5%) Black or
African American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...
, 3,458 (0.7%) Native American, 59,496 (12.9%) Asian (4.5% Filipino, 3.9% Cambodian, 0.9% Vietnamese, 0.6% Chinese, 0.6% Japanese, 0.4% Indian, 0.4% Korean, 0.2% Thai, 0.1% Laotian, 0.1% Hmong), 5,253 (1.1%)
Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, Pacificans, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the list of islands in the Pacific Ocean, Pacific Islands. As an ethnic group, ethnic/race (human categorization), racial term, it is used to describe th ...
(0.8% Samoan, 0.1% Guamanian, 0.1% Tongan), 93,930 (20.3%) from other races, and 24,451 (5.3%) from two or more races.
Hispanic The term Hispanic () are people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or broadly. In some contexts, Hispanic and Latino Americans, especially within the United States, "Hispanic" is used as an Ethnici ...
or Latino of any race were 188,412 persons (40.8%). 32.9% of the city's population was of Mexican heritage.Profile of General Population and Housing Characteristics: 2010
". U.S. Census Bureau. Retrieved June 7, 2012.
Non-Hispanic Whites Non-Hispanic Whites, also referred to as White Anglo Americans or Non-Latino Whites, are White Americans who are classified by the United States census as "White" and not of Hispanic or Latino origin. According to annual estimates from the Unit ...
were 29.4% of the population in 2010, down from 86.2% in 1970. The ethnic Cambodian population of approximately 20,000 is the largest outside of Asia. The Census reported 453,980 people (98.2% of the population) lived in households, 5,321 (1.2%) lived in non-institutionalized group quarters, and 2,956 (0.6%) were institutionalized. There were 163,531 households, out of which 58,073 (35.5%) had children under the age of 18 living in them, 61,850 (37.8%) were opposite-sex married couples living together, 26,781 (16.4%) had a female householder with no husband present, 10,598 (6.5%) had a male householder with no wife present. There were 12,106 (7.4%) unmarried opposite-sex partnerships, and 3,277 (2.0%) same-sex married couples or partnerships. Of the households, 46,536 (28.5%) were made up of individuals, and 11,775 (7.2%) had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.78. There were 99,229
families Family (from ) is a group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or affinity (by marriage or other relationship). It forms the basis for social order. Ideally, families offer predictability, structure, and safety as ...
(60.7% of all households); the average family size was 3.52. The age distribution of the city was as follows: 115,143 people (24.9%) were under the age of 18, 54,163 people (11.7%) aged 18 to 24, 140,910 people (30.5%) aged 25 to 44, 109,206 people (23.6%) aged 45 to 64, and 42,835 people (9.3%) who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 33.2 years. For every 100 females, there were 96.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 93.8 males. There were 176,032 dwelling units at an average density of , of which 67,949 (41.6%) were owner-occupied, and 95,582 (58.4%) were occupied by renters. The homeowner vacancy rate was 2.0%; the rental vacancy rate was 7.2%. 195,254 people (42.2% of the population) lived in owner-occupied housing units and 258,726 people (56.0%) lived in rental housing units. During 2009–2013, Long Beach had a
median household income The median income is the income amount that divides a population into two groups, half having an income above that amount, and half having an income below that amount. It may differ from the mean (or average) income. Both of these are ways of und ...
of $52,711, with 20.2% of the population living below the federal poverty line. As of 2014, the population of Long Beach was 473,577.


2000

As of the
census A census (from Latin ''censere'', 'to assess') is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording, and calculating population information about the members of a given Statistical population, population, usually displayed in the form of stati ...
of 2000, there were 461,522 people, 163,088 households, and 99,646 families residing in the city. The
population density Population density (in agriculture: Standing stock (disambiguation), standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geog ...
was . There were 171,632 dwelling units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 45.2%
White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...
, 14.9% Black or African American (U.S. Census), 0.8% Native American, 12.1% Asian, 1.2%
Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, Pacificans, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the list of islands in the Pacific Ocean, Pacific Islands. As an ethnic group, ethnic/race (human categorization), racial term, it is used to describe th ...
, 20.6% from other races, and 5.3% from two or more races.
Hispanic The term Hispanic () are people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or broadly. In some contexts, Hispanic and Latino Americans, especially within the United States, "Hispanic" is used as an Ethnici ...
or Latino people of any race were 35.8% of the population. The city has changed since the 1950s, when its population was predominantly European-American and the city was nicknamed "Iowa by the Sea" or "Iowa under Palm Trees" as it had a slower pace than neighboring Los Angeles. In 1950, whites represented 97.4% of Long Beach's population. Since the second half of the 20th century, the city has been a major port of entry for Asian and Latin American immigrants headed to Los Angeles. The Harbor section of downtown Long Beach was once home to people of Dutch,
Greek Greek may refer to: Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor of all kno ...
,
Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, a Romance ethnic group related to or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance languag ...
, Maltese, Portuguese and Spanish ancestry, most of them employed in manufacturing and fish canneries until the 1960s. According to a report by ''
USA Today ''USA Today'' (often stylized in all caps) is an American daily middle-market newspaper and news broadcasting company. Founded by Al Neuharth in 1980 and launched on September 14, 1982, the newspaper operates from Gannett's corporate headq ...
'' in 2000, Long Beach is the most ethnically diverse large city in the United States. It has a relatively high proportion of Pacific Islanders (over 1% as of the 2000 Census), from
Samoa Samoa, officially the Independent State of Samoa and known until 1997 as Western Samoa, is an island country in Polynesia, part of Oceania, in the South Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main islands (Savai'i and Upolu), two smaller, inhabited ...
and
Tonga Tonga, officially the Kingdom of Tonga, is an island country in Polynesia, part of Oceania. The country has 171 islands, of which 45 are inhabited. Its total surface area is about , scattered over in the southern Pacific Ocean. accordin ...
. Most American Indians, about 0.8% of the city's population, arrived during the
Department of the Interior The United States Department of the Interior (DOI) is an executive department of the U.S. federal government responsible for the management and conservation of most federal lands and natural resources. It also administers programs relatin ...
's
Bureau of Indian Affairs The Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA), also known as Indian Affairs (IA), is a United States List of United States federal agencies, federal agency within the U.S. Department of the Interior, Department of the Interior. It is responsible for im ...
urban relocation programs in the 1950s. Long Beach once had a sizable
Japanese American are Americans of Japanese ancestry. Japanese Americans were among the three largest Asian Americans, Asian American ethnic communities during the 20th century; but, according to the 2000 United States census, 2000 census, they have declined in ...
population, which largely worked in the fish canneries on Terminal Island and on small truck farms in the area. In 1942, not long after the
Attack on Pearl Harbor The attack on Pearl HarborAlso known as the Battle of Pearl Harbor was a surprise military strike by the Empire of Japan on the United States Pacific Fleet at Naval Station Pearl Harbor, its naval base at Pearl Harbor on Oahu, Territory of ...
and subsequent Japanese declaration of war on the United States and the British Empire, President
Franklin D. Roosevelt Franklin Delano Roosevelt (January 30, 1882April 12, 1945), also known as FDR, was the 32nd president of the United States, serving from 1933 until his death in 1945. He is the longest-serving U.S. president, and the only one to have served ...
issued United States Executive Order 9066 which allowed military commanders to designate areas "from which any or all persons may be excluded". Under this order, all Japanese and Americans of Japanese ancestry were categorically removed from Western coastal regions and sent to
internment camp Internment is the imprisonment of people, commonly in large groups, without Criminal charge, charges or Indictment, intent to file charges. The term is especially used for the confinement "of enemy citizens in wartime or of terrorism suspects ...
s, without regard for
due process Due process of law is application by the state of all legal rules and principles pertaining to a case so all legal rights that are owed to a person are respected. Due process balances the power of law of the land and protects the individual p ...
. 24,000
Jews Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...
live in Long Beach. Jews are concentrated in Rossmor, Los Alamitos, Seal Beach, and Lakewood in the Greater Long Beach area. As of the 2000 census, there were 163,088 households, out of which 35.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 39.2% were
married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognised union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children (if any), and b ...
living together, 16.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 38.9% were non-families. Of all households, 29.6% were made up of individuals, and 7.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.77 and the average family size was 3.55. In the city, 29.2% of the population was under the age of 18, 10.9% from 18 to 24, 32.9% from 25 to 44, 18.0% from 45 to 64, and 9.1% was 65 years of age or older. The median age was 31 years. For every 100 females, there were 96.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 93.5 males. The median income for a household in the city was $37,270, and the median income for a family was $40,002. Males had a median income of $36,807 versus $31,975 for females. The
per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or average income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. In many countries, per capita income is determined using regular population surveys, such ...
for the city was $19,040. About 19.3% of families and 22.8% of the population were below the
poverty line The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line, or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for ...
, including 32.7% of those under age 18 and 11.0% of those age 65 or over. In 2008, the Census Bureau showed the number of people living below the poverty line had dropped to 18.2%. The most commonly reported ancestries of Long Beach residents were Mexican (28.1%) and German (5.5%), according to the 2000 census.
Mexico Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United States to the north, and Guatemala and Belize to the southeast; while having maritime boundar ...
(51.0%) and the
Philippines The Philippines, officially the Republic of the Philippines, is an Archipelagic state, archipelagic country in Southeast Asia. Located in the western Pacific Ocean, it consists of List of islands of the Philippines, 7,641 islands, with a tot ...
(10.3%) were the most common foreign places of birth.


