Visitors and residents in Long Beach may soon be able to enjoy an alcoholic beverage outside at downtown events.
On Tuesday, the Long Beach City Council approved a one-year pilot program to test out options for allowing public consumption on sidewalks and closed streets, becoming the third California city to green light so-called “entertainment zones.”
Before any event with public drinking can occur, the council will have to officially pass changes to the city’s municipal code. It’s not clear yet when that will happen.
Long Beach’s first entertainment zone test will likely be on Pine Avenue and the Promenade between First and Third streets, according to a draft of the proposed pilot program submitted by the Downtown Long Beach Alliance, a nonprofit that advocates for downtown and manages two business improvement districts in the area.
DTLBA CEO Austin Metoyer said the pilot program will be rolled out slowly, starting with a one-block event and gradually growing from there.
That will help the organization gauge the number of trash cans and security needed near events, he said. To alleviate safety concerns, events will primarily be held in the middle of the day and likely end no later than 8 p.m.
“It doesn’t mean a 24/7 open-container policy; it’s more than likely going to be tailored to when a special event occurs,” said Metoyer.
In a letter supporting the pilot program, one of the businesses in the proposed boundary – Altar Society Brewing Company – wrote that the entertainment zone is “a much-needed opportunity to re-energize the downtown area.”
Downtowns throughout the state have struggled to rebound after the pandemic changed working trends, resulting in fewer people flocking to office buildings.
Small business owners in downtown recently urged the organization to host more events to generate more foot traffic in the area.
Getting an entertainment zone approved downtown has been the organization’s “top priority for over a year,” DTLB Alliance Chair Sam Pierzina told the City Council Tuesday.
The DTLB Alliance is hoping to get the first entertainment zone approved for July 26, when it will host an art and design walk, Metoyer said.
Vans Warped Tour will take place at Marina Green Park that same weekend, and the organization is hoping to create a space where people can hang out as they’re either coming to or from the event, he said.
Mayor Rex Richardson said Tuesday the pilot program could build momentum and test strategies for more open-container events downtown during the 2028 Olympics, which will feature events at Alamitos Beach, the Convention Center and the Long Beach Arena.
The pilot program was made possible by a 2023 state law that allowed cities and counties to permit drinking on public streets and sidewalks adjacent to and during a special event permitted or licensed by the Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control.
Santa Monica recently approved an entertainment zone to coincide with its Pride celebration that starts Friday.
San Francisco hosted its first entertainment zone in May 2024 and recently announced five more entertainment zones in the city.
Grand Rapids, Michigan, was another example cited by DTLB Alliance as a successful entertainment zone.
Done correctly in Long Beach, the idea could lead to “visitors discovering something unexpected and businesses getting the exposure they deserve,” Alex Escobar, a downtown resident, told the City Council.