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9:45am | Steve Gerhardt, AICP, is a Senior Planner in the Advance Planning Division of the Planning Bureau of the Development Services Department for the City of Long Beac. He has been leading the charge in the creation of the City's LB2030 Plan.  While broad in scope, it is fundamentally a blueprint for all future development in the City.

Sander: Let's start at the beginning.  When the 2030 Plan development project

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was first conceived, were the arts an included component? 

Steve: No. When the project was initiated in 2003, it was focused on merging Land Use and Transportation plans to encourage smart growth patterns. This was the primary focus. Urban design, economic development and sustainability were supportive components, but arts were not considered at that time.

Sander: How did the arts emerge, then, as a supportive component?  

Steve: Arts came into being considered an important component of LB2030 about the same time as healthy communities initiatives. This was in around 2006. The arts were discussed at a station at the Community Festivals for LB2030, held in early 2007.

Sander: So, these components came from conversations with residents? 

Steve: Yes, when the focus of the plan shifted to placemaking, the creation of quality urban spaces, arts were a natural fit. Many community members mentioned that Long Beach's strong orientation toward the arts is part what makes Long Beach the place that it is. There was also a desire to support unique neighborhood identification that often takes the form of public art and murals.

Sander: Can you explain what components define 'quality urban spaces'?  Is there a formula? 

Steve: The concept is to take a holistic approach to urban design that considers all the aspects of the space; the buildings, streetscapes, open spaces, and how people interact with those components to create places that are welcoming and easily navigable, even by newcomers, and include active and reflective spaces. There are universal components, but no particular formula.

For LB2030, we're focusing on complete streets and complete neighborhoods by ensuring that each area includes a full complement of services and amenities by focusing on what's missing or not nearby.

Sander: So, aside from public art (sculpture, fountains, mosaics, and murals), how are arts components being integrated into these designs? 

Steve: In March, the City Council directed staff to include arts into LB2030. We'll be taking direction from "Create Long Beach: An Action Plan for a More Creative City" being prepared by the Arts Council for Long Beach. That plan is still in draft form, but includes a vision for involving arts to a much greater degree in all aspects of the community, including components of the physical and social environment. Using arts to bolster tourism and economic development, employment, and other facets of making Long Beach a great city are included.

Sander: One of the concerns raised in the 'Create Long Beach' document deals with the zoning of entertainment and, specifically, live music.  Is that something that will be addressed as part of the 2030 Plan? 

Steve: The LB2030 plan will provide direction for updating the zoning. The zoning rules will be changed to reflect that direction subsequent to the adoption of LB2030. In particular, LB2030 focuses more on form than function, and encourages temporary uses of streets and in all types of land uses, including such things are special events at gallery openings, street festivals, and other gatherings. The rules are likely to be different for entertainment districts than in the rest of the city.

Sander: Some time ago I spoke to Michael Killoren, Director of the Seattle Mayor's Office of Arts & Cultural Affairs, whose job it was to encourage cultural development in the City.  He said, based on lots of research by his office and others, including Americans for the Arts, that creating centralized 'districts' deprived other areas in the City from the benefits of cultural activation.  Why created focused spots, rather than a more wide-spread model? 

Steve: Current zoning and General Plan land use designations encourages or allows certain uses in certain locations, often separating uses and creating stark transitions. LB2030 is moving to a land use concept called placetypes that are more neighborhood oriented, noting that much of Long Beach was developed with a more mixed urban fabric. Within that fabric, particularly along our corridors, a variety of uses are allowed.

The placetypes include discussion of transitions among the various uses, providing significantly more flexibility. There is a strong focus from the community on updating and making our corridors more active, becoming more reflective of the quality neighborhoods that are behind those corridors. Within that context, it's a ciitywide model.

Sander: Not to flog this excessively, but why not decide that, if these uses are beneficial, let the people who live and work here use them organically, and allow them to flourish where they will? 

Steve: Well, that's exactly the way it is going to roll out. In addition to overarching concepts in the LB2030 and the application of placetypes we've been discussing, the plan includes a neighborhood strategies section. These strategies were derived directly from mapping exercises and other community input about the nature of each area of the city. These neighborhood strategies are where particular areas of interest or focus can be expressed. These strategies will help nuance and focus decisions about the future for each neighborhood to match the desires of that community. Including the arts were a strong statement for more than a few of these communities.

Sander: I know this plan has been in development for 7 years, and is still evolving.  Are there still opportunities for residents and business owners to participate? 

Steve: Yes, we're still discussing components of the plan. The draft version of LB2030 will be available this Fall for public review and comment. I would encourage anyone interested in participating to take a look at the chapter, known as elements in General Plan law, and then taking a look at those neighborhood strategies they are most interested in. Our intent is to update those neighborhood strategies as projects and programs evolve or are completed on a regular basis.

Sander: Is there anything else you think we should cover? 

Steve: I think we've covered it pretty well, but there are a couple of points worth reiterating. The first is that LB2030 is taking lots of the good thinking that the City has done, such as from the Strategic Plan 2010 and other key planning and strategy documents, and incorporating them into the LB2030 plan. The other is that the focus is on the implementation of these great ideas, and creating mechanisms to bring the goals and policies into reality.

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