Homelessness

In 2022, the Long Beach's point-in-time Homeless Count counted 3,296 homeless individuals in the city.


Economy

The economic base has changed over the years. Oil extraction created a boom and continues to fund portions of the city budget. Long Beach was a Navy town for many years before the base closed. The aerospace industry played an important role.
Douglas Aircraft Company The Douglas Aircraft Company was an American aerospace manufacturer, aerospace and military, defense company based in Southern California. Founded in 1921 by Donald Wills Douglas Sr., it merged with McDonnell Aircraft in 1967 to form McDonnell D ...
(later
McDonnell Douglas McDonnell Douglas Corporation was a major American Aerospace manufacturer, aerospace manufacturing corporation and defense contractor, formed by the merger of McDonnell Aircraft and the Douglas Aircraft Company in 1967. Between then and its own ...
and now part of
Boeing The Boeing Company, or simply Boeing (), is an American multinational corporation that designs, manufactures, and sells airplanes, rotorcraft, rockets, satellites, and missiles worldwide. The company also provides leasing and product support s ...
) had plants at the Long Beach Airport where they built aircraft for
World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
, and later built DC-8s, DC-9s, DC-10s, and MD-11s. Boeing built the
Boeing 717 The Boeing 717 is an American five-abreast narrow-body aircraft, narrow-body airliner produced by Boeing Commercial Airplanes. The Twinjet, twin-engine airliner was developed for the 100-seat market and originally marketed by McDonnell Dougla ...
until 2006 and the
C-17 Globemaster III The McDonnell Douglas/Boeing C-17 Globemaster III is a large military transport aircraft developed for the United States Air Force (USAF) between the 1980s to the early 1990s by McDonnell Douglas. The C-17 carries forward the name of two previ ...
strategic airlifter until 2015, the plants were leased by
Mercedes-Benz Mercedes-Benz (), commonly referred to simply as Mercedes and occasionally as Benz, is a German automotive brand that was founded in 1926. Mercedes-Benz AG (a subsidiary of the Mercedes-Benz Group, established in 2019) is based in Stuttgart, ...
and Relativity Space. Even after greatly reducing the number of local employees in recent years, Boeing is still the largest private employer in the city. Polar Air Cargo, an international
cargo airline Cargo airlines (or air freight carriers, and derivatives of these names) are airlines mainly dedicated to the transport of air cargo, cargo by air. Some cargo airlines are divisions or subsidiaries of larger passenger airlines. In 2018, airli ...
, was formerly based in Long Beach. TABC, Inc., a part of
Toyota is a Japanese Multinational corporation, multinational Automotive industry, automotive manufacturer headquartered in Toyota City, Aichi, Japan. It was founded by Kiichiro Toyoda and incorporated on August 28, 1937. Toyota is the List of manuf ...
, makes a variety of car parts, including steering columns and catalytic converters, in Long Beach. Epson America, Inc. the U.S. affiliate of Japan-based Seiko Epson Corporation, is headquartered in Long Beach. Pioneer Electronics, the U.S. affiliate of Japan-based
Pioneer Corporation , is a Japanese multinational corporation based in Tokyo, that specializes in digital entertainment products. The company was founded by Nozomu Matsumoto on January 1, 1938 in Tokyo as a radio and Loudspeaker, speaker repair shop. Its current pr ...
, is also headquartered in Long Beach along with SCAN Health Plan, a
non-profit A nonprofit organization (NPO), also known as a nonbusiness entity, nonprofit institution, not-for-profit organization, or simply a nonprofit, is a non-governmental (private) legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public, or so ...
" Medicare Advantage"
HMO In the United States, a health maintenance organization (HMO) is a medical insurance group that provides health services for a fixed annual fee. It is an organization that provides or arranges managed care for health insurance, self-funded heal ...
for seniors. Molina Healthcare, Inc., a
Medicaid Medicaid is a government program in the United States that provides health insurance for adults and children with limited income and resources. The program is partially funded and primarily managed by U.S. state, state governments, which also h ...
management healthcare program, is headquartered in Long Beach. The real estate company HCP is based in Long Beach.
Jesse James Jesse Woodson James (September 5, 1847April 3, 1882) was an American outlaw, Bank robbery, bank and Train robbery, train robber, guerrilla and leader of the James–Younger Gang. Raised in the "Little Dixie (Missouri), Little Dixie" area of M ...
' West Coast Choppers custom motorcycle shop was in Long Beach, and much of the ''
Monster Garage ''Monster Garage'' is an American reality television series that aired on the Discovery Channel and hosted by Jesse James (television personality), Jesse James. Each episode was an hour in length and was conceived and produced (along with James) ...
''
cable TV Cable television is a system of delivering television broadcast programming, programming to consumers via radio frequency (RF) signals transmitted through coaxial cables, or in more recent systems, light pulses through fibre-optic cables. This ...
show was shot in Long Beach. Long Beach Green Business Association is an organization working to create economic growth through the promotion of green business and promoting a buy local program for Long Beach. The North American subsidiary of video game developer and publisher
Spike Chunsoft is a Japanese video game development and video game localization, localization company specializing in role-playing video games, visual novels and adventure games. The company was founded in 1984 as Chunsoft Co., Ltd. and merged with Spike (compa ...
is headquartered in a building adjacent to the
Long Beach Airport Long Beach Airport is a public airport northeast of downtown Long Beach, California, Long Beach, in Los Angeles County, California, United States. It is also called Daugherty Field, named after local aviator Earl Daugherty. The airport was an ...
. The Long Beach Accelerator was founded in 2019 as a public-private partnership between the city of Long Beach, Sunstone Management, and California State University, Long Beach, with the aim of growing the presence of diverse technology entrepreneurs in the city.


Top employers

Trade valued annually at more than $140 billion moves through Long Beach, making it the second busiest seaport in the United States. The Port supports more than 30,000 jobs in Long Beach, 316,000 jobs throughout Southern California and 1.4 million jobs throughout the United States. It generates about $16 billion in annual trade-related wages statewide.


Retail

Los Altos Center is the only mall anchored by major department stores within city limits, while Lakewood Center mall is adjacent to Long Beach. Until the 1950s, Long Beach was the major retail hub between Los Angeles and Santa Ana. Buffum's, Walker's and Robert's all had their flagship stores in the city. Later the Long Beach Plaza and Marina Pacifica malls were built, since repurposed as retail power centers. The largest shopping center within the city is the Long Beach Towne Center, a power center opened in 1999 on the site of the Long Beach Naval Hospital. The Pike Outlets and 2nd & PCH are new retail centers.


Arts and culture


Art

The Long Beach Museum of Art, sited in the historic Elizabeth Milbank Anderson residence, is owned by the City of Long Beach, and operated by the Long Beach Museum of Art Foundation. Long Beach also features the Museum of Latin American Art (MOLAA), founded in 1996 by Dr. Robert Gumbiner. It is the only museum in the western United States that exclusively features modern and contemporary
Latin American Latin Americans (; ) are the citizenship, citizens of Latin American countries (or people with cultural, ancestral or national origins in Latin America). Latin American countries and their Latin American diaspora, diasporas are Metroethnicity, ...
art. Long Beach's newest museum is The Pacific Island Ethnic Art Museum (PieAM). This museum was a project of Robert Gumbiner at the time of his death. The museum opened October 15, 2010. In 1965, Long Beach State hosted the first International Sculpture Symposium to be held in the
United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...
and the first at a
college A college (Latin: ''collegium'') may be a tertiary educational institution (sometimes awarding degrees), part of a collegiate university, an institution offering vocational education, a further education institution, or a secondary sc ...
or
university A university () is an educational institution, institution of tertiary education and research which awards academic degrees in several Discipline (academia), academic disciplines. ''University'' is derived from the Latin phrase , which roughly ...
. Six sculptors from around the world and two from the United States created many of the monumental sculptures seen on the campus. There are now over 20 sculptures on the campus. Long Beach is known for its
street art Street art is visual art created in public locations for public visibility. It has been associated with the terms "independent art", "post-graffiti", "neo-graffiti" and guerrilla art. Street art has evolved from the early forms of defiant gr ...
. Some of the
mural A mural is any piece of Graphic arts, graphic artwork that is painted or applied directly to a wall, ceiling or other permanent substrate. Mural techniques include fresco, mosaic, graffiti and marouflage. Word mural in art The word ''mural'' ...
s were created in conjunction with the city's Mural and Cultural Arts Program, but many others were not. On the exterior of the
Long Beach Sports Arena The Long Beach Convention and Entertainment Center is a convention center located in Long Beach, California. Built on the former site of the Long Beach Municipal Auditorium, the venue is composed of the Long Beach Convention Center, Long Beach A ...
is one of the artist Wyland's '' Whaling Walls''. At , it is the world's largest
mural A mural is any piece of Graphic arts, graphic artwork that is painted or applied directly to a wall, ceiling or other permanent substrate. Mural techniques include fresco, mosaic, graffiti and marouflage. Word mural in art The word ''mural'' ...
(according to the ''
Guinness Book of Records ''Guinness World Records'', known from its inception in 1955 until 1999 as ''The Guinness Book of Records'' and in previous United States editions as ''The Guinness Book of World Records'', is a British reference book published annually, listi ...
''). Adjacent to the Museums of Latin American Art (MOLAA) and the Pacific Island Ethnic Art Museum (PieAM), in Gumbiner Park, stands the Long Beach High Five, created by sculptor Jorge Mujica. This interactive aluminium sculpture is intended to engage the public. Shops and galleries in the East Village Arts District, in downtown Long Beach hold their monthly art openings and artists exhibit in street galleries on the second Saturday of the month during the Artwalk. Long Beach has a percent for art program administered through the Arts Council of Long Beach and the Redevelopment Agency which ensures new private developments contribute to the arts fund or commission artworks for their new projects.


