Long Beach City officials gathered in the 9th district Wednesday morning to commemorate the groundbreaking of the long-awaited Great Artesia Boulevard project.
The more than $36 million project will provide critical roadway improvements to a 3.2-mile stretch of Artesia Boulevard, beginning on the west end at Harbor Boulevard and culminating on the east end at Downey Avenue in North Long Beach.
“We’re very proud of this work,” said Mayor Rex Richardson. “We’re literally transforming the community, we’re paving equity into the very streets that we walk on.”
The process began with changes to zoning laws in November 2020 as part of the Uptown Planning Land Use and Neighborhood Strategy (UPLAN) along the Artesia corridor. The zoning changes will allow for more commercial and residential mixed-use properties in the area.
The corridor itself runs through six different cities from Compton to Cerritos. Richardson helped build a plan for a comprehensive vision for the street when he was still a council member.
“Zoning is everything from the sidewalk into the privately held space,” said Richardson. “And this is the public realm—the complete streets, sidewalks, medians, pedestrian lights, bulb-outs, signal synchronization—all the things that will make this a more livable, walkable corridor.”
The revitalization project was one of Richardson’s top priorities for his district when he became a city council member in 2014. He will now be overseeing the project during his tenure as mayor.
One of the first steps for the project will be removing the green bollard dividers along Artesia Boulevard that help separate the protected bike lane from the motor vehicle traffic, much to the delight of attendees and the ninth district’s new council member. The dividers will be replaced with permanent infrastructure with the aim of creating a faster and safer street for pedestrian traffic.
“I just wanted to say that I’m glad that the mayor has taken responsibility for the green buoys so you can blame him, and I can start afresh,” City Councilmember Joni Ricks-Oddie jokingly said of the colorful infrastructure.
Long Beach Public Works Director Eric Lopez apologized in advance for the frustration that residents might feel as construction commences over the next few months.
The project has been in various planning stages for nearly eight years, and construction is set to begin in a few days with funds from the voter-approved Measure A.
“Yes, it takes a long time, but we’re finally providing and delivering the corridor from a zoning standpoint and infrastructure planning standpoint, a corridor that the North Long Beach community deserves and that they’ve waited so very long to achieve,” Richardson said.