Recommendation to request City Manager and staff to prepare an 8 by 28 plan, a needs assessment and project timeline for eight projects that are critical to a successful 2028 Summer Olympics and Paralympic Games; and to prioritize and brand these projects as Olympic priority development projects for future funding opportunities.
Thank you. Okay, great. Thank you all very much. We appreciate it. Moving on. Thank you. Madam Quirk, if you can, please, next to item 13. Communication from Mayor Garcia, Councilwoman Gonzalez, Councilmember Pearce, Councilwoman Price, Councilwoman Mango. Recommendation to request city manager and staff to prepare an eight by 28 plan needs assessment and project timeline for eight projects for a successful 2028 Summer Olympics and Paralympic Games. Great. Thank you. I will start and then I will pass this off. I know that Mr. Murdoch is going to say a few remarks as well. So I think as a reminder, we know that the Long Beach City Council unanimously earlier in 2017 voted to enter into a partnership with the Los Angeles Olympic Committee as part of those are. First, as we know, led by Mayor Garcetti in the city of Los Angeles, L.A., as we all know, was awarded the 2028 Olympics. As part of that awarding of the Olympics. Long Beach, of course, is a partner, and the council has approved a pretty large partnership with Los Angeles in hosting a variety of games for 2028. And we know that these include water polo, open water swimming, the triathlon, handball, sailing, as well as BMX racing. There's also currently some conversations about other opportunities for the city to showcase the community and its Olympic history. We know that Long Beach has been part of the last two Olympic bids, last two Los Angeles bids that happen and were very active. Should be noted, though, that this time along beaches hosting more games than we ever had in the past. And so those that may or may not be aware, there are some statistics out there that show Long Beach is actually one of the largest cities in the country that has actually produced more Olympians than almost any other place in the United States. And so the project in front of us today, in conversations with city staff as well as the Olympic Committee there, there has been some some interest to ensure that certain facilities, which we're already planning on, on developing that already on the books, be completed in time, of course, for the Olympics. And these are the projects as presented by our our staff and working with the Olympic Committee. We have the Belmont Veterans Pier Rebuild, of course, which will be the centerpiece for the sailing competition, will have the Belmont Pool, which will serve as a showcase of Olympic history and is expected to be widely used for city exhibitions and events. We do have the lifeguard tower rebuild, which will rebuild all the lifeguard towers across the coast. We have our Beach Concession Stands project, which is the reconstruction of concession stands for visitors up and down between downtown and the pier. We have the rebuild and construction of the arena, which will be used for handball events and needs major refurb refurbishment. Of course we have the expansion of the Convention Center Hotel Project and Convention Center connection that we expect will be used for a variety of visitors that are coming to the community. We also, of course, need to complete the airport improvements, including the mentor, the major renovations to the rental car area baggage claim, which will provide obviously an opportunity for visitors coming in and out of our airport. And finally, which is essentially a metro project, but we are partnering, which is the large it's about $1,000,000,000 at that metro L.A. is putting into the blue line for refurbishments all up and down the blue line. And the committee expects that the downtown, the Long Beach Sports Park, which we're currently calling it, will connect to the downtown L.A. Sports Park via the Long Beach Blue Line. So there's a lot of excitement around that project as well. Mr. Markley, do you want to add to that? I know you've been meeting with the committee. I guess, Mr. Mayor, I think he did a very good job of outlining kind of the concept here. As you know, we talk to the committee often. They are very excited about Long Beach. They see a tremendous amount of potential here. And just every time we talk to them, they're excited about, you know, what they're going to be able to bring here and the unique experience that we're going to have for the athletes and all the visitors and the families of everyone who's going to be participating here. So what this does for us is this provides us with a lot of vision. We only have ten years. I know that doesn't sound like a long time, but it actually is pretty short in terms of getting ready for the Olympics. There's a lot of work to do. And so by passing this, the council will give us some guidance on what those priorities are going to be for that we need to be focusing on for the Olympics. As you mentioned, the projects, I won't repeat those, but we'll come back with a report on kind of where we are , what else we need to do and how to how we plan to close some of those funding gaps. A lot of them are either funded, partially funded or fully funded and are moving forward. We have five of those in the Tidelands area, so we have some resources down in Tidelands that we've been planning for several years and that's going to be building on that. One of these is a private development site. That's the hotel, and the city has done a lot to encourage that, both through a total rebate and also a lot of the land sale. We've got our airport project, which is which is funded through the airport revenues and then of course, the partnership with Metro. So we believe this is an aggressive vision, but also a doable vision and look forward to giving you some more information on that. Great. Thank you. And this, I assume, will be the beginning of also regular updates to the Council on the progress of the projects as well as the the progress with the Olympic Committee as well. Yes. So we'll be talking about these projects. And we also do need to come back to you and talk a little bit more about some of the final details, or at least the agreements for 2028. So the council took action on 2024. Since that time, there has been changes and it's now 20. 