10:44am | Long Beach City Councilmember Robert Garcia has authored, with Councilmembers Patrick O’Donnell, Gerrie Schipske and Steven Neal as cosponsors, a motion that directs the City Manager to lobby Boeing to bring its new 737 airplane re-engining project to Long Beach, at one of the existing Boeing facilities here.
Boeing, long a mainstay of the Long Beach economy, recently announced plans to begin retooling 737 engines to power the new line of 737MAX planes, of which it expects to build nearly 500 in the next decade.
“We have the right facilities and a great, skilled workforce right here in Long Beach that are perfect for this endeavor,” said Garcia. “Our local economy would greatly benefit from this type of investment in our City.”
Boeing employs approximately 5,000 workers, most of whom are members of United Auto Workers, in Long Beach. The new 737MAX already has nearly 500 orders from five airlines, and Boeing plans to build 50 or 60 a year by the end of the decade, but has not yet chosen a production facility.
The proposed City Council action directs the “City Manager to advocate for the Long Beach Boeing facility as a possible site for the 737 re-engining project.”
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