Downtown Long Beach-Belmont Shore-Parking Solutions-Long Beach California

Long Beach Community News

Long Beach Parking Solutions

Last month the Long Beach Real Estate Home Blog published an article on Downtown Long Beach Parking.  The article discussed the escalating parking problems caused by the re-development in the Downtown Long Beach area.  One of the potential parking solutions addressed was Vertical Parking.  The article went on and examined an assortment of related potential issues and raised a whole bunch of questions for which there were no immediate solutions.  

Shortly after publishing this article I was contacted by the owner of Apex Skypark.  They are a Robotic Parking Solution company located right here in Anaheim.  He took the time to address the concerns and informed me that they are currently working with the City of Long Beach in an attempt to bring these solutions to the Downtown Long Beach and Belmont Shore neighborhoods.  Well, both communities can certainly use more parking - he piqued my interest. 

An invitation to contribute to the Long Beach Real Estate Home Blog was extended to Apex in an effort to better explain this to Long Beach residents.  We are pleased to welcome Harold W Ashworth, a Long Beach Peninsula resident and Vice President of Apex Skypark.

By:  Harold W Ashworth

I have become intimately involved with The City of Long Beach and their Parking Issues. Working with the Long Beach Re-Development Agency has shown me just how critical parking is in the Downtown Long Beach area. As a Long Beach Resident (The Peninsula) I have experienced many of the same issues everyone else faces as they try and Park on 2^nd Street in Belmont Shore for dinner in the evenings and or dinner on the water at Shoreline Village. Whether it is waiting for the Valet to bring your car or running out to re-fill the meter has become quite the challenge.

That being said - The Automated Robotic Car Garages hits close to home for me as I am involved with a local company right here in our own backyard. Apex Skypark®, Inc., located in Anaheim, builds the Robotics and Systems for this new Technology - New to the USA only. Presently there are only 4-5 Garages operating in the USA but many are either under construction or they are in the design phases. We are currently working with Developers and the City of Long Beach on a couple of locations for this very thing. Long Beach will become the first on the West Coast for an Automated Robotic Garage.

Read more »

Posted on September 02, 2008 23:47:00 by Laurie.Manny

Alamitos Beach Condos Market Report-2008-Long Beach Real Estate Sales

Alamitos Beach Condos Market Report

2008

Long Beach Real Estate Sales

Ocean Boulevard Corridor Condo Sales

January 1, 2008 - August 29, 2008

Active

There are currently 54 Ocean Blvd Corridor Condos For Sale in Alamitos Beach, many with fantastic waterfront views, some with city views.

• 14 condos are priced under $500,000 and range from 706 sq ft to 1,202 sq ft.
• 24 condos are priced between $500,000 and $1,000,000 and range from 736 sq ft to 1,850 sq ft.
• 15 condos are priced between $1,000,000 and $1,499,000 and range from 1,259 sq ft to 2,052 sq ft.
• 1 condo is priced at $1,850,000
  

• Average Price:  $788,490
• Average Days on Market:  100
  

Alamitos Beach Condos and High Rise Condos For Sale

• Alamitos Beach Condos For Sale $400000 to $500000
• Alamitos Beach Condos For Sale $500000 to $600000
• Alamitos Beach Condos For Sale $600000 to $800000
• Alamitos Beach Condos For Sale $800000 to $1000000
• Alamitos Beach Condos For Sale $1000000 and more
• Alamitos Beach-Downtown Long Beach-Ocean Blvd Condos For Sale-Long Beach Real Estate For Sale

Pending

4 Alamitos Beach Condos on Ocean Blvd. are pending in escrow.

• 1 bedroom, 1 bath, 626 square feet; $239,000
• 2 bedroom, 2 bath 1,104 square feet; $299,900
• 2 bedroom, 1 bath, 1,097 square feet; $365,000
• 2 bedroom, 1 bath, 1,245 square feet; $625,000
  

• Average Price:  $382,225
• Average Days on Market:  153
  

Back Up Offers

3 Alamitos Beach Condos on Ocean Blvd. are in escrow accepting back up offers:

• 1 bedroom, 1 bath,700 square feet; $245,000
• 1 bedroom, 1 bath, 814 square feet; $499,999
• 3 bedroom, 2 bathe, 1,800 square feet; $797,999
  