Music

The Bob Cole Conservatory of Music, the recently renamed school of music at CSULB, presents a wide variety of classical, jazz, and world music concerts each year. The Conservatory is part of CSULB's renowned College of the Arts. The Long Beach Symphony plays numerous classical and pop music concerts throughout the year. The symphony plays at the Terrace Theater in the Long Beach Convention and Entertainment Center. Long Beach Opera, founded in 1979, is the oldest professional opera company serving the Los Angeles and Orange County regions. It presents performances of standard and non-standard opera repertoire at various locations, including the Terrace Theater and Center Theater of the Long Beach Convention and Entertainment Center and the Richard and Karen Carpenter Performing Arts Center at CSULB. Long Beach Community Concert Association is a volunteer organization that provides musical entertainment appealing to seniors and others, four Sunday afternoons a year at the Carpenter Performing Arts Center at CSULB. LBCCA also has an outreach program taking musical entertainment to senior care and senior housing facilities around the greater Long Beach area. KJAZZ 88.1 FM (KKJZ) broadcasts from
California State University, Long Beach California State University, Long Beach (CSULB), also known in athletics as Long Beach State University (LBSU), is a public teaching-focused institution in Long Beach, California, United States. The 322-acre campus is the second largest in the ...
. The station originally featured
jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Its roots are in blues, ragtime, European harmony, African rhythmic rituals, spirituals, h ...
and
blues Blues is a music genre and musical form that originated among African Americans in the Deep South of the United States around the 1860s. Blues has incorporated spiritual (music), spirituals, work songs, field hollers, Ring shout, shouts, cha ...
music exclusively but now plays a broader range of music including Rhythm and Blues (R&b). KKJZ can also be listened to over the
Internet The Internet (or internet) is the Global network, global system of interconnected computer networks that uses the Internet protocol suite (TCP/IP) to communicate between networks and devices. It is a internetworking, network of networks ...
. Kbeach is the student owned and operated web-only radio at CSULB. Long Beach City College operates two internet student-run radio stations, KCTY FM and KLBC AM. Long Beach is the host to a number of long-running music festivals. They include the Bob Marley Reggae Festival (February), the Cajun & Zydeco Festival (May), the El Dia De San Juan Puerto Rican Festival (Salsa music, June) the Aloha Concert Jam (Hawaiian music, June), the Long Beach Jazz Festival (August), the Long Beach Blues Festival (September, since 1980), and the Brazilian Street Carnaval (Brazilian music, September). The Long Beach Municipal Band, founded in 1909, is the longest running, municipally supported band in the country. In 2005, the band played 24 concerts in various parks around Long Beach. Huntington Beach-based Heavy Metal band
Avenged Sevenfold Avenged Sevenfold (abbreviated as A7X) is an American Heavy metal music, heavy metal band from Huntington Beach, California, formed in 1999. The band's current lineup consists of vocalist M. Shadows, rhythm guitarist Zacky Vengeance, lead gui ...
performed their 'Live in the LBC' show on April 10, 2008, closing out the Taste of Chaos tour for the year. This show was recorded and has become one of the 2000s' most iconic live metal albums. Long Beach is also the point of origin for bands and musicians such as
Daz Dillinger Delmar Drew Arnaud (born May 25, 1973), known professionally as Daz Dillinger or simply Daz (formerly Dat Nigga Daz), is an American rapper and record producer. As a member of Death Row Records in the early 1990s, he is credited with the label ...
,
the Pussycat Dolls The Pussycat Dolls were an American girl group and dance ensemble, founded in Los Angeles, California, by choreographer Robin Antin in 1995 as a neo-burlesque troupe. At the suggestion of Jimmy Iovine, Antin decided to take the troupe mainstrea ...
, the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band,
Jenni Rivera Dolores Janney "Jenni" Rivera (July 2, 1969 – December 9, 2012) was an American singer, songwriter, actress, businesswoman, and producer known for her work within the regional Mexican music genre, specifically in the styles of Banda (music), ...
, T.S.O.L.,
Frank Ocean Frank Ocean (born Christopher Edwin Breaux; October 28, 1987) is an American singer and songwriter. He has been credited by several music journalism, music critics as a pioneer of the alternative R&B genre. Ocean has won two Grammy Awards and a B ...
, Sublime,
Snoop Dogg Calvin Cordozar Broadus Jr. ( ; born October 20, 1971), better known by his stage name Snoop Dogg (previously Snoop Doggy Dogg), is an American rapper, record producer, and actor. Rooted in West Coast hip-hop, he is widely regarded as one of t ...
, Tha Mexakinz,
Nate Dogg Nathaniel Dwayne Hale (August 19, 1969 – March 15, 2011), known professionally as Nate Dogg, was an American rapper and singer. He gained recognition for providing guest vocals on several hit rap songs between 1992 and 2007, earning him the ...
,
Warren G Warren Griffin III (born November 10, 1970) is an American rapper, songwriter, record producer, and DJ who helped popularize West Coast hip hop during the 1990s.Steve Huey"Warren G: Biography" ''AllMusic.com'', Netaktion LLC, visited May 8, 2020. ...
,
Tha Dogg Pound Tha Dogg Pound is an American hip-hop duo composed of West Coast rappers Kurupt and Daz Dillinger. They were among the first acts to sign to Death Row Records in 1992. Kurupt and Daz went on to release solo albums starting in 1998; they left th ...
, Knoc-Turn'al, the Long Beach Dub Allstars,
Avi Buffalo Avi Buffalo (born Avigdor Benyamin Zahner-Isenberg) is an American musician, songwriter, and producer. Career Avi Buffalo's self-titled debut album was released on April 27, 2010, and was given positive reviews by '' The A.V. Club'', ''NME'', '' ...
, Crystal Antlers, the Emperors, the Pyramids, Crooked I, Stick to Your Guns,
War War is an armed conflict between the armed forces of states, or between governmental forces and armed groups that are organized under a certain command structure and have the capacity to sustain military operations, or between such organi ...
and Vince Staples.


Theater

Long Beach has several resident professional and semi-professional theater companies. Musical Theatre West, one of the largest regional theatrical producers in
Southern California Southern California (commonly shortened to SoCal) is a geographic and Cultural area, cultural List of regions of California, region that generally comprises the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. Its densely populated coastal reg ...
, performs at the Carpenter Performing Arts Center on the campus of CSU Long Beach. International City Theatre produces plays and musicals at the Beverly O'Neill Theatre (part of the Long Beach Convention and Entertainment Center). The Long Beach Playhouse, in continuous operation for over 75 years, has shows running 50 weeks out of the year on two stages. Long Beach Shakespeare Company for over 20 years has provided free outdoor Shakespeare Festivals in the Summer. Additionally, Long Beach is home to a number of smaller and "black-box" theaters, including the Alive Theatre, the Garage Theatre and California Repertory Company (part of the graduate theater program at CSULB) that performs at the Royal Theater aboard the ''Queen Mary'' in downtown Long Beach. Numerous tours and other stage events come through Long Beach, particularly at the Terrace Theater and the Carpenter Center, and both CSU Long Beach and Long Beach City College maintain active theater departments. The Art Theatre on the 4th Street Corridor is one of few remaining historic movie theaters of its era in Southern California.


Cultural events

In October, Long Beach State hosts the CSULB Wide Screen Film Festival, at the Carpenter Performing Arts Center. The festival started in 1992 as a showcase for
movies A film, also known as a movie or motion picture, is a work of visual art that simulates experiences and otherwise communicates ideas, stories, perceptions, emotions, or atmosphere through the use of moving images that are generally, since ...
shot in the
widescreen Widescreen images are displayed within a set of aspect ratio (image), aspect ratios (relationship of image width to height) used in film, television and computer screens. In film, a widescreen film is any film image with a width-to-height aspect ...
format, but has since been transformed into an
artist-in-residence Artist-in-residence (also Writer-in-residence), or artist residencies, encompass a wide spectrum of artistic programs that involve a collaboration between artists and hosting organisations, institutions, or communities. They are programs that pr ...
event. A major video and film artist (such as former CSULB student
Steven Spielberg Steven Allan Spielberg ( ; born December 18, 1946) is an American filmmaker. A major figure of the New Hollywood era and pioneer of the modern blockbuster, Spielberg is widely regarded as one of the greatest film directors of all time and is ...
) screens and discusses their own work as well as the ten productions that most influenced their cinematic vision. The "Naples Island Christmas Parade" has been held since 1946, and passes through the canals of
Naples Naples ( ; ; ) is the Regions of Italy, regional capital of Campania and the third-largest city of Italy, after Rome and Milan, with a population of 908,082 within the city's administrative limits as of 2025, while its Metropolitan City of N ...
and around Alamitos Bay past Belmont Shore. The "Parade of A Thousand Lights" is in the Shoreline Village area (near
downtown Long Beach Downtown Long Beach, California, United States is the location for most of the city's major tourist attractions, municipal services and for numerous businesses. There are many hotels and restaurants in the area that serve locals, tourists, and c ...
and the ). There is also a Christmas boat parade in the nearby
Port of Los Angeles The Port of Los Angeles is a seaport managed by the Los Angeles Harbor Department, a unit of the Los Angeles, City of Los Angeles. It occupies of land and water with of waterfront and adjoins the separate Port of Long Beach. Promoted as "Amer ...
/ San Pedro area, and another in the Huntington Harbour community of nearby Huntington Beach. The Long Beach Lesbian and Gay Pride Parade and Festival has been held in May or June since 1984. It is the second largest event in Long Beach, attracting over 125,000 participants over the two-day celebration. It is the third largest Gay Pride Parade in the United States. The Long Beach Sea Festival is held during the summer months (June through August). It features events centered on the ocean and the beach. These events include beach volleyball, movies on the beach, and a tiki festival.


