Neighborhoods provide perhaps the most defining characteristics of a city, whether they are made up of dense, multistory apartments or large lot, single family sub-divisions. Long Beach is fortunate to have a diverse mix of residential neighborhoods large and small, new and old (relative to the historical context of Southern California). Occasionally, I will take the opportunity to write about observations regarding specific neighborhoods in the city. There will be a focus on the character of the housing, properties and the public right of way, including the streets, sidewalk and parkways, all of which define one neighborhood from another. There was a bit of debate about which community to initially write about, Carroll Park being a clear choice.
Avoiding the obvious, I chose to write instead about a single property in Carroll Park, a series of eight duplexes flanking either side of an intimate walk street. Built in 1926, these two-story Spanish Revival buildings each consist of two small one-bedroom apartments stacked over each other. They are barely far apart enough to be considered legal by modern building codes. Built in the first part of this century, on-site parking is unheard of and there is a common dumpster that terminates the end of the pedestrian way. Outside of this context this property could be considered slum housing.
Instead, this series of vintage duplexes creates perhaps the most quant, personal neighborhoods that one could stumble upon.
