Next Thursday, the Long Beach City Council will host a Southeast Area Development and Improvement Plan (SEADIP) meeting to discuss the development of the 1,500 acre area of Southeast Long Beach from Seventh Street to the Orange County border, including land along the Pacific Coast Highway (PCH) that stretches from Bellflower Boulevard to First Avenue.

According to the a release issued Tuesday, the SEADIP Study Session will take place at 5PM on May 21 in the City Council Chambers at Long Beach City Hall.

The meeting will feature a conceptual land use plan presentation that includes general locations and types of commercial, residential, industrial, mixed-use and wetlands uses, an overview of past feedback from community workshops and a discussion on the next steps for a final plan. The council will not take any formal action at the meeting

In 2012, the city was recommended for a $929,000 grant that would amend SEADIP, essentially the guiding blueprint adopted in 1977 that permits what can and cannot be built in a wetlands area (in this case, the Seaport Marina-occupied corner of Second Street and Pacific Coast Highway). Materials on the SEADIP website say a new project was proposed for the Seaport Marina site that year which did not meet the standards set in the original 1977 improvement plan, and the Long Beach City Council decided to explore updating the new plan.

SEADIP has undergone a three-year planning process, engaging the community through workshops, pop-up events, and meetings. According to the SEADIP website, technical studies have been prepared by a consultant team that will inform the new, specific plan. 

A work timeline was implemented in 2014 to complete the specific plan.

The website says the latest SEADIP initiative will “take a fresh look at this area, acknowledging work conducted through previous efforts but with a new approach,” creating a plan that “maintains valuable natural resources, customizes land uses and development standards, and identifies locations for future development and expanded transportation choices.”

For further information about this event, please contact Brant Birkeland at 562.570.6922 or [email protected]. For the latest news regarding this project or to get involved, visit www.lbds.info/seadip_update, where you can sign up for e-mail notifications, status updates, and register for the Long Beach Town Hall online forum.

Above: The Seaport Marina Hotel, site of a project proposed in 2012 that did not meet existing SEADIP standards. File photo.