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11/12/2024 9:36:10 PM
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Long Beach

Long Beach, California 

California's Los Angeles County includes the city of Long Beach. With 466,742 residents as of 2020, it is the 42nd most populous city in the country. Long Beach, a charter city, is California's seventh-most populous city. 

Long Beach, which was founded in 1897, is located in Southern California in Los Angeles County's southern region. Long Beach, which is a component of the Gateway Cities region, is located about 20 miles (32 km) south of downtown Los Angeles. The Port of Long Beach is one of the biggest shipping ports in the world and the second busiest container port in the United States. The city sits over an oilfield with small wells both offshore and directly beneath it. 

The Aquarium of the Pacific and the permanently moored RMS Queen Mary are two of the city's famous waterfront attractions. The Grand Prix of Long Beach, an IndyCar race, and the Long Beach Pride Festival and Parade are all held in Long Beach. Within the city is California State University, Long Beach, one of the biggest institutions in California in terms of enrolment. 

 

Geography 

The distance between downtown Los Angeles and Long Beach is around 20 miles (32 km). The city has a total area of 51.437 square miles (133.2 km2), of which 50.293 square miles (130.3 km2) is land and 1.144 square miles (2.96 km2) (2.22%) is water, according to the United States Census Bureau. Signal Hill is totally encircled by Long Beach. 

 

Climate 

Either a hot, semi-arid climate or a hot, summer Mediterranean climate best describes the weather of Long Beach. The city typically experiences hot summers and mild to warm winters with sporadic rainfall. As is the case throughout Southern California, Long Beach experiences generally sunny days. 4.0 miles (6.4 km) inland from the beach, at the weather station at the Long Beach Airport, temperatures vary more widely than those near the coast. Low clouds and fog are common during the summer, developing overnight and covering the region on many mornings. By the afternoon, the fog usually clears, and a westerly sea wind frequently forms, keeping temperatures moderate. Summertime can occasionally be hot and humid, which can be uncomfortable due to the heat index. 

The Los Angeles metropolitan area coastal communities to the northwest and southeast of Long Beach, which primarily have west faced coastlines, occasionally experience different weather patterns from the city due to its location directly east of the Palos Verdes Peninsula and its south facing coastline. The 1200-foot Palos Verdes hills obstruct most of the coastal moisture that characterizes other coastal cities like Manhattan Beach, Santa Monica, and Newport Beach as well as west to east airflow. 

The bulk of Long Beach's precipitation falls during the winter, as it does in the majority of Southern California localities. Rainfall from storms can be very heavy. 

 

Economy 

The economic foundation has evolved over time. A portion of the city budget is still supported by the boom that oil extraction produced. Before the installation was closed, Long Beach was a Navy town for many years. An essential role was provided by the aerospace sector. In addition to building aircraft for World War II, Douglas Aircraft Company (later McDonnell Douglas and currently a division of Boeing) had factories at the Long Beach Airport where they produced DC-8s, DC-9s, DC-10s, and MD-11s. In factories leased by Mercedes-Benz and Relativity Space, Boeing produced the Boeing 717 until 2006 and the C-17 Globemaster III strategic airlifter until 2015. The biggest private employer in the city is remains Boeing, although having significantly reduced its local workforce in recent years. Formerly based in Long Beach, Polar Air Cargo is an international cargo airline. In Long Beach, the Toyota subsidiary TABC, Inc. manufactures various auto parts, such as steering columns and catalytic converters. 

The headquarters of Seiko Epson Corporation's American subsidiary, Epson America, Inc., are in Long Beach. Along with SCAN Health Plan, a non-profit "Medicare Advantage" HMO for seniors, Pioneer Electronics, the American subsidiary of Japan's Pioneer Corporation, has its headquarters there as well. Long Beach serves as the corporate headquarters for Medicaid management healthcare program Molina Healthcare, Inc. Long Beach is home to the real estate firm HCP. Much of the Monster Garage cable TV show was filmed in Long Beach, which also housed Jesse James' West Coast Choppers custom motorcycle store. By supporting green businesses and a purchase local initiative for Long Beach, the Long Beach Green Business Association seeks to stimulate the local economy. 

