Japanese skateboarding show will take over dirt pit where Long Beach City Hall once stood

A disused pit that was once home to Long Beach’s old City Hall will transform into a temporary stage for an internationally televised contest of skateboarders careening through the air in a competition of gravity-defying stunts.

All in less than a month’s time.

Tractors on Tuesday were sweeping dirt and lifting freight containers. Workers ambled about, some sawing wood or building frames inside a large white tent. Others stood about taking stock of the piles of rope pull, stacks of lumber, neon-plastic cones, and green-purple platforms.

Once complete, it will be the set for KASSO, a Japanese game show centered around skateboarders overcoming a series of challenging obstacle courses. The expansion is a testament to the show’s success on YouTube. Some of its segments have racked up two million views.

Started in 2024, the company announced earlier this year that Long Beach would be the site of its international debut on March 21 and 22. Organizers say they chose the city following a regional search that also included Santa Monica, Venice Beach and downtown Los Angeles.

Yohei Yasunaga, Producer of KASSO, said the city stood out for its existing skate scene, the striking backdrop of its seaport and, most of all, the jagged state of the empty lot where they plan to host.

Formerly the home of Long Beach’s last City Hall, the 4.6-acre lot has sat unattended for years.

Plans were first announced in 2020 to build a mixed-use building with 580 units and about 40,000 square feet of restaurant and retail space, though the project has faced repeated delays. In recent years, it’s been little more than a drainage ditch with overgrown vegetation.

One city official said the site’s developer, Plenary Americas, expects to bring revised plans before the Long Beach Planning Commission on March 19.

The giant dirt hole surrounded by urban skyline, “was unlike anything we had seen before—strange in the best way,” Yasunaga said. “Almost no flat ground. Uneven levels. Foundations of old buildings still visible. Grass growing wildly everywhere. And yet… something about it pulled us in.”

Without giving too many details, organizers say the build-out will include digging into the ground, trucking in water for a makeshift pool, multiple obstacle courses, grandstands and a performance area for music artists.

Yasunaga said work on the site has begun as “standard pre-event preparations.”

While the event has not yet been issued a permit, a city spokesperson said Tuesday the two sides are close to reaching an agreement for one. No permanent construction is planned.

“The regular Special Events process, which includes relevant inspections and approvals by the appropriate City departments, is being followed,” said Kevin Lee, a city spokesman. “Through this process, access has been provided to the anticipated event space in order for the event organizers to begin preparing the grounds for the temporary event build.”

For more information on tickets, updates and information on the event, visit here. Two day-passes cost about $200.