28. And so we are going to be coming back to you over the next couple of months to to get those final agreements in place with the Olympic Committee. Great. I know that we have to tweak part of the agreement there. So thank you. There's a motion to second. I'll start with Councilwoman Price. Thank you. And I want to thank the mayor for his leadership in bringing this item forward. And I think there's a beautiful synergy here between us and the city of L.A. in jointly preparing for this incredible event that's going to highlight our city. I am fortunate to, alongside my colleague, Counsel Council Member Pearce, to represent the coastline in the city of Long Beach and in the third District and throughout Long Beach. We pride ourselves on being the classics capital of America, and nothing is going to allow us to showcase that more than improving the facilities that we have, that where we will house Olympic events, Olympic athletes, Olympic spectators, family members, visitors alike. So I very much look forward to investing in some of these infrastructure projects that have been outlined here and continue to bring pride to a city that produces more Olympians in the area of aquatic sports than any other city in this region. And that's something we don't talk about as often as we should with so many young Olympians in our local high schools. And having this these facilities be a source of pride for them when the Olympics are hosted here and frankly, always is something that should be a priority for the city. The Belmont Pier, as many, many people know, was damaged pretty significantly last year. And the city has been struggling since last year to figure out how we're going to make, first of all, the necessary repairs and also consider the significant work that it's going to need for the years to come. With the Olympics coming and the sailing events being so heavily focused around the pier area, I think the opportunity to rebuild the pier and enhance its its its status as an iconic facility in the city of Long Beach is very important and I'm looking forward to that and I'm glad that it's one of the eight projects same as the case for the Belmont Pool. Obviously, we've set aside more than half of the money that we need on the project, and we have an incredibly engaged and active community, dedicated and committed to seeing us raise money and look for alternative funding sources to be able to completely fund that project. And I'm very, very pleased and proud to be part of that, that project. So I'm glad to see that that's on the list of eight. The other thing that I think is really important, and I know Councilmember Pearce agrees with me on this is our lifeguard towers. Our lifeguard towers are really in bad shape. They don't reflect the quality of the lifeguard program that we have here in the city of Long Beach, the great work that the men and women of the lifeguard division of our fire department do. And so enhancing those facilities, I think, will go a long way for building community pride, but also making us look like the precious gem that we are within the region when spectators and Olympians come to town. This is a really great opportunity for us to think about creative ways to partner with public and private entities, potential grant funding options, and really explore some out of the box ideas to get our facilities in top shape for the 2028 Olympics. So I thank the mayor for bringing this forward. I think staff for their commitment to these projects. And I ask my colleagues to support with vigor this item. Thank you. Thank you, Councilwoman Mongo. I am so excited to move this forward. I really appreciate the hard work of the city staff and the court. My colleagues and I really look forward to the opportunity to host an international event right here in a city that's done such a great job in moving itself forward. And many in my side of town reflect back on the year of 1984 when we hosted before. And it's only appropriate that we get our house in order and ensure that we put our best foot forward for the world. I look forward to many sponsorship opportunities for our large facilities, similar to the $70 million donation splash naming rights that were just received in L.A. for the Coliseum. I hope that we have a couple of $70 million offers right here in Long Beach. Thank you. Councilmember Pearce. I yes. Thank you very much. Thank you, Mayor, for putting this item together. You know, when this item came to me, I definitely know all the work that's been done. Five of these projects are actually in District two, which is the heart of downtown. And so I had a couple of questions. I, as you guys know, had some concerns about the Olympics in the beginning of supported it. I think that they've done a great job in making sure that there are community benefits tied to the city, as there's been about a decade conversation around what happens when Olympics come to our city. And so I want to applaud the city for working with them on making sure that we're getting some of those community benefits for putting this list together. There are items on this list that I had some concern about before, and I've had a couple of emails, so I just wanted to publicly address them. On naming the Belmont Pool. I was not here for that vote. I know that it is with the Coastal Commission right now and we have, as Councilmember Price mentioned, half of that funding. One of the things I like about this item is that it's lifting up Long Beach and saying, we're open for investments. We're open to make sure that we have good corporate sponsorships, that we've got good athlete organizations that are sponsoring. And so I find this is a great opportunity to make sure that we're not carrying the entire financial burden on our backs. And I look forward to hearing what comes back from the Coastal Commission on that. My favorite project on this list is definitely the beach concession stands, something we've talked about for a really long time. The Alamitos location is going to be phenomenal. I met with staff today and we hope to have some kind of groundbreaking by the end of the year, hopefully. I don't know, Tom, if you want to talk just a little bit about that in the RFP process, because it is something that is probably my favorite project right now. Yes, Councilmember, we