Community Development

Downtown Shoreline (PD-6)


The Downtown Shoreline area serves as the threshold between Downtown Long Beach and the city’s waterfront. It is home to iconic residences, offices, hotels and restaurants set amid the City’s convention center, harbors, marinas, shoreline parks and beaches.

The regulatory zoning document for this area, Downtown Shoreline Planned Development (PD-6), was drafted prior to 1980 and was last updated in 2011. The City is undergoing a visioning process and will be preparing a new plan that will replace PD-6 with a contemporary specific plan. The vision and potential specific plan will embrace the City’s recent growth and look to future opportunities in this area for further housing, hospitality and recreational development. The new plan will update current development regulations and facilitate repositioning of existing uses and resources in the Downtown Shoreline area which will be informed by the visioning process.

PROJECT AREA

The Downtown Shoreline project is roughly bounded by Ocean Boulevard to the north, the LA River west and Alamitos Avenue to the east.

PROJECT GOALS

The City has identified initial goals for the Downtown Shoreline Vision that will be refined and expanded with input from the community during the visioning process, which include but are not limited to:

  1. Inclusive outreach that engages, educates and empowers the community.
  2. A process and plan that respects the needs and perspectives of existing and future residents.
  3. Creation of an attractive local, regional and global destination.
  4. A vision and plan that is economically feasible and fiscally sustainable.
  5. Explore opportunities for hospitality, recreation, housing growth and investment in greater Downtown Long Beach and its waterfront.
  6. Embrace sustainable development and adaptability to future climate and technological shifts.
  7. Modernize regulations, support the City’s housing goals, and conduct appropriate environmental review.

WHY DO WE NEED A VISION PLAN?

Long Beach has the opportunity to create a world-class waterfront and defining what that means is what the Downtown Shoreline Vision Plan is all about!

Downtown Long Beach is the only significant urban center in the region that directly engages the Pacific Ocean, and the Shoreline area is Downtown’s gateway to the waterfront. Consequently, the Shoreline area is of significance to Long Beach and the region as a whole. Like many similar waterfront areas around the world, Shoreline contains a mix of uses and associations. It serves as a residential neighborhood, a workplace, a tourist destination, an active waterfront for mariners, and a venue for regional events. Sometimes these uses, and their competing priorities can produce lots of ideas about the future of the Downtown Shoreline area, which makes a comprehensive outreach effort to build consensus around a common vision for the future necessary. 

 

Get Involved!

The City of Long Beach is committed to a comprehensive and inclusive planning process, guided by extensive community outreach and public participation. A variety of online and in-person outreach activities will be used to make public involvement accessible to as many community members and stakeholders as possible.

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Past Events

We hosted a joint open house for the Long Beach Downtown Plan Update and Downtown Shoreline Vision Plan on Saturday Sept. 9, 2023. View the Open House presentation video and boards below!

Those who were not able to attend the event are invited to provide input by completing our Feedback FormWe look forward to your participation!


In addition to the Community Open House, staff hosted pop-up booths at the following events to provide more information on the efforts and receive feedback:

  • Council District 1 Night at the Aquarium - Wednesday, Sept. 20, 2023
  • DTLB Roller Disco - Saturday, Sept. 9, 2023
  • Taste of Downtown Waterfront - Thursday, Aug. 10, 2023
  • LA Design Fest - Friday, June 24, 2023
  • Beach Streets - Saturday, May 20, 2023
  • Victory Park Design Guidelines Open House - Saturday, May 20, 2023


Contact

For more information or questions related to the Downtown Shoreline Vision Plan, contact us by email at DowntownPlan@longbeach.gov or by phone at 562.570.6194.