In order to increase the number of diverse technology entrepreneurs in the community, the city of Long Beach, Sunstone Management, and California State University, Long Beach established the Long Beach Accelerator in 2019. 

 

Culture 

Arts 

The Long Beach Museum of Art is run by the Long Beach Museum of Art Foundation and is housed in the famed Elizabeth Milbank Anderson home. It is owned by the City of Long Beach. The Museum of Latin American Art, established in 1996 by Dr. Robert Gumbiner, is another attraction in Long Beach. In the western United States, it is the only museum dedicated solely to modern and contemporary art from Latin America. 

The Pacific Island Ethnic Art Museum is the newest museum in Long Beach (PieAM). Robert Gumbiner was working on this museum when he passed away. On October 15, 2010, the museum opened. 

The first International Sculpture Symposium to be held in the country and the first at a college or institution was held at Long Beach State in 1965. Many of the large-scale sculptures on the site were produced by six international artists and two American artists. On the site, there are currently around 20 sculptures. 

Street art is well-known in Long Beach. Although many of the murals were not, many of them were produced in collaboration with the city's Mural and Cultural Arts Program. 

One of artist Wyland's Whaling Walls can be seen on the outside of the Long Beach Sports Arena. It is the largest mural in the world, measuring 116,000 square feet (11,000 m2) (according to the Guinness Book of Records). 

On the second Saturday of each month during the Artwalk, stores and galleries in the East Village Arts District of downtown Long Beach host their regular art openings and artists display their work in outdoor galleries. 

The Redevelopment Agency and the Arts Council of Long Beach are in charge of implementing the city's "percent for art" program, which makes sure that new private developments pay into the arts fund or commission new pieces of art. 

Music 

A diverse range of classical, jazz, and world music concerts are presented annually by CSULB's freshly renamed Bob Cole Conservatory of Music. The Conservatory is a division of the esteemed College of the Arts at CSULB. 

The Round Beach Symphony performs both classical and popular music events all year long. At the Terrace Theater of the Long Beach Convention and Entertainment Center, the orchestra performs. 

The oldest professional opera group performing in the Los Angeles and Orange County areas is Long Beach Opera, which was established in 1979. The Richard and Karen Carpenter Performing Arts Center at CSULB, the Terrace Theater and Center Theater of the Long Beach Convention and Entertainment Center, and other venues provide performances of both traditional and unconventional opera repertory. 

Four Sunday afternoons a year at the Carpenter Performing Arts Center at CSULB, the 49-year-old volunteer organization Long Beach Community Concert Association offers seniors and others top-notch musical entertainment. Additionally, the LBCCA has an outreach program that visits senior housing and care facilities throughout the greater Long Beach region to provide musical entertainment. 

Broadcasts are made from California State University, Long Beach, on KJAZZ 88.1 FM (KKJZ). Originally playing only jazz and blues, the station now plays a wider variety of music, including Rhythm and Blues (R&b). Additionally, KKJZ can be heard online. Kbeach is the CSULB student-run, web-only radio station. 

KCTY FM and KLBC AM are two internet radio stations run by students at Long Beach City College. 

There are a number of enduring music events held in Long Beach. There is the Bob Marley Reggae Festival in February, the Cajun & Zydeco Festival in May, the El Dia De San Juan Puerto Rican Festival in June with salsa music, the Aloha Concert Jam in June with Hawaiian music, the Long Beach Jazz Festival in August, the Long Beach Blues Festival in September (since 1980), and the Brazilian Street Carnaval in June (Brazilian music, September). 

The Long Beach Municipal Band, which was established in 1909, is the longest-running band supported by a municipality in the nation. The band performed 24 shows in various Long Beach parks in 2005. 

The Pussycat Dolls, The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, The Pussycats, Frank Ocean, Sublime, Tha Mexakinz, Nate Dogg, Warren G, Tha Dogg Pound, Knoc-Turn'al, the Long Beach Dub Allstars, Avi Buffalo, Crystal Antlers, The Emperors, The Pyramids, Crooked I, Stick to Your Guns, War, and Vince Staples are all bands and musicians. 