have been working on creating some pretty stunning designs on how to engage people on our beach, to come and visit concessions and be able to to have a great experience. So those are there's three different projects. We are bringing those forward to the planning or to the Coastal Commission. They've already gone through Planning Commission. They're really designed both for residents and visitors alike and coastal serving users. So we're hoping to get that through the Coastal Commission by the end of the year and to continue to put together the funding. And so we can do a groundbreaking. We're fingers crossed by the end of the year. Great. Thank you. And I also want to recognize that on that concession stands, I know we've had a couple of conversations with Dolby and other folks about that. So just for the first time, we're looking at breaking up those reps and being able to have local businesses in there, whether it's oysters at one and burgers at another . So I always have to champion that any time it comes up. So my other question is really around the conversation, around housing. I looked at L.A. and it seems like L.A. is trying to get to 100,000, 100,000 new housing units to be developed by 2028. And part of that plan was that you're going to have athletes housed in these units, and then once the athletes leave, that those would be converted to affordable housing. Do we have any plan to house any of the athletes in Long Beach? So none. Not this time. The way that they're creating it, most Olympics create an Olympic village, and that's really where they house the athletes. And that's right now plan for for L.A. but we are going to be the hub. So they're designing us to have people come down here and not just have one event or two events, but really to have a center. So we're a major center, the Long Beach Center. But as of right now, housing down here is not one of the projects that they're looking at. Okay. I know that there's we'll probably hear in community comment tonight some concerns around housing impacts. Any time we've had this and I know there's some studies that show some good reports. Are we going to have an annual report on the 2028 list? So we can certainly report back on how we're doing. I think that's part of the report is to let you know what the timeline is. And then, yeah, we need to stay on target and report back. I do want to answer your question about housing, though, is that is clearly something we've heard from the council that we need more housing and that there's been a goal set. I believe, Mr. Mayor was 4000 units in it, mostly in the downtown area, and we're well on our way. So we are building a lot of housing. There is a number of skyscraper projects that are either breaking ground or. Moving forward. So housing is important and you'll see in ten years a much different downtown than what we know today. Thank you. Mr. Modica, I would like to ask that whenever we get our annual report on the eight projects that we also just have a report about how our housing is increasing. I know that this council and the mayor is taking housing really seriously and just want to make sure that we're following that along with all the work that we're doing outside of it, so that we're addressing the conversation head on. Thank you. Thank you, Councilman Andres. Yes, thank you, Amir. You know, I'm really excited about the you know, to my colleagues who are bringing this item forward, you know, also along, which is a long story history and, you know, athletics and the Olympics, you know, good preparation starts early. And I think working that we do to prepare for the 2028 Olympics could be successful and financially viable, you know, which will create jobs. And I would really like extremely like, you know, to ask the city manager focus a lot on local employment and the implementation of these eight projects to a greater degree possible. That is very, very important, I think, to me and anyone else who lives in the city of Long Beach. It's employment, local employment. Thank you very much. Thank you. Councilman Austin. Thank you. And I like to speak in support of this item. This is very exciting and there is obviously a lot of work to be done in the next ten years. I was out at Skog last weekend and I heard a presentation from L.A. Mayor Eric Garcetti. He gave a pretty comprehensive presentation, and the expo actually included Long Beach in the presentation as well and all of the the the games that will be here. He also talked about the Olympic Committee agreed to to frontload some financial resources to to the L.A. Olympic Bid Committee. Mr. Mayor. And I was curious to know whether or not there's been conversation, to see if any of those resources will be available to Long Beach. And in terms of what to help us get to these these projects, if you know. Yes. And maybe Tom can add. So there's some some extensive conversations going on around funding opportunities, both on the community benefit side as well as on the construction side. So on the community benefit side, for example, we're looking at the as people probably aware, the L.A. Olympics in 84 was one of the few Olympics that actually made money. And the foundation around that Olympics is still actually putting money out into the community through their nonprofit work. So one of the things that they're looking at this year for the 28 Olympics is they're looking at a long term plan to provide essentially to pay, particularly for low income families, all of a kind of athletic programs , swimming programs, parks, recreation, youth programs, and trying to be able to fund kind of a master youth sports program that would last for a decade plus for the communities and where the Olympics is actually in. So that is something that's being actively discussed and a goal of Mayor Garcetti's. And in addition to that, we are we expect some substantial opportunities to work, obviously, with with the Olympic Committee on opportunities to kind of close some funding gaps for us that we might have in in these projects. Great. Well, I look forward to supporting this and working as a council, as a city to make sure that we are a great host in 2028. Thank you. And Councilmember Superdome. Thank you. I have a question and a couple of comments. The question is to Tom Monaco. When will you bring this back for a