The community-driven effort for the Martin Luther King Jr. Park vision plan has its first event on Sept. 25.
The vision plan kick-off event “A Dream for King Park,” sponsored by Councilwoman Suely Saro and Long Beach Airport invites community members for a gathering and a meal to celebrate the multi-ethnic foods that represent the Central Long Beach neighborhood.
The event will be held on Sunday, Sept. 25, from 1 to 3 p.m. at Martin Luther King Jr. Park at 195 Lemon Ave. The event will be hosted by Love Beyond Limits, Black Resource Center, New Hope Academy of Change, City Fabrick and Long Beach Alliance for Food and Fitness (LBAFF).
The kick-off will introduce and begin the vision planning efforts that will prioritize and guide future investments for the park when funds are available. Community members who attend the event can learn more about the project and planning efforts and how they can get involved.
City Fabrick and LBAFF received a philanthropic grant for the development of the park’s vision plan. As part of the community outreach, they’re working alongside the City to engage with community members through a survey, park audits and workshops to get residents’ feedback on their thoughts for the vision plan. Physical and online surveys where the community can share their input will be available soon.
In April, the Signal Tribune covered a Long Beach city council meeting where residents and councilmembers alike commented widely on the decline of the park and hopes for improvement.
“We haven’t seen improvement in this park, this historical and cultural park, in a long time […] little upgrades have been made, but more needs to be done,” Saro said at the April 5 city council meeting. “And it needs to be done with the community. It has to be a community-driven vision.”
“There’s no sports in our park. We used to have sports, we used to have baseball games,” resident Nina Younger said during public comment on April 5. “There’s nothing.”
The park was originally dedicated on June 13, 1964, as 19th Street Playground and was later renamed following the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. in 1968.
The park had several expansions and improvements in its first few decades of existence and includes a basketball court, playground, baseball field, and a facility for the Boys and Girls Club which contains a swimming pool, a classroom, locker rooms and staff offices. The park’s last upgrade was completed in 2007, and the lack of improvements over the past 15 years has strengthened the call for the vision plan.
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