Long Beach · issues
Civic issues
Topics getting the most attention in Long Beach public meetings, ranked by how frequently they come up.
Historic El Niño and community storm preparedness
Forecasters expect a historic El Niño, with king tides falling on Thanksgiving and Christmas week. The city is running pre-season sandbag giveaways, pushing Alert Long Beach sign-ups, and teaching residents to build go bags and stay kits before storms hit.
Coastal erosion and managed retreat on the Peninsula
Successive December-through-February storms have squeezed the Peninsula beach down to the width of a dump truck in places. Staff said dredging will re-nourish the beach, and consultants are developing best management practices for ongoing backpassing and berm maintenance.
Hurricane Rachel storm response
Weekend storm surge flooded the Peninsula and Naples areas, red-tagging eight homes. Utility crews staffed the sewer station, sealed manholes, and shut off water and gas to damaged homes — no sewer system failures occurred.
Airport sustainability performance
The airport is ahead of its pollution and carbon goals — already at 67% carbon reduction versus a 40%-by-2030 target — and halved electricity costs at parking structure B. Staff are exploring battery storage to keep the airport running during outages.
Westside Promise Initiative progress and accountability
The ten-year, place-based investment plan for West Long Beach is three years in, with park upgrades, tree plantings, and night markets — but residents say there are no measurable benchmarks and that pollution and clean air must come first.
Sea level rise and flooding preparedness
Long Beach faces long-term flood risk from sea level rise, and its storm drain system — some of it a century old — can't handle today's intense storms. Upgrading it could cost hundreds of millions of dollars, with a master plan update going out to bid this spring.
Storm Preparation
This year's El Niño is the strongest on record by ocean temperature readings, and king tides around Thanksgiving and Christmas could magnify storm damage along the coast. The city is shifting to proactive sandbag distribution with pre-filled bags at multiple locations, and urging residents to sign up for Alert Long Beach and build emergency kits.
Peninsula beach dredging and dune restoration
Commissioners want the city to explore dune restoration — rather than rock revetments — to keep sand on Peninsula Beach, and asked staff to contact the Santa Monica Bay Foundation for a community presentation.
Airport noise and fly-friendly compliance
Over 20,000 noise complaints were logged in July, mostly from the 90807 zip code. Staff described voluntary fly-friendly education, tower coordination, and daily monitoring of touch-and-go versus taxi-back operations. Residents say noise remains unbearable near flight paths.
Lineage Warehouse fire runoff and water quality
Toxic runoff from the Boyle Heights warehouse fire flowed into the LA River system and reached Long Beach waters, with residents swimming and fishing for days before notification. The council is pushing for a cleanup order and better regional notification protocols.
Tree canopy and basic services
Long Beach's tree canopy covers just 10.1% of the city, with the least shade in central, west, and north Long Beach — the same neighborhoods facing the most heat. Reaching a 13% target would take roughly 42,000 new trees and decades of investment.
Wildlife impacts at Harry Bridges Park
Sierra Club advocates told the Commission that amphitheater parking, concert staging, and fireworks at Harry Bridges Park are disturbing heron and egret nesting colonies, with dead chicks found under trees. They're asking for better enforcement of the Local Coastal Plan and Coastal Act, though the park sits in tidelands outside the Commission's direct control.
AB 32 Cap-and-Invest customer programs
The board authorized releasing cap-and-invest revenues for FY 2027, with $3.8 million going to free direct-install appliance upgrades and rebates for utility customers, prioritizing disadvantaged and low-income communities. Commissioners also flagged that new CARB electrification rules could restrict gas-appliance programs in the future.
EV Battery Reuse and Recycling Hub Feasibility Study
Long Beach could become the first California city to close the EV battery loop locally, capturing spent batteries from port electrification instead of shipping them 400 miles to Nevada. A feasibility study costing $25,000-$50,000 would examine revenue of $860,000 to $3.5 million a year and 10-15 West Side jobs.
Weed Abatement Pilot Program
The city is testing alternatives to glyphosate herbicides in parks through a multi-phase pilot with UC researchers. Commissioners split on the effort — one called it a waste of staff time and money given state pesticide safety findings, while others want it expanded to a west-side park and to track wildlife benefits. Baseline data collection is underway, with field trials expected to run about a year.
2026 Climate Work Plan and Ad Hoc Committee Priorities
The commission's 2026 work plan covers tree planting, urban agriculture, a green parkways initiative targeting artificial turf, and a possible rain garden pilot. Commissioners flagged bus shade structures and phasing out gas appliances as top ad hoc committee candidates.
Food insecurity and federal SNAP cuts
Food Finders rescued 15.6 million pounds of food last year, but demand at its Admiral Kidd Park distribution jumped to over 600 families in a single morning. Upcoming federal SNAP cuts — $186 billion over ten years — are expected to make it worse, hitting seniors and people of color hardest.
Natural gas pipeline decommissioning study
Long Beach is funding a study to understand what it would cost to retire its natural gas pipeline system as California climate policies push electrification. No decommissioning decision has been made — the goal is data before any transition.
LA River trash mitigation partnership
About 4,000 tons of trash flow down the LA River each year and half of it ends up on Long Beach beaches. The council approved an MOU with LA County and The Ocean Cleanup to pilot an in-river interception system, with total costs of $6-9 million and about half funded so far.