second look. Do you have a date in mind? I don't have a date at this point. We can certainly get you back kind of a general report. But some of these projects are further along than others, and they're going to require some additional study on what it will take. So, for example, the lifeguard station, we have not started that project yet. We don't have a time frame or a sense. But for things like the concession stands, we have a lot of information. So I'm hoping in the next probably two or three months we'd come back and have that first look and then let you know, you know, further what needs to be done. Okay. So I won't frame my comments as a friendly amendment since this is coming back again. We can discuss that. But first, I just want to follow up on Councilwoman Mango's comment about the L.A. Coliseum, or maybe we should call it the United Airlines Coliseum, $70 million, but it's only for 16 years. And so that's a tremendous opportunity, I think, that we can look into, and I would hope that would be studied. Also, the one point that is striking to me is, is as was mentioned, so many of these projects are in the Tidelands area and that's great for funding. The downside is that it doesn't engage our entire city or all of our communities, but we do have a prototype for doing that. And I would hearken back to our legacy with the 32 Olympics. And you talk about tough economic times, 1932. We're about three years into the Great Depression, but they had a city wide program to ask the residents to plant vacant lots or decorate vacant lots. And that happened all over the city. The winning lot was on the corner of Locust and 14th, which was nowhere near any of the venues. And as a side note, that was that contest was won by a renter who had only been in the city about five years. The other thing I think we should look at is kind of the legacy of the 84 Olympics. And there are two. They looked at the entire community and looked at our legacy from 1932. So realizing that the traffic circle in the fourth Council District was built for the 32 Olympics, they made sure that torch run went down Lakewood Boulevard around the traffic circle. So we have lots of opportunities to engage the community and get these areas spruced up for the event. So that's all I am. Thank you. Thank you. And Vice Mayor Richardson. Thank you. I wanted to chime in and add my support for this item. I want to also say, you know, I you know, when I drive near the Compton Town Center up Artesia, you'll see that 1984 Olympics logo. And I think we should also also, you know, make sure that we understand how to frame this to our residents is going be a lot of questions about what what our game plan is, what we're doing. And I'd like to understand better or get a briefing at some point on how there will be benefits to the local community in terms of like the L.A. 84 style benefits that were referenced tonight. Those are exciting. They, you know, help support swimming programs and things like that in all areas of all communities. And so I really want to want to better understand that and be able to champion that a bit more. I'm going to be excited for this. You know, my girls will be teenagers. I'm thinking about, you know, what sports they can get into now so they can really be inspired at that time. When I look at these sports and I want to make sure that we get some tickets to the Olympics. Thanks. Well, thank you. Let me take public comment. Please, please come forward. All right. Judy Clarke is the address. Obviously, I support this measure. And if people haven't thought about it, we will be getting even more venues. As I think most people understand, these are the what happened this summer with the smoke and the fires in L.A. Basin, and there's no indication that will not happen again. So we will be getting more venues. I want. To turn to. The issue of having the Marine Stadium included in that as a rowing venue. If you recall, two years ago, I came before the council, I think it was during Christmas break when Casey Wasserman's point people called me three times and said they definitely want to have the Marine Stadium as the rowing venue. It will be completely. He understood that the Davis Bridge is going to be replaced. It will be completely compliant. Unfortunately, what has happened based upon some credible individuals, some information that I find to be very far from a very credible individual. Mr. Wasserman has been. Persuaded away from and somebody for reasons far from commendable has essentially been poisoning the well suggesting that he take it to the first alternative to was up the lake villages which proved out to be very unsatisfactory notwithstanding the overall success of the 84 games because it was so distant. Then there was a place they suggested down by not far above San Diego, equally problematic. Then they were going to put it in Lake Balboa in the middle of van eyes, where even in the best, without any smoke and fires, it's 102 degrees. You know, there are paradigms that are going to address that. But I would strongly suggest you move forward with the plan to have the Marine Stadium designated it. It will be, as I say, the bridge will be in place within 3 to 4 years. No bench. Those two supports structures and so forth. The Corps of Engineers comes in with about 90 days before or 60 days before and does their thing to hold back the tides and the currents. And so there's no reason why the Marine Stadium should not be the rowing venue for these games. And I'm going to put my foot on that. You keep that on the neck of the issue because it makes absolute sense to have it here and it makes no sense to have. Any of the other locations that unfortunately. Mr. Wasserman was steered. To. Thank you very much. I can. Mr. Good here. I know this is one area where you and I agree very closely. And I, I talked to Mr. Wasserman today, and I can just guarantee you that he's very aware of our interest, our strong interest that for additional opportunities for us to host at the top of that list, as you all know, is the event that you're talking about. And so it's a decision, of course, that's not our decision. That's correct. But we they are absolutely aware of our ability to do and host an amazing event, a marine stadium. And so that's something that they know. Thank you. Reinforced. Thank you. Next