Sites of interest

The is a 1936
Art Deco Art Deco, short for the French (), is a style of visual arts, architecture, and product design that first Art Deco in Paris, appeared in Paris in the 1910s just before World War I and flourished in the United States and Europe during the 1920 ...
ocean liner permanently docked at Long Beach. It was purchased by the city in 1967 for conversion to a hotel and maritime museum. The nonprofit
Aquarium of the Pacific The Aquarium of the Pacific (formerly the Long Beach Aquarium of the Pacific) is a public aquarium on a site on Rainbow Harbor in Long Beach, California, United States. It is situated across the water from the Long Beach Convention Center, Sho ...
is on a site on Rainbow Harbor in Long Beach, across the water from the Long Beach Convention Center, Shoreline Village, and the Queen Mary Hotel and Attraction. Lions Lighthouse is a decorative lighthouse built by the
Lions Club Lions Clubs International, is an international service organization, currently headquartered in Oak Brook, Illinois. , it had over 46,000 local clubs and more than 1.4 million members (including the youth wing Leo clubs, Leo) in more than 200 ge ...
to advertise their services for the blind. It is popular for scenic viewing. Rancho Los Alamitos is a historical site owned by the City of Long Beach and is near the Long Beach campus of the California State University system. The site includes five agricultural buildings, including a working blacksmith's shop, of gardens, and an
adobe Adobe (from arabic: الطوب Attub ; ) is a building material made from earth and organic materials. is Spanish for mudbrick. In some English-speaking regions of Spanish heritage, such as the Southwestern United States, the term is use ...
ranch house dating from around 1800. The Rancho is within a
gated community A gated community (or walled community) is a form of residential community or housing estate containing strictly controlled entrances for pedestrians, bicycles, and automobiles, and often characterized by a closed perimeter of walls and fences ...
; visitors must pass through security gates to get to it. Rancho Los Cerritos is a historical site owned by Long Beach in the Bixby Knolls area near the Virginia Country Club. The adobe buildings date from the 1880s. The site also includes a California history research library. Bembridge House, a Queen Anne Victorian house, is open for tours. Long Beach is also home to the Skinny House. The Earl Burns Miller Japanese Garden is on the campus of
California State University, Long Beach California State University, Long Beach (CSULB), also known in athletics as Long Beach State University (LBSU), is a public teaching-focused institution in Long Beach, California, United States. The 322-acre campus is the second largest in the ...
. Long Beach offers singing
gondolier The gondola (, ; , ) is a traditional, flat-bottomed Venetian rowing boat, well suited to the conditions of the Venetian lagoon. It is typically propelled by a gondolier, who uses a rowing oar, which is not fastened to the hull, in a scul ...
trips through the canals of
Naples Naples ( ; ; ) is the Regions of Italy, regional capital of Campania and the third-largest city of Italy, after Rome and Milan, with a population of 908,082 within the city's administrative limits as of 2025, while its Metropolitan City of N ...
.


Parks and recreation

Long Beach led Southern California in parks access, size and spending, ranking 16th among a survey of 75 large U.S. cities, with Los Angeles and Anaheim tied for 51st and Santa Ana 69th, according to a study released by a national conservation group. The Long Beach Department of Parks, Recreation and Marine received a Gold Medal award from the National Recreation and Park Association in 2002, 2003, and 2004, recognizing the Department's "outstanding management practices and programs". The department manages 92 parks covering over throughout the city. The department also operates four public swimming pools, and four launch ramps for boaters to access the
Pacific Ocean The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five Borders of the oceans, oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean, or, depending on the definition, to Antarctica in the south, and is ...
. The El Dorado Regional Park, which features fishing lakes, an archery range, youth campground, bike trails, and picnic areas. The El Dorado Nature Center is part of the El Dorado Regional Park. The center features lakes, a stream, and trails, with meadows and forested areas. After an original hands-off approach, the center has begun to actively introduce indigenous species. Willow Springs Park was founded as a part of the Willow Springs Wetlands Restoration Project which opened in October 2017. The project restored 11 acres of a 48-acre degraded oil well site into wetlands. These highlight the pivotal role the ecosystem played in the City of Long Beach's establishment in the late 1800s and helps preserve the site's history and unique topography. It is now at about 16 acres restored and, in August 2024, it began the process of being dedicated as an open space by the city council, which will make it the largest green space in Central Long Beach once done. It is run in collaboration with the city's office of Climate Action and Sustainability which was established in 2008 to support and advance environmental stewardship and equity in the City of Long Beach. The Long Beach Green Belt path is a section of the old Pacific Electric right-of-way, restored by community activists as native habitat. The right-of-way was cleared of nonnatives, planted with indigenous plants, and made accessible with foot and bike paths. It supports approximately 40 species of California native plants as well as urban wildlife. The city and its residents have initiatives underway to revegetate the Long Beach stretch of the
Los Angeles River The Los Angeles River (), historically known as by the Tongva and the by the Spanish, is a major river in Los Angeles County, California. Its headwaters are in the Simi Hills and Santa Susana Mountains, and it flows nearly from Canoga Park ...
with indigenous plants. The Los Cerritos Wetlands Study Group, state government agencies, and grassroots groups are collaborating on a plan to preserve Long Beach's last remaining
wetlands A wetland is a distinct semi-aquatic ecosystem whose groundcovers are flooded or saturated in water, either permanently, for years or decades, or only seasonally. Flooding results in oxygen-poor ( anoxic) processes taking place, especially ...
. Long Beach is the first city in California to join the 'EcoZone' Program, intended to measurably improve environmental conditions through public-private partnerships. Other places in Long Beach to see natural areas include Bluff Park (coastal bluffs), Colorado Lagoon, the Golden Shore Marine Biological Reserve, the Jack Dunster Marine Reserve, Shoreline Park, and DeForest Park. The Municipal Fly Casting Pool at Recreation Park in East Long Beach is a 260-by-135-foot clear water, fishless pond built and operated since 1925 by the Long Beach Casting Club as only one of two
Southern California Southern California (commonly shortened to SoCal) is a geographic and Cultural area, cultural List of regions of California, region that generally comprises the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. Its densely populated coastal reg ...
city operated casting ponds (the other being in Pasadena).Russell, Kelle. (February 5, 1993)
Long Beach Press-Telegram The ''Press-Telegram'' is a paid daily newspaper published in Long Beach, California. Coverage area for the ''Press-Telegram'' includes Long Beach, Lakewood, Signal Hill, Artesia, Bellflower, Cerritos, Compton, Downey, Hawaiian Gardens, L ...

Getting Hooked on Fly-Fishing.
'' Section: Local news; Page D3.
Described recently as a serene pond "surrounded by a seemingly endless stretch of green grass against a backdrop of mountains and palm trees", several movie stars from the 1940s were taught to fly cast at the pond, including Robert Taylor,
Clark Gable William Clark Gable (February 1, 1901November 16, 1960) was an American actor often referred to as the "King of Cinema of the United States, Hollywood". He appeared in more than 60 Film, motion pictures across a variety of Film genre, genres dur ...
,
Jimmy Durante James Francis Durante ( , ; February 10, 1893 – January 29, 1980) was an American comedian, actor, singer, and pianist. His distinctive gravelly speech, Lower East Side New York accent, accent, comic language-butchery, jazz-influenced son ...
, and Barbara Stanwyck. In 1932, the fly fishing clubhouse adjacent to the fly fishing pond was used for the
Summer Olympic Games The Summer Olympic Games, also known as the Summer Olympics or the Games of the Olympiad, is a major international multi-sport event normally held once every four years. The 1896 Summer Olympics, inaugural Games took place in 1896 in Athens, ...
and housed military personnel during
World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
. Rosie's Dog Beach in Belmont Shore is the only legal off-leash beach area for dogs in Los Angeles County. This area is situated between Roycroft and Argonne Avenues.


Sports


Grand Prix of Long Beach

The Grand Prix of Long Beach in April is the single largest event in Long Beach. It started in 1975 as a
Formula 5000 Formula 5000 (or F5000) was an Open-wheel car, open wheel, single seater auto-racing formula that ran in different series in various regions around the world from 1968 to 1982. It was originally intended as a low-cost series aimed at open-wheel ...
race on the streets of downtown, and became a
Formula One Formula One (F1) is the highest class of worldwide racing for open-wheel single-seater formula Auto racing, racing cars sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA). The FIA Formula One World Championship has been one ...
race, the United States Grand Prix West, the following year. From 1984 to 2008 it was a
Champ Car Champ Car World Series (CCWS) was the series sanctioned by Open-Wheel Racing Series Inc., a Governing body, sanctioning body for American open-wheel car racing that operated from 2004 to 2008. It was the successor to Championship Auto Racing T ...
event, and is now an
IndyCar IndyCar, LLC (stylized as INDYCAR), is an auto racing sanctioning body for American open-wheel car racing headquartered in Indianapolis, Indiana. The organization sanctions two racing series: the premier IndyCar Series with the Indianapolis ...
race. During the same weekend as the Grand Prix, there is also an
IMSA SportsCar Championship The IMSA SportsCar Championship, currently known as the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship under sponsorship, is a sports car racing series based in the United States and Canada and organized by the International Motor Sports Association (I ...
race, a Formula D round and the Pirelli World Challenge. The Long Beach Motorsports Walk of Fame is on South Pine Avenue in front of the Long Beach Convention Center adjacent to the Long Beach Grand Prix circuit. The Walk of Fame was created in 2006 to honor key contributors to motorsports and annually inducts new members in conjunction with the Long Beach Grand Prix. A bronze medallion is placed in the sidewalk for each new inductee. The medallion includes a rendition of the racer's car and lists top achievements in motor sports.


