Good morning and welcome to Monday Morning Coffee! Grab your cup and let’s get to your weekly briefing of what’s on the agenda for local government and business leaders. Get this in your inbox every Monday by signing up at lbpost.com/newsletters.

City meetings

After a relatively slow start to the year, there are a whopping 16 city meetings this week, Long Beach. Here are some of the top items up for discussion. 

The Long Beach City Council will hold a special 3 p.m. session to adopt new service costs for the city’s trash and recycling programs. If approved, rates will increase twice, first in May and again in August. 

Rates will rise by $7.34 per month for the typical residential customers’ solid waste and recycling in May and in August. Recycling rates will bump up by another $1.41 per month while organics collection will increase by $16.22 per month.  

Without a rate increase, officials said in the report, the city’s fund group for its refuse and recycling “will be exhausted” in the 2026 Fiscal Year. The City Council is expected to approve a new $12.4 million contract with USA Waste of California to handle the new service system. 

It’s part of California’s directive to have cities submit plans that comply with S.B. 1383, a 2020 law that set the state goal of sending 75% less organic waste to landfills. The city began to formulate a plan in February 2022, holding hearings in August 2022 and June 2023, and provided a memo to the City Council in September 2024 saying that final hearings could commence in early 2025. 

At their regular 5 p.m. meeting later Tuesday, council members are expected to file their support for emissions rules set around Nitrogen Oxide and other toxic fumes produced by natural gas equipment used in homes — such as furnaces, ovens and water heaters. They are also expected to approve state grant funding to support the city’s Cannabis Equity Program and a $796,000 contract with a Connecticut-based company for shuttle service for the homeless.  

The Long Beach Police Department will give a presentation regarding its special alerts program to the Citizens’ Advisory Commission on Disabilities on Thursday at 1 p.m.

At Thursday’s 3:30 p.m. joint use committee for the Parks and Recreation Commission, officials will report the status of a new agreement between the city government and school district on the sharing of facilities for recreation, education and civic activities. Fee waiver requests, finance and theft will occupy most of the discussion at the commissions’ governance committee 4:30 p.m. session later that day. 

The Advisory Commission on Aging will receive and file several items at their Wednesday morning meeting, including a presentation on aging by Press-Telegram Editor and Columnist Rich Archbold.

Business events and information

  • The East Village Arts District is hosting a neighborhood mixer for local business owners on Tuesday at 5 p.m. These mixers allow business owners an audience with representatives from the Downtown Long Beach Alliance and are part of a series of night outings put together in different parts of the city. For more information, click here.
  • It’s Women’s History Month, Long Beach. Celebrate in the company of the Long Beach Women’s Business Council and Chamber of Commerce at a two-hour mixer starting at 5 p.m. Tickets start at $20 for members and $25 for non-members. For more information, visit here.
  • Bureau Manager Julian Cernuda with the Long Beach Economic Development Department will be this month’s speaker at the Long Beach Chamber of Commerce’s networking luncheon. Given his role, Cernuda specializes in the city’s effort to attract and retain small businesses, among other roles. The event will take place from 11:30 a.m. until 1 p.m. at Parkers’ Lighthouse (435 Shoreline Dr.). Tickets are $30 for members and $40 for non-members. For more information, visit here.

ICYMI — California and national news

  • The rise and fall of L.A.-based fashion pioneer Forever 21 (L.A. Times)
  • Paramedics in Long Beach say they’re overwhelmed by 911 calls (Long Beach Post)
  • The DMV makes millions from auctioned cars and doesn’t tell the owners (CalMatters)