Theater 

There are numerous local professional and semi-professional theatrical companies in Long Beach. At the Carpenter Performing Arts Center on the campus of CSU Long Beach, Musical Theatre West, one of the biggest regional theater producers in Southern California, puts on performances. At the Beverly O'Neill Theatre, plays and musicals are produced by International City Theatre (part of the Long Beach Convention and Entertainment Center). 50 weeks out of the year, there are performances taking place on two stages at the Long Beach Playhouse, which has been open for business for almost 75 years. For more than 20 years, the Long Beach Shakespeare Company has offered free summertime outdoor Shakespeare festivals. 

Other smaller and "black-box" theaters in Long Beach include the Found Theatre, Alive Theatre, Garage Theatre, and California Repertory Company, which performs at the Royal Theater on the Queen Mary in the city's downtown as part of CSULB's graduate theater program. Long Beach has several tours and other stage performances, especially at the Terrace Theatrical and Carpenter Center, and both CSU Long Beach and Long Beach City College have thriving theater programs. 

Cultural Events 

At the Carpenter Performing Arts Center in October, Long Beach State conducts the CSULB Wide Screen Film Festival. In 1992, the festival debuted as a venue for widescreen films, but it has since evolved into an occasion for artists-in-residence. A well-known video and film artist (like Steven Spielberg, a former CSULB student) presents and discusses their own work as well as the ten films that most affected their sense of cinema. 

Since 1946, the "Naples Island Christmas Parade" has made its way past Belmont Shore and through Naples' canals before round Alamitos Bay. Shoreline Village is where the "Parade of A Thousand Lights" takes place (near downtown Long Beach and the RMS Queen Mary). Both the Huntington Harbour neighborhood of nearby Huntington Beach and the Port of Los Angeles/San Pedro area also host Christmas boat parades. 

Since 1984, the Long Beach Lesbian and Gay Pride Parade and Festival has taken place in either May or June. Over 125,000 people attended the two-day festival, making it Long Beach's second biggest event. The United States' third-largest Gay Pride Parade takes place there. 

During the summer, the Long Beach Sea Festival is held (June through August). It includes activities focused on the sea and the beach. These occasions include a tiki festival, beach volleyball, and beach movie screenings. 

 

Population 

California's Los Angeles County is home to the city of Long Beach. It will have a population of 468,086 in 2023, making it the 41st-largest city in the United States and the 7th-largest city in California. Long Beach's population has grown by 0.29% from the most recent census, which showed a population of 466,742 in 2020, and is now rising at a pace of 0.10% annually. Long Beach, which stretches over 80 miles, has a population density of 9,233 persons per square mile. 

The poverty rate in Long Beach is 19.46% and the average household income is $86,806. The median monthly cost of rent in recent years has been, and the median value of a home is. In Long Beach, the median age is 35.3 years, 34.7 years for men and 36 years for women. 

The Port of Long Beach, one of the biggest ports in the world, is what makes Long Beach most famous. 

 

Top 2 News Websites 

Press-Telegram 

For breaking news, sports, business, entertainment, places to do, commentary, photographs, videos, and more in Long Beach and the surrounding region, turn to The Press Telegram. 

Long Beach Local News 

Your source for the most recent breaking news, local news, politics, sports, entertainment, business, and more in Southern California's Greater Long Beach Metropolitan Area is Long Beach Local News. 

 

Current City Mayor 

The 29th Mayor of Long Beach is Rex Richardson, who is also a husband and a father. 

Richardson was elected to the Long Beach City Council in 2014 as the youngest person ever. He was also the youngest Vice Mayor in the history of the city when he was elected in 2016 to a two-year term. He was then re-elected as vice mayor in 2020 and to the Long Beach City Council in 2018. 

Richardson made history again in November 2022 when he became the first Black person and first North Long Beach resident ever to be elected as mayor. 

The foundation of Mayor Richardson's legacy in Long Beach is giving communities the power to participate in decision-making. No matter their situation, he thinks everyone deserves the chance to succeed. In order to ensure an equitable future for all, he works to transform the culture of city hall to be more intelligent, inclusive, and sensitive to the needs of our communities, companies, and families. 

Alina and Mila, the couple's two young kids, are being joyfully raised in the North Long Beach neighborhood by Mayor Rex Richardson and his wife, Dr. Nina Richardson.