Long Beach Marathon

The Long Beach Marathon is run every year in October throughout the City of Long Beach. The annual event includes a variety of races including a Kids Fun Run, a Bike Tour, 5K, Half Marathon and Full Marathon. All races begin and end around the Shoreline Village area of downtown Long Beach. 25,000 runners and cyclists participated in the 2013 festivities drawing nearly 50,000 people attending the event overall. The full marathon is a fast Boston qualifying course passing through sandy beaches, Belmont Shore, and the Cal State Long Beach campus.


Baseball

The Long Beach State Dirtbags baseball team has been playing since 1954. They play at Blair Field, across the street from Wilson High School. They are called the ''Dirtbags'' by many fans and is the team's official nickname.


Basketball

Long Beach was the home of the American Basketball League team Long Beach Chiefs during the 1962/1963 season. They played in the newly opened
Long Beach Arena The Long Beach Convention and Entertainment Center is a convention center located in Long Beach, California. Built on the former site of the Long Beach Municipal Auditorium, the venue is composed of the Long Beach Convention Center, Long Beach A ...
. The minor league
American Basketball Association The American Basketball Association (ABA) was a major professional basketball league that operated for nine seasons from 1967 to 1976. The upstart ABA operated in direct competition with the more established National Basketball Association thr ...
team, the Long Beach Jam, played in the Walter Pyramid (a pyramid-shaped gym) on the Long Beach State campus) from 2003 to 2005. The Southern California Summer Pro League is a showcase for current and prospective
NBA The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada). The NBA is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United States and Ca ...
basketball players, including recent draft picks, NBA players working on their skills and conditioning, and international professionals hoping to become NBA players. The league plays in the Pyramid-on the Long Beach State campus during July. The Long Beach Blue Waves of
The Basketball League The Basketball League (TBL), formerly North America Premier Basketball (NAPB), is a professional basketball league. The league began operating in North America in 2018 with eight teams, and has since expanded. TBL's regular season runs from Feb ...
(TBL) have played at Santiago High School since 2022.


Sailing

Since its inception in August 1964, the Congressional Cup has grown into one of the major international sailing events. Now held in April, it is the only grade 1 match race regatta held in the United States. The one-on-one race format is the same as the
America's Cup The America's Cup is a sailing competition and the oldest international competition still operating in any sport. America's Cup match races are held between two sailing yachts: one from the yacht club that currently holds the trophy (known ...
, and many of the winners of the Congressional Cup have gone on to win the America's Cup as well. The Leeway Sailing and Aquatics Center on Alamitos Bay in Belmont Shore is a youth sailing program founded in 1929.


Water skiing

In July, there is the annual Catalina Ski Race, which starts from Long Beach Harbor and goes to Catalina Island and back to complete a circuit. This race has been held annually since 1948 and features skiers from up to seventy teams from around the world.


Surfing

Although California's surfing scene is said to have gotten its start in Long Beach when in 1911 two surfers returned from Hawaii and the city hosted the first National Surfing and Paddleboard Championships in 1938, surfing is now uncommon in Long Beach due to a long breakwater built in 1949 to protect the
United States Pacific Fleet The United States Pacific Fleet (USPACFLT) is a theater-level component command of the United States Navy, located in the Pacific Ocean. It provides naval forces to the Indo-Pacific Command. Fleet headquarters is at Joint Base Pearl Harbor� ...
. The breakwater reduces "mighty waves to mere lake-like lapping along the city's beaches". The fleet left in the 1990s, and now some residents are calling for it to be lowered or eliminated and the city has commissioned a $100,000 study for this purpose. In November 2019, the study concluded that any changes to the breakwater would be far too costly and could have potential impacts on the port of Long Beach, the port of Los Angeles, the oil islands, U.S. Naval Operations, Shoreline Marina, and the
Peninsula A peninsula is a landform that extends from a mainland and is only connected to land on one side. Peninsulas exist on each continent. The largest peninsula in the world is the Arabian Peninsula. Etymology The word ''peninsula'' derives , . T ...
.


Rugby union

The Belmont Shore rugby team plays in the US Rugby Super League. They have been in seven league finals, and have been champions three times.


College sports

Long Beach State's team mascot are the
Beach A beach is a landform alongside a body of water which consists of loose particles. The particles composing a beach are typically made from Rock (geology), rock, such as sand, gravel, shingle beach, shingle, pebbles, etc., or biological s ...
. The school has participated in national championships in women's volleyball (5), men's volleyball (1), track and field (1), men's tennis (1; Division II), swimming (1; Division II), women's badminton (2), and women's field hockey (1). The school also has regularly appeared in NCAA tournaments in men's baseball, men's softball, men's basketball, women's basketball, men's golf, women's tennis, men's water polo, and women's water polo. Their cheer team were national champions in 2003, 2004 and 2006. The D1 roller hockey team were the 2011 national champions after defeating Lindenwood University. The other collegiate sports team in the city is that of Long Beach City College. The school has appeared in national championships in men's gymnastics (6), football (5), women's soccer (3), and men's doubles and singles tennis (1 each). They have also had state championships in numerous sports, including 2006–7 championships in men's and women's water polo.


Archery

The archery field in El Dorado Regional Park was the site for the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics archery competition. CSU Long Beach has one of the few remaining university varsity archery teams in California.


2028 Summer Olympics

Multiple sports will be held in Long Beach during the
2028 Summer Olympics The 2028 Summer Olympics, officially the Games of the XXXIV Olympiad and commonly known as Los Angeles 2028 or LA 28, is an upcoming international multi-sport event scheduled to take place July 14–30, 2028, in the United States. Los Angeles ...
, including
BMX racing BMX racing is a type of bicycle racing which features BMX riders sharing a short single-lap circuit or point-to-point course, with multiple banked corners, jumps and rollers. The format of BMX was derived from motocross racing, and sanctione ...
,
water polo Water polo is a competitive sport, competitive team sport played in water between two teams of seven players each. The game consists of four quarters in which the teams attempt to score goals by throwing the water polo ball, ball into the oppo ...
,
triathlon A triathlon is an endurance multisport race consisting of Swimming (sport), swimming, Cycle sport, cycling, and running over various distances. Triathletes compete for fastest overall completion time, racing each segment sequentially with the ...
,
open water swimming Open water swimming is a swimming discipline which takes place in outdoor bodies of water such as open oceans, lakes, and rivers. Competitive open water swimming is governed by the International Swimming Federation, World Aquatics (formerly kno ...
,
sailing Sailing employs the wind—acting on sails, wingsails or kites—to propel a craft on the surface of the ''water'' (sailing ship, sailboat, raft, Windsurfing, windsurfer, or Kitesurfing, kitesurfer), on ''ice'' (iceboat) or on ''land'' (Land sa ...
,
rowing Rowing is the act of propelling a human-powered watercraft using the sweeping motions of oars to displace water and generate reactional propulsion. Rowing is functionally similar to paddling, but rowing requires oars to be mechanically a ...
,
canoeing Canoeing is an activity which involves paddling a canoe with a single-bladed paddle. In some parts of Europe, canoeing refers to both canoeing and kayaking, with a canoe being called an 'open canoe' or Canadian. A few of the recreational ...
and
handball Handball (also known as team handball, European handball, Olympic handball or indoor handball) is a team sport in which two teams of seven players each (six outcourt players and a goalkeeper) pass a ball using their hands with the aim of thr ...
.


