Photos by Asia Morris. Rendering courtesy of Kitchen Table Marketing.
Approved by the City of Long Beach in November 2016, city officials and Burnham-Ward Properties with its affiliate Burnham USA, and Rockwood Capital, broke ground on the Long Beach Exchange (LBX) retail project today, set to create approximately 266,000 square feet of stores, shops and restaurants on just over 26 acres.
Located on the southwest corner of Lakewood Boulevard and Carson Street by the Long Beach Airport, developers announced that Lowe’s Orchard Supply Hardware, Petsmart, TJ Maxx, 365 by Whole Foods and Nordstrom Rack as a handful of the businesses set to open, among many others.
The project has also brought 5,000 new jobs to the city, Mayor Robert Garcia posted on Facebook this morning. LBX is projected to open in 2018.
A dedicated communal space a little over two acres will be anchored by a repurposed aircraft hangar and used by smaller businesses, such as artisanal coffee and juice shops. The village concept within LBX was described as “community-friendly,” the project being “unlike malls of the past,” “a project that calls you back,” said Scott Burnham, of Burnham USA /Burnham-Ward Properties, during the groundbreaking ceremony.
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Burnham-Ward Properties developed SOCO and The OC Mix in Costa Mesa, a center populated with home furnishing, fashion and food purveyors. Larry Lukanish, senior vice president of Commercial Development/Investment for SARES•REGIS, who sold the property to Burnham-Ward, said their success in Orange County made them the top choice for the project.
“Long Beach Exchange is exactly the visionary type of project that this area, which is underserved in retail and dining, demands,” said Lukanish in a statement. “The center will be a much-needed and popular amenity for its corporate neighbors, including Mercedes-Benz, Virgin Galactic and Boeing; for guests of the two adjacent hotels; and for the community as a whole.”
LBX will be composed of three zones, McGowen’s Approach, to be LBX’s main street, The Landing, a 1.25-acre central plaza and the aforementioned Hangar, according to a release.
“LBX has been designed to pay homage to the rich aviation history that’s taken place, particularly in this area,” said Burnham, nodding toward when the McDonnell Douglas/Boeing Aircraft Company’s Long Beach plant was located there.
Mayor Robert Garcia called LBX a quality project, that will not just be a draw for Long Beach, but a regional draw as well, attracting visitors from all over, saying “Long Beach is jumping incredible leaps and bounds when it comes to being a big city with a lot of options[…] for the community.”
Councilwoman Stacy Mungo of the Fifth District, where LBX is being constructed, said that “this side of town had really been a food desert for awhile,” where residents were leaving Long Beach to dine in other cities. Thanks to the demand for more businesses by the community and the creation of a business association, 600 businesses have opened within “this one-ninth of the city” since Mungo took office in 2014, and there’s still a want for more space.
“Not only are those shops filled but there’s high demand for more spaces and more places for people to go,” said Mungo. “As you finish your construction and you start to open your doors, I look forward to partnering with you to hire Long Beach residents to keep the commutes low and employees happy.”
For more information about Long Beach Exchange, visit the Facebook page here.
Long Beach Exchange will be located at 4069 North Lakewood Boulevard.
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