Public Comment
From: Anna Christensen <[email protected]>
To: Joshua Hickman <Joshua. [email protected]>
Tom Modica <Tom. [email protected]>; Rex Richardson <[email protected]>; Council District 3 <[email protected]>; CityClerk<[email protected]>; Sent: Fri, Feb 10, 2023 9:17 am
Subject: Re: BBAC Budget Information: "Belmont Plaza Pool Rebuild" project budget (Item #19 Council Agenda) Dear Mr. Modica and Mr. Hickman,
Next Steps for the BBAC include, "Discuss options with stakeholder group spring 2023." It is critical that membership in this group be expanded from the 2014 Stakeholder Advisory Committee to include input from across the City - including residents, community groups, athletes, and athletic teams. It is also appropriate that additional public meetings be held in multiple locations across the City to allow residents to learn about and comment on what will be the 3rd evolution of the BBAC.
In June of 2014, the City Council held a study session to plan a new structure to replace the Olympic Pool, and suggested, "that a community stakeholder committee be convened to prioritize optional components of the conceptual plan for the City Council to consider for approval, prior to proceeding with the entitlements process. " In July, "the Department of Parks, Recreation and Marine, in coordination with Third District Councilmember Suzie Price and the City Manager, formed an ad hoc Belmont Beach & Aquatics Center Stakeholders Advisory Committee.
The purpose of the Committee is to make a recommendation to City staff and the Mayor and Members of the City Council regarding the various amenities needed in the new facility within the financial resources available for this project. This ad hoc Advisory Committee represents the various user groups, aquatics disciplines, residents, businesses, recreational users, and all other stakeholders. " This thirteen member Stakeholder Advisory Committee and the Director of Parks, Recreation and Marine held three meetings before introducing the first evolution of the BBAC, a $103 million structure focused on competitive swimming and diving, to the general public.
When the BBAC came before the Planning Commission, City Council, and Coastal Commission, the Long Beach Area Peace Network, criticized the makeup of the Stakeholder Advisory Committee, as not being representative of the City as a whole (see comment below). While input from professional athletes, local swim and dive teams, and Belmont Shore residents and business was appropriate, excluding everyone else was not. Additionally, Stakeholder Committee meetings were not open to the public. The only City Council member to host public meetings on the BBAC was 3rd District Councilmember Price, and those attending were asked to limit comments to the architecture, Period.
Long Beach residents were given the opportunity to vote on the Olympic Pool before it was built in 1968 - this was not the case with the BBAC. With all due respect to the OG thirteen, input from additional stakeholders is clearly justified and sorely needed as a third evolution of the BBAC is under consideration. Please respond to this request asap.
Anna Christensen, Long Beach Area Peace Network (LBAPN) LBAPN on Stakeholder Committee:
1. Community input: The BBAC is a project of the City of Long Beach, described as serving the needs of residents, and funded with public monies. Considering the scale and cost of the BBAC, public outreach has been totally inadequate. The majority of residents have neither been informed of the specifics of the project nor have they been included in the decision making process. Thirteen of the fourteen member Stakeholder Advisory Committee for the BBAC are either aquatics professionals or members of the "aquatics community" residing in the 3rd District.
Stakeholder Committee meetings were not open to the public and no public record was made of discussions. The only district to hold community meetings was the Third, where residents were invited to meet the architects and comments were strictly limited to the building's design. Public concerns as to the BBAC's location, size, and cost, were raised at these meetings, in an online survey, and in response to the DEIR. Neither the Stakeholder Advisory Committee nor the Planning Department appears to have taken them into consideration.
Original Belmont Beach and Aquatic Center Stakeholder Advisory Committee Representative Affiliation Interests Represented
Frank Busch USA Swimming Competitive Swimming, swimming skills Steve Foley USA Diving Competitive Diving, Diving skills Kathy Heddy Drum LB Swimming Olympian Competitive Swimming, private instruction Ryan Bailey LB Water Polo Olympian Water polo players & organizations at pool Raquel Bartlow LB Competitive Diver Divers, Diving orgs renting pool John Norris LB Resident Recreational swimmers
Lucy Johnson LB Resident Competitive aquatics programs
John McMullen, Sr. LB Resident All Stakeholders
Shawn Oatey LB Resident All Stakeholders
Kaia Hedlund LB Resident Competitive programs
Susan Miller Belmont Shore Residents Assos. Resident's interests Dede Rossi Belmont Shore Business.Assos. Business interests Dick Miller Aquatics Capital of America Competitive swimming and diving George Chapjian Parks, Rec. and Marine Dept Public recreational/instructional programs 13 Stakeholder Committee members in all
5 represented competitive aquatics
3 represented private organizations, 2 of which are renting the pool 1 represented residents (Belmont Shore Residents Assos) 1 represented local business (Belmont Shore Business Assos) 2 represented All Stakeholders
1 represented the Aquatics Capital of America
1 represented water polo players
1 represented divers
Current Stakeholder Committee as of December 2022 - 10 members Kathy Heddy Drum LB Swimming Olympian Competitive Swimming, private instruction Raquel Bartlow LB Competitive Diver Divers, Diving orgs renting pool John Norris LB Resident Recreational swimmers
Lucy Johnson LB Resident Competitive aquatics programs
John McMullen, Sr. LB Resident All
Shawn Oatey LB Resident All
Kaia Hedlund LB Resident Competitive programs
Dede Rossi Belmont Shore Business. Assos. Business interests Dick Miller Aquatics Capital of America Competitive swimming and diving Brent Dennis Parks, Rec. and Marine Dept Public recreational/instructional programs