Government


Municipal

Long Beach is a California
charter city Home rule in the United States relates to the authority of a constituent part of a U.S. state to exercise powers of governance (i.e., whether such powers must be specifically delegated to it by the state—typically by legislative action—or a ...
using the mayor–council form of government. It is governed by nine City Council members, who are elected by district, and the
Mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a Municipal corporation, municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilitie ...
, who is elected at-large since a citywide initiative passed in 1988. The City Attorney, City Auditor, and City Prosecutor are also elected positions. The city is supported by a budget of $2.3 billion, and has more than 5,500 employees. Long Beach was first incorporated in 1888 with 59 buildings and a new school. Nine years later, dissatisfaction with
prohibition Prohibition is the act or practice of forbidding something by law; more particularly the term refers to the banning of the manufacture, storage (whether in barrels or in bottles), transportation, sale, possession, and consumption of alcoholic b ...
and high taxes led to an abortive and short-lived disincorporation. Before the year 1897 was out, the citizens voted to reincorporate, and the 1897 date of incorporation is shown on the city seal. Long Beach is a full-service city that provides nearly all of its own
municipal services Municipal services or city services refer to basic services that residents of a city expect the local government to provide in exchange for the taxes which citizens pay. Basic city services may include sanitation (both sewer and refuse), wa ...
, in contrast with a contract city. City hall provides a full range of traditional municipal services through the various departments that make up its staff of civil servants. In addition to its own police and fire departments, Long Beach provides: * Municipal water supply and sewer service through the Long Beach Water Department, which has a water treatment plant within the city and an extensive
reclaimed water Water reclamation is the process of converting Sewage, municipal wastewater or sewage and Industrial wastewater treatment, industrial wastewater into water that can be reused for a variety of purposes. It is also called wastewater reuse, water re ...
system for parks and other landscaping * A Gas & Oil Department, which manages consumer natural gas service and infrastructure, as well as crude oil extraction subsidence control * Health services through the Long Beach Health & Human Services Department, which handles both environmental health (such as restaurant/food inspection) and public health services. This is one of the only four municipal health departments in California (the other three being Berkeley, Pasadena, and Vernon) * Sanitation and recycling services through the Environmental Services Bureau in the Public Works Department * Animal control service that, in addition to serving Long Beach, serves nearby cities including Signal Hill and Seal Beach * A City Auditor * A City Prosecutor Long Beach held its elections for City Council on April (primary) and June (runoff) until the 2018 election. Starting with the 2020 election, primary election is being held in March and runoff election is being held in November. The major exception to the full range of municipal services is electricity, which is provided by Southern California Edison.


Federal and state representation

In the
California State Senate The California State Senate is the upper house of the California State Legislature (the lower house being the California State Assembly). The state senate convenes, along with the state assembly, at the California State Capitol in Sacramento. ...
, Long Beach is represented by Democrat Lena Gonzalez who represents the 33rd district. In the
California State Assembly The California State Assembly is the lower house of the California State Legislature (the upper house being the California State Senate). The Assembly convenes, along with the State Senate, at the California State Capitol in Sacramento, Califor ...
, it is split between the California's 65th State Assembly district, 65th district, represented by Democrat Mike Gipson, and the California's 69th State Assembly district, 69th district represented by Democrat Josh Lowenthal. In the United States House of Representatives, Long Beach is split between California's 42nd congressional district (Robert Garcia (California politician), Rep. Robert Garcia) and California's 44th congressional district, 44th district (Nanette Barragán, Rep. Nanette Barragán).


Politics

According to the Secretary of State of California, California Secretary of State, as of October 19, 2020, Long Beach has 279,735 registered voters. Of those, 147,276 (52.65%) are registered Democrats, 47,615 (17.02%) are registered Republicans, and 66,857 (23.90%) have declined to state a political party/are independents.


Infrastructure


Police department

The Long Beach Police Department provides law enforcement for the City of Long Beach.


Restrictions on registered sex offenders

On March 18, 2008, Long Beach became the first city in California to heavily restrict residency and visitation rights for California Sex offender registries in the United States, registered sex offenders. Triggered by a local protest of a multi-apartment dwelling which tenanted several paroled registered sex offenders, and fueled by local radio hosts John Kobylt and Ken Chiampou of KFI's John and Ken show, city council members voted 7–0 to enact 18 ordinances, of which the most restrictive prohibits residency by all registered sex offenders, whether they are on parole or not, within of any child care center, public or private school, or park. Google Maps measurements indicate the total exclusion area encompasses over 96% of the area of Long Beach that is zoned for residential use. Registered sex offenders residing within the exclusion zone were given until September 2008 to vacate the restricted area. Once this happens, no sex offender will legally be able to live in the vast majority of Long Beach. While several other ordinances restrict the number of registered sex offenders who may reside in an apartment complex, there are no apartment complexes within city limits that are outside of the exclusion zone. In addition, the ordinances prohibit all registered sex offenders from using any park, beach, or facility that caters to children, such as amusement parks and restaurants with children's playgrounds, or even travel within of such places.


Fire department

The Long Beach Fire Department (LBFD), ISO Class 1, provides fire protection and emergency medical services to the City of Long Beach. The Long Beach Fire Department operates out of 23 Fire Stations throughout the city. In addition to serving with over 500,000 residents, the department's Marine Safety Division patrols the waterways and beach front areas.


Marine Safety Division

The Marine Safety Division is responsible for the operation and management of the Marine safety (USCG), marine safety and lifeguard division as well as the safe and lawful use of the of beaches, of oceanfront property, waterways and marinas. This includes the
Port of Long Beach The Port of Long Beach, administered as the Harbor Department of the City of Long Beach, is a container port in the United States, which adjoins Port of Los Angeles. Acting as a major gateway for US–Asian trade, the port occupies of land wi ...
and Alamitos Bay. The division staffs 9 facilities year round, with an additional 41 stations during the summer Additionally the division has at its disposal 6 rescue boats, 7 beach patrols and a dive rescue unit. In 2012, lifeguards and other members of the marine safety division responded to 17,867 calls for service. The American Lifeguard Association has been offering lifeguard courses for over 30 years.


County

* The Los Angeles Superior Court, which covers all of Los Angeles County, operates the Governor George Deukmejian Courthouse in downtown Long Beach. It is one of the 50 courthouses in the county. * The Los Angeles County Department of Health Services operates the Torrance Health Center in Harbor Gateway, Los Angeles, California, Harbor Gateway, Los Angeles, near Torrance, California, Torrance and serving Long Beach.


State and federal

* The Glenn M. Anderson Long Beach Federal Building in downtown Long Beach at 501 West Ocean Blvd., houses offices for NOAA and other federal agencies, although NOAA plans to shift leadership of the Fisheries office to the Pacific Northwest and shrink this office through attrition. * The US Post Office-Long Beach Main, Long Beach Main Post Office of the U.S. Postal Service serves as the main postal facility for Long Beach. * The Long Beach Naval Shipyard was established in 1943 and closed in 1997, employing over 16,000 people at its peak in 1945. * VA Long Beach Healthcare System including the Tibor Rubin VA Medical Center and Cabrillo VA Clinic


Education


Primary and secondary schools


Public schools

Long Beach Unified School District serves most of the City of Long Beach. LBUSD high schools in the Long Beach city limits: * Juan Rodriguez Cabrillo High School, Cabrillo High School * Ernest McBride High School * Jordan High School (Long Beach, California), Jordan High School * Long Beach Polytechnic High School * Millikan High School * Renaissance High School for the Arts * Richard D. Browning High School * Sato Academy of Mathematics and Science * Will J. Reid High School * Woodrow Wilson Classical High School, Wilson High School Other school districts that serve sections of Long Beach include: * ABC Unified School District * Paramount Unified School District * Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) ** Rancho Dominguez Preparatory School, an LAUSD facility, is in the Long Beach city limits


Private schools


Colleges and universities

Long Beach, California has two public institutions dedicated to higher education:
California State University, Long Beach California State University, Long Beach (CSULB), also known in athletics as Long Beach State University (LBSU), is a public teaching-focused institution in Long Beach, California, United States. The 322-acre campus is the second largest in the ...
and Long Beach City College. Founded in 1949,
California State University, Long Beach California State University, Long Beach (CSULB), also known in athletics as Long Beach State University (LBSU), is a public teaching-focused institution in Long Beach, California, United States. The 322-acre campus is the second largest in the ...
is a comprehensive public university in the tree-filled Los Altos, Long Beach, California, Los Altos neighborhood. Long Beach State is three miles away from the
Pacific Ocean The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five Borders of the oceans, oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean, or, depending on the definition, to Antarctica in the south, and is ...
and is known for their resources of the arts, such as the Carpenter Performing Arts Center. Long Beach City College is a community college established in 1927. LBCC is composed of two separate campuses; the Liberal Arts Campus is on the residential area of Lakewood Village, Long Beach, California, Lakewood Village, while the Pacific Coast Campus is adjacent to the Eastside, Long Beach, California, Eastside neighborhood. Additionally, Pacific Coast University, a private non-profit law school, is located in Long Beach.


Transportation


Ports and freight

As of 2005, the
Port of Long Beach The Port of Long Beach, administered as the Harbor Department of the City of Long Beach, is a container port in the United States, which adjoins Port of Los Angeles. Acting as a major gateway for US–Asian trade, the port occupies of land wi ...
was the second busiest port#Major ports, seaport in the United States and the tenth busiest in the world, shipping some 66 million metric tons of cargo worth $95 billion in 2001. The port serves shipping between the United States and the Pacific Rim. The combined operations of the Port of Long Beach and the
Port of Los Angeles The Port of Los Angeles is a seaport managed by the Los Angeles Harbor Department, a unit of the Los Angeles, City of Los Angeles. It occupies of land and water with of waterfront and adjoins the separate Port of Long Beach. Promoted as "Amer ...
are the busiest in the US. Rail shipping is provided by Union Pacific Railroad and BNSF Railway, which carry about half of the trans-shipments from the port. Long Beach has contributed to the Alameda Corridor project to increase the capacity of the rail lines, roads, and highways connecting the port to the Los Angeles rail hub. The project, completed in 2002, created a trench long and deep in order to eliminate 200 grade crossings and cost about US$2.4 billion. ;Long Beach Cruise Terminal Operated by Carnival Corporation & plc, Carnival Corporation, the Long Beach Cruise Terminal is the year-round home of three cruise ships carrying over 600,000 passengers annually. Passengers are processed in the domed structure that housed the Spruce Goose. ;Catalina Landing Catalina Express operates scheduled trips from the Catalina Landing.


