Some of the stories that shaped Long Beach in 2024 will undoubtedly continue into the new year. Here are a few local issues to keep your eye on.

Progress on homelessness

Long Beach and other California cities gained a new tool this year to combat homelessness within their borders, and we may soon see whether it has had an impact.

Cities can now fine, cite or arrest people for sleeping in public places following a major Supreme Court ruling in June, reversing a lower court decision that, for the last six years, has largely prevented cities from using criminal enforcement.

The outcome in Grants Pass v. Johnson expanded the power of governments and police agencies, but it remains unclear how this new power will impact efforts to get people housed. Immediately following the ruling, Gov. Gavin Newsom urged cities to start clearing encampments, and in August, Long Beach cleared five parks that they deemed “high priority” areas.

Tiffany Royal, who was once homeless, visits friends, who are homeless, at an encampment at Gumbiner Park in Long Beach, Wednesday, Aug. 14, 2024. Photo by Thomas R. Cordova.

Meanwhile next month, volunteers will fan out across the city to look for people without permanent shelter as part of an annual count. In 2024, 3,376 people were deemed homeless, a slight decline from 2023; the 2025 numbers will likely be released in late spring or summer.

Housing laws

The state also has more tools to compel cities to build new homes in areas where they’ve been off-limits.

If cities don’t meet their affordable housing goals, the state can override local decisions and in some cases, allow developers to build apartments in areas zoned for single-family homes.

That’s already happened in Los Angeles, where a developer recently sued and ultimately won the right to build a 220-unit affordable complex in Reseda despite the project being rejected by the city.

One project to watch this coming year is a planned 100-unit affordable complex in Cal Heights that residents have vehemently opposed. The city owns the land, and is in negotiations with West Hollywood Housing Corporation to develop the project, which must first go through the local approval process.

Staff shortages  

In August we reported that police were taking more than 20 minutes longer to respond to calls than three years ago. Police attributed this to the fact that 155 sworn positions were vacant — about 20% of the total force.

In October, police announced that due to staff shortages, they would no longer be responding to minor traffic collisions.

Long Beach police tape off a city block where a male was shot in the arm on Fourth Street at Chestnut Avenue in Long Beach, Wednesday, July 31, 2024. Photo by Thomas R. Cordova.

Voters in November, meanwhile, approved a big change to the way the city hires employees. The city’s administrative Human Resources division will now be given this task for most employee positions, rather than a public commission.

We will be following what impact this charter amendment may have in critical areas like emergency response.

More — and less — tax dollars  

In 2024, the city learned it will host at least eight events for the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics. Now begins the work of getting ready.

Long Beach has a very long list of projects — close to 100 — it hopes to complete in the next few years that will cost an estimated $533 million. A chunk of the funding for that work will come from the local Measure A sales tax; the remainder, the city is hoping, will come from regional and state taxes.

A source of funding it likely won’t have to rely on is the Tidelands Fund, a special pot of money that comes mostly from oil revenue but must be used for projects along the coast. The city has historically used this revenue for improvements to facilities like the Convention Center and Aquarium of the Pacific, and to fund things like lifeguards. But voters this fall ratified a state law passed in 2022 that limits new oil drilling, which means revenue in this fund will run dry. In coming years, the city will have to figure out how to pay — or whether it can pay — for expensive projects like the Naples Seawall restoration project and the Belmont Plaza Pool.

At the same time, Long Beach will also be contending with a five-year $61.5 million deficit; officials say this is due to a lack of revenue growth and loss of COVID-19 recovery funds.

The seawall that needs repair runs along the homes on Naples Island in Long Beach, Monday, Dec. 2, 2024. Photo by Thomas R. Cordova.