Long Beach Planning Commission to Decide on 2nd and PCH Project
Posted: Wednesday, October 05, 2011
by Tom Mayes, VP Environmental Issues LBMBOA
According to the Grunion Gazette, September 20, 2011, the 2nd & PCH development proposal will go before the Long Beach Planning Commission at its meeting scheduled for
Wednesday October 12. The planning meeting is scheduled to start at 5:00 PM in the 1st floor Long Beach City Council Chambers, 333 West Ocean Blvd. The Grunion stated,
“the proposed project includes about 230 residential units, a 100 room hotel, 220,000 square feet of commercial space, a 99 seat theatre, a science center and more if
fully developed. Building height will range from 3 to 12 stories.”
The Long Beach Marinas Boat Owners Association (BOA) has gone on record to oppose this development. As we stated in our formal response to the Draft Environmental Impact
Report (DEIR) provided by the developer, this proposed development is contrary to the SEADIP zoning provisions and is at odds with the dictates of the Costal Commission.
Any new development at this intersection should conform to existing zoning plans and Coastal Commission requirements.
Our primary concern is with the huge increase in vehicular traffic at the 2nd and PCH intersection and along Marina Drive. Today’s Saturday Midday volume of 1,278 daily
trips is expected to increase to a projected trip volume of 16,196, which represents a 12.67 fold increase. This traffic growth, according to your DEIR, would cause the
Level of Service (LOS) at 2nd and PCH to decline from E (Poor) to F (Failure), meaning that the traffic would cause backups on nearby streets in Naples and Belmont shore,
and produce very long traffic delays with continuously increasing queue lengths.
The project also provides for inadequate parking on the development site and proposes a “shared” parking plan that will send the overflow traffic into our Alamitos Bay
Marina parking lot, thus making it even more difficult for Marina clients to find parking. The severe congestion caused by this project is simply unacceptable to boat
owners and other users of the marina who desire unimpeded access.
The Belmont Shore-Naples Patch, an on-line source for local news recently published an excellent
article
about the issues surrounding the 2nd & PCH development
and we suggest that interested boaters access this site for more information.
Apparently, City staff will recommend that SEADIP zoning be changed to permit a reduced size development with a maximum height of six stories Unfortunately, according
to the revised DEIR, this version of the project will still create an unacceptable impact on traffic in the area.
You can access the Final Environmental Impact Report on the City’s Web site. This final
EIR
contains the City’s responses to the comments submitted after the last revision of the EIR.
The Los Cerritos Wetlands Land Trust of Long Beach and Seal Beach also opposes this development. According to Elizabeth Lambe, President of the organization,
they have commissioned a study to explore the impact of different kinds of development on the site. She states that there are development options that will not
create the adverse impact on local wetlands and neighborhoods expected with the currently proposed project. The City in evaluating the developer’s proposal
apparently did not consider these options. The Wetlands team is presenting their findings at an open community meeting on Monday October 10, 2011, 7:00 PM at the
Golden Sails Hotel on PCH. Try to attend this meeting to receive current information about the City’s recommendation and the findings of the development
alternatives study.
Concerned boaters should also attend the Planning Commission meeting to voice your opinion about this proposed development and alternatives.
|