Good morning, Long Beach. It’s Monday, July 28. Here’s what you need to know to start your day. Get this in your inbox every Monday by signing up at LBPost.com/newsletters.

The big budget reveal

Long Beach City leaders on Wednesday announced a $3.7 billion municipal budget that includes significant investments for small businesses and infrastructure ahead of the 2028 LA Olympics, along with assistance for families affected by homelessness and the ongoing immigration raids. 

The budget, the topic of deliberation in town halls and committee hearings until its expected adoption on Sept. 9, is a sobering forecast of a city grappling with rising obligations for new labor agreements and pensions, declining oil revenues and potentially steep losses due to federal policy changes expected to curb revenues from trade and immigration. 

Faced with a $16.9 million shortfall — 2.6% of the city’s $755 million general fund — the new budget is a tight belt with department consolidations and recommended cuts to pandemic-era programs some feel have outlived their use. No job losses are proposed at this point.

After a careful review of the new budget, here are some items we think you should consider:

  • The new budget will permanently fund the Rescue 2 peak load ambulance on 12-hour shifts. The unit, since 2005, has relied on one-time funding, despite providing relief to one of the busiest fire departments in the nation. It will be paid for by raising patient ambulance fees by roughly 20%. For more, read our story from earlier this year where firefighters talked about how overwhelmed they are and how often they run out of ambulances.
  • An electric sweeper unit meant for protected bike lanes is being purchased as the city continues its march toward building out a network of bicycle lanes and needs a permanent method of keeping them clear.
  • Parking tickets will rise by $5. Officials say the difference will cover eight positions on the city’s Clean Teams, sent to scrub, power wash sidewalks and alleys, and clear homeless encampments.
  • Long Beach will make some changes in its police department, hiring more community service assistants to handle low-priority calls and expanding a pilot that sends qualified health workers to handle some mental health calls. The department also looks to purchase $300,000 in drone equipment and construct a $1.5 million crime data center. 
  • Citing difficulty in staffing, the city will establish a pilot that converts 21 part-time crossing guard positions into six full-time jobs that will have them handle parking enforcement. Officials say the part-time roles are difficult to fill due a lack of interest in working 2-4 hours a day. This also comes as complaints mount from schools about people blocking sidewalks, driving too fast and creating general hazards.
  • Libraries are to stay open six days a week. Increased hours, funded previously by one-time dollars, will be paid for permanently. This includes Bay Shore, Burnett and Bret Harte libraries.
  • There’s $7 million meant for “high priority” projects at city parks. This includes $2 million in turf improvements for Heartwell Park, $1.8 million for a new playground and sports complex at Houghton Park, basketball courts and planning for Martin Luther King Jr. Park, and $1 million in general improvements to MacArthur Park, among others.
  • A thousand new trees, planted in “high-heat areas” citywide as part of the city’s climate action plan. The city will also set aside money for a study on energy resiliency.
  • Two million dollars for critical repairs to the Naples Seawalls. Officials say there are tie-backs that hold together sections of the wall that are deteriorating and in need of immediate replacement. Following this project, the city hinted it will begin work on the Sorrento Trail sometime next year. This is just a small piece of the $125 million needed to fix the seawall, but officials say this is the most crucial bit.
  • From the Tidelands Fund — meant for projects and programs along the coast — the city plans to set aside $2 million for new tiebacks along a section of Naples Seawall. This improvement will pave the way for the city to begin work on the Sorrento Trail as early as next year. This is just a small piece of the $125 million needed to fix the seawall, but officials say this is the most crucial bit.
  • Another $2 million in Tidelands money will be used on “revenue-generating assets,” such as restoring Sir Winston’s, an upscale restaurant aboard the Queen Mary.
  • Any Tidelands money left over after those projects (and a $1.5 reserve to cover future fund balance deficits) will be transferred to the long-delayed Belmont Pool, which has to be rebid after the last round of project proposals came in well over budget.
  • The establishment of a $1.5 million downtown advertising district. The start-up funds will help create advertising space in the area. It falls in line with the Grow Long Beach initiative to establish revenue sources in entertainment and advertising as oil revenues continue to decline. (Editor’s note: This item was corrected to show that $1.5 million, not $15 million, is proposed to be allocated to the advertising district. The three previous bullet points were also revised to clarify how Tidelands money was being distributed.)

Business events and information

  • The Long Beach Young Professionals on Wednesday are hosting a Summer Blockbuster Board Installation, a night of networking with a movie hero theme, where attendees can mingle with the board and hear about the future of the organization. The best outfit wins $5,000 (in fake money). Tickets start at $15 for members; $35 for non-members. For more information, visit here.
  • Doing staff evals doesn’t have to be awkward. Meant to be a moment of reflection and reset between an employer and employee, it can quickly be taken as personal criticism by one side or the other. For those employers looking to better their approach, The Nonprofit Partnership is hosting a seminar on Wednesday from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. that provides coaching and exercises by an instructor. Tickets start at $140. For more information, visit here.

ICYMI — California and national news

  • A small team of mentors is changing teens’ lives. First, they had to save their program (Long Beach Post)
  • Tesla will start testing its robotaxis in the Bay Area, report says (Los Angeles Times)
  • ICE sweeps spur citizen patrols on Terminal Island — and troubling World War II memories (LAist)
  • Newsom ramps up California redistricting threat as Texas weighs new Republican maps (CalMatters)