speaker good evening, council members and Mr. Mayor. My name is Alan Perlman. I am a senior principal at Studio 111 Architecture, an urban design firm here located right in downtown. I'm also a third district resident, and this year I co-chair the Long Beach, the downtown Long Beach Alliance's Economic Development Committee. And tonight, I want to express our strong support for the recommendation to pursue the eight by 28 plan. I think leveraging the fact that Long Beach will be one of the Olympic host cities once again, it's a generational opportunity. It allows us to continue improving our city. And, you know, while completing the eight projects identified by 2018 will be important for the Olympic Games. We believe that they represent infrastructure and quality of life improvements that will benefit all residents of Long Beach for many years to come. So it's about really not just the Olympics, but the long term improvement of our city. In fact, Mr. Mayor, we want to take this opportunity to suggest, to think maybe even a little bit bigger, because while the Olympics represent one catalytic event, an amazing event for us, there are other things in play that are equally exciting. And if you think about putting them all together, the improvement plan for the L.A. River, the changes to Shoreline Drive, that will really create a totally new experience of coming into the city and a much more pedestrian friendly downtown. The expansion of the aquarium, the revitalization of the the Shoreline Village and maybe Marina Green Park and a more productive use of the elephant lot and going all the way up and down our shoreline. I think that all of these things point to an opportunity to take advantage of really one of our greatest assets, which is our waterfront. And I think if you can imagine a cohesive plan of tying everything from the L.A. River all the way across the city, it really ties the downtown and the rest of the city together into an amazing opportunity. So as a stakeholder in the city and the downtown, I'm thrilled at these opportunities. And I think now is the time to dream big about what we could do for our city while we take advantage of ideas about having equitable outcomes which are extremely important and value capture in some of these projects that really can help fund the future of our city and really plan together for ourselves and future generations. As always, the NBA is here to lend its support in these exciting ventures. Thank you very much. Thank you very much. Next speaker, please. Good evening, mayor, and members of the council. I'm Jeff Miller. I've lived here a long. Time and I was here for the 1984 Olympics. And I and my neighbors and friends and I enjoyed them very much and looking forward to doing it again. I have a few comments about one specific aspect of the eight projects, and that's the BBC, also commonly known as the Belmont Pool. The agenda item behind you reads the critical phrase there is for staff to prepare a plan with a needs assessment. What this plan needs is a pool that can actually be built as planned. Now, the Belmont pool is the wrong location. The traffic, the congestion, the lack of access. The visitor amenities are not there. No true cost has actually been given for what this would be. And the the money is not there. The in there just insufficient money to build that there. But most important, perhaps, is the issue of sea level rise and other factors that very likely will cause this to be rejected by a coastal commission. The need here is a pool that can be built. So I urge you to look at building this pool downtown where access is assured. The freeway is there. The blue line is there. All the bus lines converge there. There is adequate parking. There are hotels, restaurants, other entertainment opportunities downtown, the aquarium, the Shoreline Park, all within walking distance for the visitors who will come. And a pool built there could very likely not be subject to the limitations of the one being planned. And maybe it could be built so that some of the actual Olympic events could be held in our pool downtown, which is not the case with the current plan to put it on the beach. So I urge you to maximize your opportunities for getting the Olympic funds that are going to be available to use them wisely to put together a pool that will last not just until the 28 Olympics, but on beyond that, and it will not be swamped by the rising sea. Thank you. Thank you. Next speaker, please. Good evening, Mayor Garcia, city councilman and women. My name is Gordon and CJR. My address is in file and I am a resident of the third district. And I'd like to speak to you tonight about a request to remove this pool, the Belmont pool, from this eight by 28 recommendation and request by the mayor. First, I'd like to remind you that the project is under litigation by citizens about responsible planning. The carp group following the council's approval of this IIR for the for the pool earlier or late last year, I should say, May of 2017. I understand that while the suit may have a hearing in May of 2018, that date is not confirmed. In the likely event of a ruling against the city of Long Beach because of serious sequel violations. There will be important issues that the city must remedy in order to move ahead with an updated or supplemental air. One official or one critical issue is the fact that the city chose not to identify any valid alternative sites for the project in the event that another location is identified and one that could potentially be outside of the coastal zone. The mayor's plan for eight Olympic projects may be spoiled, at least five that are planned for the coastal zone. In addition, the appeal to the California Coastal Commission on the city's local coastal development permit for this project is still pending. A hearing to determine the significant issues has not been scheduled and no date has been set by the coastal staff for the appeal itself. As you know, a number of Long Beach residents have appealed this project and it's also important to remind you that two sitting coastal commissioners have also filed their own appeals. Although this action is not unprecedented, it highlights significant Coastal Act implications that this pool has and its location have for the Coastal Commission, specifically its location on the beach