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Long Beach mayor to address breakwater, education in state of the city
Long Beach Mayor Robert Garcia delivers his state of the city address Wednesday at 6 p.m.
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Benjamin Brayfield/KPCC
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Long Beach Mayor Robert Garcia said that his state of the city address will emphasize the "recovery and renaissance" of Long Beach.
At 6 p.m. Wednesday, Garcia will deliver the address that he told KPCC will cover the city's dedication to universal preschool by 2020, as well as the state of big projects, like a study of the city's breakwater.
Long Beach's breakwater, the barrier which protects the city from waves, has given the city one of the most unused portions of coastline in the state of California, according to Garcia.
In November 2015, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the city came to an agreement for a $3 million study that would analyze whether removing a 2.2-mile stretch of breakwater would restore the ecosystem in the area, the L.A. Times reported.
“We are literally going to sign next week a major agreement with the Army Corps to allow us to study that, and possibly restore the ecosystem and the entire coastline of Long Beach,” Garcia said. "That’s a transformational, once-in-a-generation type of project."
The other point Garcia heavily emphasized was early childhood education. Garcia said that last year the city added 800 preschool seats and plans on adding between 500 and 800 more in the coming year.
“Our goal is universal preschool for all low-income families by 2018, and then by 2020 hopefully to hopefully achieve universal preschool for all of Long Beach,” Garcia said.
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Increasing internships for Long Beach students, introducing a new program for the arts and equipping police with nonlethal weapons, are other topics the mayor plans to discuss.
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