Public transportation

;Bus and coach services Long Beach Transit provides local public transportation services within Long Beach, Lakewood, California, Lakewood, and Signal Hill. Long Beach Transit regularly operates 38 bus routes. Most regular service bus routes begin or end at the Long Beach Transit Mall in
downtown Long Beach Downtown Long Beach, California, United States is the location for most of the city's major tourist attractions, municipal services and for numerous businesses. There are many hotels and restaurants in the area that serve locals, tourists, and c ...
. Long Beach Transit also operates the Passport shuttle within downtown Long Beach. The free shuttle carries passengers to the
Aquarium of the Pacific The Aquarium of the Pacific (formerly the Long Beach Aquarium of the Pacific) is a public aquarium on a site on Rainbow Harbor in Long Beach, California, United States. It is situated across the water from the Long Beach Convention Center, Sho ...
, Pine Avenue, Shoreline Village, the Long Beach Convention Center, the , Catalina Landing, various hotels, and other points of interest. During the summer, Long Beach Transit operates the AquaLink, a catamaran that carries passengers between the
downtown Long Beach Downtown Long Beach, California, United States is the location for most of the city's major tourist attractions, municipal services and for numerous businesses. There are many hotels and restaurants in the area that serve locals, tourists, and c ...
waterfront and the Alamitos Bay Landing. In addition, during the summer, a 49-passenger water taxis called the AquaBus is provided. With $1 fares, the AquaBus serves six different locations within the downtown Long Beach waterfront. Several transit operators offer services from the Long Beach Transit Mall. Torrance Transit offers bus service to the South Bay. The Los Angeles Department of Transportation (LADOT) offers bus service to San Pedro, California, San Pedro. LA Metro operates other regional bus lines. Orange County Transportation Authority offers limited bus service to Orange County, California, Orange County. Route 1, from Long Beach to San Clemente, California, San Clemente is the longest bus route in the OCTA system. Amtrak Thruway offers bus shuttles starting in San Pedro, California, San Pedro, with stops at the and downtown Long Beach, that then goes to Union Station (Los Angeles), Union Station in downtown Los Angeles, and ends in Bakersfield, California, Bakersfield. Greyhound Lines operates the Long Beach Station in Long Beach. A FlyAway (bus), FlyAway bus route to Los Angeles International Airport, LAX began service on December 30, 2015. ;Light rail The Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority, Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority (LA Metro) operates the A Line (Los Angeles Metro), Metro A Line, a light rail service that runs between the Downtown Long Beach Station (known as the Transit Mall Station until July 2013) and the APU/Citrus College station in Azusa, California, Azusa (extension to Pomona–North station, Pomona–North Metrolink station in 2025) via Union Station (Los Angeles), Los Angeles Union Station and Del Mar station in Pasadena. From the 7th Street/Metro Center Station, passengers can make connections to Hollywood, Los Angeles, Hollywood, Universal Studios, and other points of interest along the Los Angeles Metro Rail subway (B Line (Los Angeles Metro), B and D Line (Los Angeles Metro), D lines) network. From Union Station in downtown L.A., transit users can access the regional Metrolink (California), Metrolink rail system to access a vast area of urban Southern California, and connect to nationwide Amtrak trains as well. The Metro A Line also offers connections to the E Line (Los Angeles Metro), Metro E Line at the 7th Street/Metro Center Station, Pico (Los Angeles Metro station), Pico Station, Grand Avenue Arts/Bunker Hill station, Historic Broadway station, and Little Tokyo/Arts District station with service to
Santa Monica Santa Monica (; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Santa Mónica'') is a city in Los Angeles County, California, Los Angeles County, situated along Santa Monica Bay on California's South Coast (California), South Coast. Santa Monica's 2020 United Sta ...
and East Los Angeles. In addition, at Willowbrook (Los Angeles Metro station), Willowbrook Station, passengers can transfer to the C Line (Los Angeles Metro), Metro C Line with service to Redondo Beach, CA, Redondo Beach, Norwalk, CA, Norwalk, and Los Angeles International Airport, LAX via an additional shuttle connection. The Metro A Line Maintenance Shops are also in Long Beach just south of the Del Amo (Los Angeles Metro station), Del Amo Blue Line station. Historically, the city was served by Pacific Electric trains, including the Long Beach Line and Streetcars in Long Beach, several local streetcars. ;Taxicabs Taxicabs in Long Beach serve the tourism and Convention (meeting), convention industry and local services such as for elderly and disabled residents. Yellow Long Beach is the city's only licensed taxi franchise, with 199 taxicabs in service. Long Beach was the nation's first large city to relax restrictions on cabs by allowing them to offer variable, discounted fares, free rides and other price promotions to lure customers while keeping maximum fares in place. Many other cities have responded to Uber and Lyft by increasing regulation of these new competitors.


Airports

Long Beach Airport serves the Long Beach, South Bay and northern Orange County, California, Orange County areas. It was also the site of a major
Boeing The Boeing Company, or simply Boeing (), is an American multinational corporation that designs, manufactures, and sells airplanes, rotorcraft, rockets, satellites, and missiles worldwide. The company also provides leasing and product support s ...
(formerly Douglas, then
McDonnell Douglas McDonnell Douglas Corporation was a major American Aerospace manufacturer, aerospace manufacturing corporation and defense contractor, formed by the merger of McDonnell Aircraft and the Douglas Aircraft Company in 1967. Between then and its own ...
) aircraft production facility, which is the city's largest non-government employer. Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) is the nearest airport with international service. John Wayne Airport in Santa Ana, California, Santa Ana is another alternative to the airport. However, its only international services are to Canada and
Mexico Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United States to the north, and Guatemala and Belize to the southeast; while having maritime boundar ...
. Other airports with scheduled service are Bob Hope Airport in Burbank, California, Burbank and Ontario International Airport in Ontario, California, Ontario.


Freeways and highways

Several Controlled-access highway, freeways run through Long Beach, connecting it with the Greater Los Angeles, Greater Los Angeles area and Orange County, California, Orange County areas. The Interstate 405 (California), San Diego Freeway (I-405) bisects the northern and southern portions of the city and takes commuters northwest or southeast to the Interstate 5 in California, Golden State/Santa Ana Freeways (I-5). The San Diego Freeway also provides regional access to Long Beach Airport, which is on the north side of the freeway near Signal Hill. The Interstate 710 and State Route 710, Long Beach Freeway (I-710) runs north–south on the city's western border, with its southern terminus adjacent to the
Port of Long Beach The Port of Long Beach, administered as the Harbor Department of the City of Long Beach, is a container port in the United States, which adjoins Port of Los Angeles. Acting as a major gateway for US–Asian trade, the port occupies of land wi ...
on Terminal Island at the intersection of the California State Route 103, Terminal Island Freeway (SR 103) and California State Route 47, State Route 47. The Long Beach Freeway is the major spur route serving Long Beach from downtown Los Angeles, with its northern terminus near downtown Los Angeles in Alhambra, California, Alhambra. Along with the Interstate 110 and California State Route 110, Harbor Freeway (I-110) to the west, the Long Beach Freeway is one of the major routes for trucks transporting goods from the Ports of Long Beach and Los Angeles to railyards and distribution centers in downtown Los Angeles and the Inland Empire. The southern end of the Long Beach Freeway joins Long Beach with Terminal Island via the Gerald Desmond Bridge. Southeast Long Beach is served by the Interstate 605, San Gabriel River Freeway (I-605), which joins the San Diego Freeway at the Long Beach/Los Alamitos, California, Los Alamitos border. The California State Route 91, Artesia Freeway (SR 91) runs east–west near the northern border of Long Beach. The western portion of the California State Route 22, Garden Grove Freeway (SR 22) provides a spur off of the San Diego and 605 Freeways to 7th Street in southeast Long Beach for access to the VA Long Beach Healthcare System,
California State University, Long Beach California State University, Long Beach (CSULB), also known in athletics as Long Beach State University (LBSU), is a public teaching-focused institution in Long Beach, California, United States. The 322-acre campus is the second largest in the ...
, and the Alamitos Bay. California State Route 1, Pacific Coast Highway (SR 1) takes an east to southwest route through the southern portion of Long Beach. Its intersection with California State Route 19, Lakewood Boulevard (SR 19) and Los Coyotes Diagonal is the Los Alamitos Circle, Los Alamitos Traffic Circle.


Bicycles and pedestrians

The city of Long Beach has five major Class 1 bike paths (separate off-road bike paths) within its boundaries, encompassing over . The city also has many Class 2 (painted lanes on roadway) and Class 3 paths (connecting bike routes with shared use of road with cars). A 2019 study by Walk Score ranked Long Beach the tenth most walkable of over 100 cities around the world.


Modal characteristics

According to the 2016 American Community Survey, 73.6 percent of working residents of Long Beach commuted by driving alone, 10.2 percent carpooled, 6.2 percent used public transportation, and 3.4 percent walked. About 2 percent commuted by all other means of transportation, including taxi, bicycle, and motorcycle. About 4.6 worked at home. In 2015, 10.4 percent of city of Long Beach households were without a car, which decreased slightly to 10.0 percent in 2016. The national average was 8.7 percent in 2016. Long Beach averaged 1.69 cars per household in 2016, compared to a national average of 1.8 per household.