and without regard for the threat of future sea level rise further, it's clear that the pool will never be used for these Olympic events. It's being designed as a hall to host exhibits, and I'd suggest to you that there might be some other locations within the city of Long Beach that might be more appropriate for that kind of use. Specifically because of the funding uses that are funding sources that are going to be needed for the rest of these projects that are being proposed. I'd like you to consider removing this item from the eight by 28 project. Thank you. Q Next speaker, please. Good evening. Mayor Garcia, Council Members. Vice Mayor Richardson, thank you for bringing forward the home purchase project. I think that's great. We're very excited about having a rebuilt Belmont Pier. I can't tell you how many people I certainly in the third district and around the city will enjoy that. And so that's a great project. I would like to. Suggest one addition to what you're working on. I think the lifeguard stations. Are important, but I think a lifeguard headquarters. A marine safety. Headquarters, the building that they're working out of on Junipero, is it? It's very antiquated. And in September of 2016, the city had a presentation. There was apparently plans being made to rehabilitate the lifeguard headquarters. So that was presented in 2016. And I've tried to reach the gentleman who was Pine's, who was the contracted by the city. I haven't heard back from him, so I don't know where that stands. But please talk to the marine safety people in the lifeguards. They really need a upgraded location and they need extra equipment. They need the room and they need really modern. We're going to have a lot of people to watch over. And also I join in. Urging you to think about working with the Olympic Committee. If you're going, there's no one who. Doesn't want the aquatic community to have a nice. Pool and they want a pool for events. And that's their large interest for diving, for a water pool, for swimming. And so it makes sense to do what the. Olympic Committee is going to do, which is to put their pool in downtown Long Beach, where there's parking, where there's access. Those things I've mentioned already, and there's going to be even a more beautiful. Place to watch from the pier and watch the sailing. If you let us keep the Olympic Plaza Park and I do urge you to go out there, it's a beautiful scene. There's the park. People are enjoying. It all the time. You can see the pier from there. You can see the sailboats. I think there's just such a win win of trying to. Encourage the aquatic. Community to get their mind around the fact that there can be a beautiful sand Long Beach aquatic center in downtown. It'll better serve the people who live on the east and west side, and it will cause much less dissension, which we've encountered because of the lawsuits and because of the coastal problems. So I really urge you to to work on that. I'm glad America's in charge. I'm sure you'll do a good job of putting all this together. And thank you very much for listening. Thank you very much. Next speaker, please. Good evening. My name is Johnny Coleman. I'm with a coalition called New Olympics. L.A. represents many housing advocates, homeless advocates. Anti-Imperialist. Immigrants, rights workers. Groups across Southern California. There are over 30 groups in our coalition as we speak. We launched a year ago. I've spent basically every day in the last year working and dissecting and credit and critically looking at this bid. I'm curious to see how many people in this room have actually read the bid. It's extremely long. I've read it many times. It represents a very bad deal that the lawmakers in L.A. have negotiated for. It puts the L.A. taxpayers on the hook indefinitely. It puts California taxpayers on the hook if it goes 270 million to 540 million over it. And and this is to say that it has been passed by L.A. City Council with no budget. There is no budget for the L.A. 2020 to 2028 Olympics right now. This is historically unprecedented. This has never happened in 100 plus years of the Olympics. So that's very disconcerting. Not to mention, thank you for whoever brought up the possibility that this might have a negative impact on the housing on people's housing issues, the affordable housing crisis or homelessness. But what was not talked about was what this will mean for sanctuary. It is a national special security event, the Olympics. That means that the Department of Homeland Security, which includes ICE and CBP and the NSA, is not only allowed but to encourage to work with local law enforcement. So if anyone here in this room that's sitting in front of me was a proponent of sanctuary status and in Long Beach acquiring that, then this is directly contradicts and undoes all that work you're doing. Also, it's really interesting to hear you people, especially Eric Garcetti, the mayor of L.A., touting youth sports. I don't know if anyone's been paying attention to the news recently and what the Olympics do under the guise of youth sports, but it's extremely irresponsible. I also want to correct what someone said earlier about United. The United to naming rights are the Coliseum. The IOC actually prohibits any city from letting the venue use corporate naming rights during the period of the Olympics. So United, for example, cannot be called the United Coliseum during that period. And they actually didn't know that when they negotiated the bill. As The L.A. Times wrote about this yesterday, we also talk about the. Legacy of the 1984 Olympics. For who is the question? I work a lot with activists in South L.A. and in Skid Row, and you should ask them what they thought about the 1984 Olympics and all the power that it gave Daryl Gates and how that led to initiatives like Operation Crash, Operation Hammer and the 1992 uprising. We'd also ask that the city, if it does actually make any sort of profit, that funds not go to the 84th Foundation, which is a nonprofit and is not accountable to the people that have elected you all. Thank you. Thank you, sir. Next speaker, please. Hello. I am also with the No Olympics L.A. Coalition. And so I followed the Los. Angeles bid extremely closely as well. And and following that process. I've been shocked at the haste and lack of. Transparency in the