Upcoming Activations at Harvey Milk Park Seek to Further Connect People and Place

A series of events created to further activate Harvey Milk Park have been planned for the remainder of February and throughout the month of March.

All are invited to take part in the upcoming coffee gatherings, live music, educational sessions and debate, hosted by the City of Long Beach in collaboration with Work Evolution, downtown’s first co-working community.

“Activating the Harvey Milk Park Project is an integral part of our broader economic development efforts to connect people and institutions through more open, diverse, and inclusive public spaces for people to gather,” said Mayor Robert Garcia in a statement.

The schedule of events at Harvey Milk Park is as follows:

• February 28, 8:00AM to 10:00AM: Coffee+Book Exchange
• March 14, 8:00AM to 10:00AM: Coffee+Ideation Session
• March 17, 11:00AM to 2:00PM: Lunch+Learning
• March 28, 8:00AM to 10:00AM: Coffee+Participatory Democracy
• March 30, 6:00PM to 8:00PM: Speak/Perform: Spit ‘n’ Argue
• March 31, Time TBD: Community Trans Visibility

“Bringing together businesses, workers and residents is what our community needs more of,” said Mike Haynes, CEO of Work Evolution, in a statement. “With our programmatic contribution, we hope to spur innovation that reflects the diversity of our community.”

December 2016 was the beginning of a year and a half process to transform Harvey Milk Park into a space that encourages collaboration, entrepreneurship, connectivity and celebrates the legacy of its namesake and leaders of the LGBTQ movement, according to the announcement.

“When we think of Harvey Milk we imagine people coming together to create a sense of community,” said Councilwoman Jeannine Pearce in a statement. “Activating Harvey Milk Park will foster a safe space and further the positive energy that the City of Long Beach radiates every day.”

In April 2016, the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation named the City of Long Beach a winner of the Knight Cities Challenge. The foundation will provide $300,000 in grant funds to create the nation’s first “Outdoor Collaborative” where entrepreneurs and residents can come to work and collaborate in a city park.

“I would like to thank the Knight Foundation for providing the City with this unique opportunity to co-create a public space at Harvey Milk Park,” said Tracy Colunga, Long Beach Innovation Team (i-team) director, in a statement. “With each phase of programming we gain a deeper understanding of what residents want to see at the park.”

A Bike Share station is located across the street from Harvey Milk Park and free two-hour parking is available nearby at 50 East 3rd Street.

For more information about the Harvey Milk Project, including this series of events, visit the website here.

Harvey Milk Park is located at 185 East 3rd Street.

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