Downtown Long Beach’s Lincoln Park could be months away from reopening to the public, and the city wants to hear about what amenities and programming should be available when it does.

A virtual public meeting is scheduled for 6 p.m. Thursday during which city officials will reveal renderings for the park that has been closed since 2017 due to the ongoing construction around old City Hall. The park, located at the corner of Ocean Boulevard and Pacific Avenue, is projected to reopen in February 2022.

The city revealed initial renderings in February that showed the park with basketball courts, a soccer field and giant Lincoln Penny art installation that Mayor Robert Garcia praised as something that could become “one of our most Instagrammed moments and sites across the city.”

Current plans also include a dog park, for both small and large dogs, a fitness loop and exercise equipment, an outdoor reading room, a playground, skatepark and public restrooms.

The park was originally expected to open in November 2020 but like other aspects of the Civic Center project, it was hit with delays.

The new City Hall, Port of Long Beach headquarters and Billie Jean King Library did open on time but the park and the demolition of the old City Hall building that was to give way to a residential development are far behind schedule.

Old City Hall was supposed to be demolished nine months after the official move into the new facilities, which would have been around March 2020. Demo work is currently underway but the city has not announced any updates on the residential development that was expected to take its place.

An original proposal for a 580 residential units on the site fell through but city officials said they would seek another developer to build the design that was approved by the Planning Commission in March 2020.

The city has posted a survey where residents can give their feedback on the plans and suggest ideas for future park programming. Printed versions of the survey will be available at the Billie Jean King Library and can be submitted through Dec. 31.

To participate in the Oct. 28 meeting you’ll need to RSVP at this link.

[Editors note: The meeting is on Thursday Oct. 28. The story has been updated.]

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