process. There was not in. Any kind of adequate community involvement from the get go. The vulnerable communities that Johnny before me mentioned, but who are most likely to be impacted by the games, were not included in the conversation, let alone told about the the risks. Involved in hosting. Every Olympics ever, such as increased gentrification, police militarization, budget overruns and displacement. Then when the International Olympic Committee cut a deal with L.A. and Paris and gave Los Angeles the 2028 Games, City Hall quickly just flipped to the numbers and voted it through without any more public input or even the illusion of public input or a budget , as Johnny also mentioned. So in assessing these massive Olympics related projects in Long Beach, I encourage. You to act differently and include the tenants and other vulnerable people who will be most impacted. By them. Thank you. Thank you very much. Next speaker, please. Stephanie Dawson. So the Democratic Socialists of America, Long Beach chapter. Point of order. Before my my time starts, Mister City Attorney, I've noticed three different conversations that have gone on tonight between council members and people in the audience. I'm just a simple wee lawyer, so I'm not the best person when it comes to analyzing the California Public Records Act . But this is an agenda, a public meeting. And if they want to be doing constituent services during the meeting, they need to be in the evening, make appointments during that for that specifically. Secondly, Rex, the other day when we met when you met Donnie Anderson in the street, you might want to talk to him about his felony that he picked up during Operation Crush in the 1994 Olympics. As he was sitting in his house and minding his own business, Daryl Gates and the LAPD crashed down his door and struck him with a fellow with a felony that he only this year got removed thanks to the work of the California ACP. He is just one of thousands of people who are victimized by the police militarization that happened as a result of the Olympics during that time. Talk to the people who are still living in North Long Beach in Compton. And they all they all have very similar stories about the about the oppressive nature of the police that happened. They were allowed to happen during that time. Secondarily, if you're looking at ways to of the projects that are being named as targets for improvement during via the Olympics, none of them do have to be specific to the Olympics. These are all projects that can be funded through progressive income taxation or through parcel taxes that can be achieved, that can be achieved by you guys passing policies separate to the Olympics, trusting the Olympic Committee, which is internationally reputed to be one of the most corrupt organizations in the world. It's a reason that we rejected F1. Racing is the exact same reason that we should be doing that. We're rejecting the Olympics. It is an untenable, corrupt organization that extracts money and works as a displacement engine for especially low and moderate income people inside of the city. If you want if you want new sports again, we can raise taxes within and on our own, on our own residents in a progressive manner to be able to pay for it. So finally, please, if you think that this is going to be some sort of massive gentrification effort on the on the part of and improving public infrastructure. Just Google the 24 Olympics. In in Athens. You know there's slideshows now of most of these or most of these past Olympic venues. They are covered in moss and mold and not being used anymore. Thank you for your time. Thank you. Next speaker, please. Thank you, counsel. My name is Max Norris. I'm here on behalf of the Democratic Socialists of America Long Beach chapter. I would. Like to take a moment to ask. Mr. Parker again what exactly. The Council's position on the PRC laws is. We saw it again twice. Two members go into the public. Speak out of turn during a meeting. My understanding is that violates the Public Records Act. So I'd like disclosures from those people. To be made public. Thank you. Beyond that, I'm. Here to speak against the Olympics. This is a deal that's. Not for our average Long. Beach's. This is a deal for Eric Garcetti. Mr. Wasserman and elite people of Los Angeles. We may have the most Olympians coming out of Long Beach, and that's great. But wouldn't it be great that they got to go some? Or else. And that all these problems that everybody tells you about. Would be. Somewhere else. We have enough problems. We have plenty of things that we. Could all be talking about. Instead of cheerleading for the Olympics. I implore you, Mr. Richardson, specifically, take a closer. Look at this. I know you have aspirations higher. Than this office, and this will be a stain on your record. Thank you. Thank you. Next speaker, please. Mr. Mayor. City Council. My name is Richard Foster. I was 12 years president of USA Water Polo and also past president, Olympic Century Club and the aquatics capital of America. And that's the two organizations I'm here to represent tonight. We strongly support this. This plan. We're really excited that you have really thought this through and are going to do a really good job, because I've been to seven Olympic Games and some some Olympic hosts have not been that good in preparation. And it shows. But those who are prepared and do a great job reap the benefits for decades. And I think this is a great plan. I'm really excited personally and on behalf of those two organizations that you're taking this step. Just to address a couple other comments. The best run Olympic Games in history was 1984 in Los Angeles. Financially and otherwise, we have a great track record here in Long Beach. As Councilmember Price mentioned, we put out Olympics. I don't know why we put on so many Olympians, but we just do. In 2012, if we were a country, we live in the 15th ranked country in the world in medals. So it's been really incredible. And going to Miss Richardson's comments about the effects on youth. When I was President U.S.A., water polo. Every time there's an Olympics, we have a real upswell in young children wanted to participate in Olympic sports, and no year was greater than 84 when we had the Olympics right here. And you can imagine for water polo, which is kind of