Media


Print

Long Beach's daily newspaper is the ''
Long Beach Press-Telegram The ''Press-Telegram'' is a paid daily newspaper published in Long Beach, California. Coverage area for the ''Press-Telegram'' includes Long Beach, Lakewood, Signal Hill, Artesia, Bellflower, Cerritos, Compton, Downey, Hawaiian Gardens, L ...
'', which is distributed throughout most of the Gateway Cities and South Bay areas of southwest Los Angeles County. The ''Press-Telegram'' is owned by Digital First Media and is part of the Los Angeles Newspaper Group, which has several newspapers in the
Southern California Southern California (commonly shortened to SoCal) is a geographic and Cultural area, cultural List of regions of California, region that generally comprises the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. Its densely populated coastal reg ...
area which share resources and reporters. On September 30, 1933, the ''Press-Telegram'' published what David Dayen called "One of the more influential letters to the editor in American history": Francis Townsend's letter outlining the Townsend Plan, a proposal that sparked a national campaign which influenced the establishment of the Roosevelt administration's Social Security (United States), Social Security system. California State University, Long Beach also has a student newspaper published four times a week during the fall and spring semesters, the ''Daily Forty-Niner''. The Gazette newspapers called ''The Grunion Gazette'', ''The Downtown Gazette'', and ''The Uptown Gazette'' are free, weekly newspapers that focus on various parts of the city. The Gazettes were sold to MediaNews (now Digital First Media), owner of the ''Press-Telegram'', in 2004. ''Palacio Magazine'' (formerly ''Palacio de Long Beach'') is a free quarterly, bilingual magazine which runs stories focusing on community, education, art, health and wellness side by side in English and Spanish. Although not based in Long Beach, the alternative weekly, alternative weeklies ''OC Weekly'' and ''LA Weekly'' are distributed widely in Long Beach. Starting in 2007, Long Beach was served by its own The District (newspaper), ''The District Weekly'', an alternative weekly that covered news, the arts, restaurants, and the local music scene. The District Weekly ceased publication in March 2010, citing lack of advertiser support. In 2013 Freedom Communications, owner of the ''Orange County Register'', launched a five-day daily newspaper, the ''Long Beach Register'', aimed at competing with the ''Press-Telegram''. In September 2014, the ''Long Beach Register'' was reduced to Sundays only, and was distributed as an insert in the ''Orange County Register''. In August of the same year, just sixteen months after its much-publicized launch, Freedom Communications announced it would cease publication of the ''Long Beach Register'' completely, citing lack of reader and advertiser interest.


Radio

Long Beach is part of the Los Angeles designated market area, DMA radio and television markets. Although a few radio stations have had studios in Long Beach over the years, including the 1980s Alternative rock, alternative music and later hard rock station KNAC, the only remaining radio stations in Long Beach are the jazz and blues station KKJZ on the California State University, Long Beach, Cal State Long Beach campus, and the Christian radio broadcaster KFRN. The most recent radio station to grace the Long Beach airways is public radio station KLBP, 99.1, a low-power station, which started broadcasting in December 2018.


Online

Long Beach has a number of online news outlets, including the Long Beach Post, Long Beach Local News, The Modern Times of Long Beach, FORTHE, and LBReport.com.


In popular culture

Balboa Amusement Producing Company, also known as Balboa Studios, was at Sixth Street and Alamitos Avenue; they used on Signal Hill for outdoor locations. Silent film stars who lived in Long Beach included Fatty Arbuckle and Theda Bara. The 1917 film ''Cleopatra (1917 film), Cleopatra'', starring Theda Bara, was shot at the Gardena Willows Wetland Preserve, Dominguez Slough just west of Long Beach, and Moses parted the Red Sea for Cecil B. DeMille's 1923 version of ''The Ten Commandments (1923 film), The Ten Commandments'' on the flat seashore of Seal Beach, California, Seal Beach, southeast of Long Beach. Long Beach was the famous location of Paramount Pictures, Paramount newsreel footage of the
1933 Long Beach earthquake The 1933 Long Beach earthquake took place on March 10 at south of downtown Los Angeles. The epicenter was offshore, southeast of Long Beach, California, on the Newport–Inglewood Fault. The earthquake had a magnitude estimated at 6.4 , and ...
, out-takes from the W.C. Fields 1933 featurette International House (1933 film), ''International House'' was possibly the first earthquake to be captured in action on film. Because of its proximity to LA-area studios and its variety of locations, today Long Beach is regularly used for movies, television shows, and advertisements. The city has filled in for locations across the nation and around the globe. One advantage for Long Beach is that the video and film industry uses a zone that extends from Beverly Boulevard, Beverly Blvd. and La Cienega Boulevard, La Cienega Blvd. in the West Hollywood, California, West Hollywood area. It is cheaper to shoot within that zone, so Long Beach and other South Bay cities often stand in for areas of Orange County (such as for ''The O.C.'' TV show) because almost all of Orange County is outside of the zone. One of the most famous Long Beach film locations is the home of Ferris Bueller in ''Ferris Bueller's Day Off''. Though the film was set in the North Shore suburbs of Chicago the house is at 4160 Country Club Dr. Long Beach Polytechnic High School has played host to numerous films, featuring its outdoor grounds in movies such as ''Coach Carter'', among others. Robert A. Millikan High School has also lent its classrooms and hallways to films such as ''American Pie (film), American Pie'', among others. Cabrillo High School (Long Beach, California), Juan Rodriguez Cabrillo High School has been a very popular place to shoot movies as well, with 2–4 films shot per year, and is being used to shoot 20th Century Fox's musical comedy-drama, ''Glee (TV series), Glee''. St. Anthony High School (California), St. Anthony High School's, Jack Errion Memorial Gymnasium has also been featured in a few movies and television shows, including ''Sunset Park (film), Sunset Park'', ''American Wedding'', ''Coach Carter'' and ''Joan of Arcadia''. Long Beach Wilson Classical High School, Woodrow Wilson High School was used to shoot ''Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Squeakquel'' and has been used for commercials for Nike, Inc., Nike and Adidas, particularly one with Los Angeles Sparks basketball star Candace Parker. The film ''Freedom Writers'', although not shot there, was based on Long Beach Wilson Classical High School, Woodrow Wilson High School. Other locations in Long Beach have been used frequently as well. An episode of ''The Lone Wolf (TV series), The Lone Wolf'', "The Long Beach Story", features the Breakers Hotel (Long Beach, California)#Wilton (1947–1961), Wilton Hotel. Shoreline Drive visually approximates a freeway but is a municipal roadway and permits are accepted for its closure for shooting video and film – it has become a frequent movie and television freeway stand-in. Many car chase and crash scenes have been shot on stretches of road near the Long Beach harbor and along the city's Shoreline Drive. Among these are the 1963 movie ''It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World'' and numerous episodes of the 1970s TV drama ''CHiPs'' (as well as the 2017 film CHiPs (film), ''CHiPs''). Long Beach's downtown neighborhood has stood in for various urban areas in a variety of movies. ''Gone in 60 Seconds (1974 film)'', ''Gone in 60 Seconds (2000 film)'', and ''Speed (1994 film), Speed'' were shot in Long Beach. ''Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen'' was also shot in Long Beach as was ''Big Momma's House 2''. ''CSI: Miami'', ''Dexter (TV series), Dexter'', and ''Jane the Virgin'', although set in Miami, Florida, Miami, Florida, regularly get shot in Long Beach. Much of ''Tenacious D: The Pick of Destiny'' was shot in Long Beach. Although there was a chase scene downtown, most of Tenacious D was shot at Alex's Bar at 2913 E. Anaheim St., a punk rock/alternative rock venue. Most of the viral hit ''Mega Shark Versus Giant Octopus'' was also shot by the Belmont Veterans Memorial Pier and Alamitos Energy Center in Long Beach. The Long Beach Terrace Theatre has also been used for various commercials, an episode of ''Glee (TV Series), Glee'', as well as the film ''Last Action Hero''. Several scenes from this David Spade comedy, ''Lost & Found (1999 film), Lost & Found'', were shot around the Belmont Park area. The final scene from the Jim Carrey comedy remake ''Fun with Dick and Jane (2005 film), Fun with Dick and Jane'' features Long Beach's scenic E. Ocean Blvd. route. ''La La Land'' features both a Long Beach apartment house and bar. The Long Beach Naval Station and Naval Shipyard were featured in episodes of ''Visiting... with Huell Howser''. The Pike and SoundWalk art show have also been featured. The city was used as a filming location for the MSNBC reality television series ''To Catch a Predator''.


Notable people


Sister cities

Long Beach's sister city, sister cities are: * Mombasa, Kenya * Phnom Penh, Cambodia * Qingdao, China * Sochi, Russia * Taoyuan, Taiwan, Taoyuan, Taiwan * Yokkaichi, Japan


Friendship cities

Long Beach's friendship cities are: * Bacolod, Philippines


See also

* 1939 California tropical storm * California State Route 19, Lakewood Boulevard (State Route 19) * Largest cities in Southern California * List of City of Long Beach historic landmarks * Long Beach Public Library * Silverado Park, Long Beach, California * List of U.S. cities with large Hispanic populations * List of U.S. cities with large Cambodian-American populations * USS Long Beach, USS ''Long Beach'', 3 ships


References


Bibliography


External links

* {{Authority control Long Beach, California, Incorporated cities and towns in California Cities in Los Angeles County, California Gateway Cities Los Angeles Harbor Region Populated coastal places in California Port cities in California Populated places established in 1880 1880 establishments in California 1897 establishments in California Beaches of Los Angeles County, California Beaches of Southern California Chicano and Mexican neighborhoods in California Cambodian-American culture