Over the past three decades, Long Beach has been on an economic roller coaster ride as city officials have tried to devise various strategies to revitalize downtown.

One of their first ideas was to spend $35 million to help developer Ernest Hahn construct a boxy mall called Long Beach Plaza Shopping Center in the early 1980s. The $100-million complex opened in 1982 with words of praise from city planners who believed that downtown was headed for revival. But hard times hit the mall in 1991 when the recession landed and Buffums, the center’s grand dame retailer, closed. Soon the major anchors were J.C. Penney and Montgomery Ward. By the mid-1990s, the vacancy rate had mushroomed and it became apparent that the fortress-like mall needed to be replaced with a more pedestrian friendly center. That new center is Long Beach CityPlace, which will open next year and is considered to be the key to revitalizing downtown.

History:

In the late 1980s, city officials were predicting that downtown Long Beach was headed for a boom. The Naval base was bustling with 30 ships, and there were plans for a $100-million expansion. Walt Disney Co. was thinking of building a massive theme park near the Queen Mary. And building was active.

Then Disney decided to build California Adventure in Anaheim, not Long Beach. The Navy decided to close its base. And Long Beach was left with a boatload of problems.

City officials knew they had to do something to prevent downtown Long Beach from becoming a ghost town. Crime was up and investment was down.

So in the past 10 years, the city’s main street, Pine Avenue, has undergone extensive redevelopment. The three blocks closest to the ocean are now a pleasant mixture of restaurants, bars and specialty stores. The city has tried to preserve the area’s historic flavor by keeping many of the brick buildings constructed in the 1930s and 1940s.

But the three-block swatch between 3rd Street and 6th Street still bears the remains of a faded downtown Long Beach.

Concept:

Long Beach CityPlace is a $75-million project being built by Developers Diversified Realty, an Ohio-based developer which bought the mall from Teacher’s Annuity. The new center was designed by Jerde Partnership in Venice to be a pedestrian-friendly, mixed-used mall similar to the Third Street Promenade in Santa Monica. The 450,000-square-foot mall is 60 percent leased with a Nordstrom Rack (29,945 square feet), Ross Dress for Less (27,569 square feet), Wal-Mart (126,000 square feet), Albertson’s, Sav-On, as well as specialty stores. Also, nearly 300 condominiums will be built. If financing can be found, the project will also have a 120-room hotel. The development should be completed in late spring 2002.

Financing:

The city is kicking in $17.4 million in redevelopment funds and subsidies, including the former 8-acre site of the International Elementary School it bought for $8 million. The city valued the land at $4.2 million but sold it to the developer for $2 million. Long Beach then contributes that $2 million toward construction costs. As part of the subsidy, the city is contributing $5.7 million to upgrade and rehabilitate the existing multi-tiered garage with 2,400 parking spaces. The rest of the project is financed principally by Prudential Real Estate Investors, a joint partner with DDR in the venture.

Pros and Cons:

The shopping center will extend the downtown Promenade, a pedestrian mall that is the site of a weekly Farmers Market. The project reopens 4th and 5th streets, which were closed in the 1980s. Downtown will become more pedestrian friendly with better shopping opportunities beyond the small specialty stores already in place. Critics, however, say the retail package is too heavy on discount stores and won’t draw shoppers from surrounding communities.

Outlook:

With a new mall in place, city officials hope the project will attract other projects and stores to downtown, where development has been stalled in the last few years.