our town sport, having hosting the water polo events here, we're going to skyrocket. And young people, boys and girls, wanting to participate in sport. So the benefits on our youth are just tremendous. So thank you for voting to be part of Olympic Games. And we we obviously support this project. Thank you so much. Next week for peace reasons. Thank you. Hi, Mayor Gordon. Gordon Norwood. Again, I was listening to the conversation about the projects and all the money there is going to be invested in Long Beach and I'm really excited about that. But my I just came to mind that I want to make sure I want to be assured that it's going to benefit all communities. As a person who was a youth in 1984 in South Central, there was a lot of money put into Los Angeles, but I can tell you that it didn't come to South Central where I grew up. And so I want to make sure that all of our council district or some representative from all council districts is on that committee and that we are looking at all committees and not just the more our communities and not just the more affluent areas where the the coastal line, where we already are constantly building. But I don't see that same building happening in District six. So or and, you know, other not as affluent areas. So I just want to make sure that all that everybody is represented and is going to benefit all areas and not just certain areas. Because again, we're talking about the 1984. It was a wonderful, wonderful situation, wonderful event for L.A. or wonderful for L.A. But I was a young girl in South Central. I didn't see all of those the great things that we that I just heard about happening in my neighborhood. So I want to make sure that. Is that true. And Long Beach. Thank you. Next week or please. This is our is going to be the last two speakers. Okay. I will close the speakers list. Thank you, mayor. City Council, City Management. First of all, thank you for the leadership. When L.A. first announced that the Olympics they were bidding for the Olympics, Long Beach was noticeably absent. And so it was with your leadership that got Long Beach into the game and got us into the. Bid and we. Became part of the L.A. Olympics. So, first of all, thanks for doing that for our. City very much. Appreciate it. I'm Steve Goodling. The Long Beach Convention Visitors Bureau president. Our board looks forward to this event. Our membership of over 500 businesses looks forward to this event. And we couldn't be more pleased that you all are taking the leadership. What Mr. Modica said is absolutely correct. Ten years will fly and all of you involved with public work programs know the process between Coastal Commission and everything else that needs to take place. We have to begin now. So this eight and 28 is exactly spot on. These facilities will not grow moss. The convention center. Is was built in 1965. It needs new seats. It needs work. It has. And have had that touch. But yet it. Served us with the California Women's Conference, with the TED Conference and other events. That is a community facility. And now our nonprofits in our city, in addition to our convention, but also our nonprofits are using it to raise money to support their groups of women's shelter and other programs in our city. So our city assets are benefiting our residents in addition to the economic impact of showcasing Long Beach. So on behalf of our board, the Convention and Visitors Bureau. And on behalf of all of our. Membership, we'd like to thank you. And we look forward to working with you in hosting the 2028 Olympics. Thank you. Thank you, Mr. Goodling, and our final speaker. Good evening. My name is Kevin Yeager. I'm a member of Democratic Socialists of America, Long Beach and a constituent of District One. I appreciate what previous speakers have said to highlight the risks that the Olympics will bring to our city. So I just wanted to, as a democratic socialist, dwell on the undemocratic processes that have got us to this place in 2017. Our City Council approved the city manager to enter into an agreement for the 2024 Olympics, and if so, what Mr. Mayor described as a tweak actually happened. And it's sorry. And that's moving the Olympics from 2024. Four years later, it's 2028. Long Beach has to date not approved anything having to do with the 2028 Olympics. This was done under our nose. And we're just going along with, you know, big brother, Los Angeles dictating what's happening here in our city with international business agreements. So why were the Olympics awarded in 2028? Well, it's actually unprecedented for the Olympics to be awarded this far ahead of time. And the reason, well. In at least. Many people's opinion that they awarded the 2028 Olympics is because the Olympics are decreasingly popular among cities. More and more cities are waking up to the risks that the Olympics bring. After we've seen devastation and raising rents in London or just so many disasters in Rio. People are realizing that the Olympics are terrible for cities. So that's why the Olympics were concerned that if they waited four more years for the 2028 bid process, they wouldn't even have any applicants. So they tried to stick us with the 2028 Olympics right now. And so this is why it's so mind boggling to hear the previous speaker talk about how ten years will fly by and how a mr. Monica is saying, you know, ten years really isn't a lot of time to prepare for the Olympics. It's the most time any city has ever had to prepare for a modern Olympic Games. So as I said, I think there were undemocratic processes even when we voted for the 2024 Olympics. It was presented as a done deal. There wasn't much substantive conversation around how this would impact the most vulnerable communities in Long Beach. And now we have another four years. So I would urge the City Council to take a step back and take these extra four years to get more input, do more studies on how this would affect rents, how this would affect police militarization in our immigrant and people of color communities. And if we're going to pass any priority developments, the only thing we should be prioritizing is affordable housing. Thank you. Thank you, Mr. Yeager. Members Bruce Gordon Castro votes. There's a motion in the second. Motion carries. Carries unanimously. Thank you very much. Next item is we're going to do item 12.