• Average Price:  $797,999
• Average Days on Market:  62
  

Closed Sales:

37 Alamitos Beach Condos on Ocean Blvd.  have closed escrow this year (2008) to date:

• 20 Under $500,000
• 15 Between $500,000 and $1,000,000
• 2 over $1,000,000
  

• Average Price:  $532,077
• Average Days on Market:  69
  

Cancelled

39 - Alamitos Beach Condos listed for sale on the Ocean Blvd. corridor were taken off of the market. Average Days on Market: 145

Expired

46 - Alamitos Beach Condos on the Ocean Blvd. corridor, listed for sale, expired in 2008, Average Days on Market: 160

Hold

3 Alamitos Beach Condo Owners have placed the sale of their homes on hold.

Leased

3 Alamitos Beach Condos have been leased.

• Long Beach CA Ocean Blvd Condos For Sale

• Alamitos Beach Luxury High Rise Condos Market Report-Ocean Boulevard Corridor-90802-January-December 2007
  

Long Beach Relocation Resource Guide

• Relocating to Long Beach California-Resource Guide

Downtown Long Beach Condos For Sale

• Downtown Long Beach-Alamitos Beach-Ocean Blvd Condos For Sale-Long Beach Real Estate For Sale
• Emerald Villas Condos-555 Maine Ave-Downtown Long Beach Condos For Sale-Long Beach Real Estate For Sale
• Sunset Pointe Condominiums-640 W 4th St-Downtown Long Beach Condos For Sale-Long Beach Real Estate For Sale
• Golden Gate Square Condos-730 W 4th St-Downtown Long Beach Condos For Sale-Long Beach Real Estate For Sale
• Ocean Gate Square Condos-720 W 4th St-Downtown Long Beach Condos For Sale-Long Beach Real Estate For Sale

Downtown Long Beach Homes For Sale

• Downtown Long Beach Homes For Sale $500000 and up Long Beach Real Estate For Sale
• Downtown Long Beach Homes For Sale $300000 to $500000 Long Beach Real Estate For Sale
• Downtown Long Beach Homes For Sale Under $300,000 Long Beach Real Estate For Sale

Prefer Luxury Waterfront Long Beach Homes with room for a boat?

Try Spinnaker Bay.

Or perhaps the Belmont Shore and Naples areas:

• Belmont Shore and Naples Condos For Sale-Long Beach Real Estate
• Belmont Shore Naples Homes For Sale in Long Beach CA $2000000 and up
• Belmont Shore CA Homes for sale under $1000000
• Belmont Shore-Naples Homes For Sale in Long Beach California $1000000 to $2000000
• Marina Pacifica Condos for Sale Long Beach CA
• Bay Harbour Homes For Sale Long Beach California

Posted on August 29, 2008 23:22:08 by Laurie.Manny

Parking Solutions for Downtown Long Beach

Downtown Long Beach Parking

Impacted Parking Areas

The re-development of Downtown Long Beach and the multitude of new high rise buildings are certain to complicate an already difficult parking shortage.  Many of the historic condos in Downtown do not have any parking available at all.  Residents rent monthly spots in available asphalt lots at fairly reasonable monthly rates, but with land at a premium how long will these lots remain available?  Where will the owners of these condos, local business owners, guests and customers park? 

Recently a friend and I were discussing the parking problems in Downtown Long Beach now and projecting into the future.  As we discussed potential solutions it occurred to me that the solutions themselves were very problematic.  

Vertical Parking and other parking solutions involve a lot of equipment.  Equipment is expensive to both purchase and run, breaks down, requires parts that are not always immediately available and requires trained engineers and mechanics.  What happens when your car is parked on level 5 and the equipment breaks down? What if the part is not immediately available and needs to be imported from Japan?  Would there be a manual over-ride system to bring your car down to ground level? How could all of this be kept affordable?

Many of the systems exhibited in these videos showed fully automated parking structures.  Who do you call when the systems fail?  What happens if it is very late at night?  There I go assuming the lots would be open 24 hours, I am still such a New Yorker sometimes!  But seriously, how could they not be open 7 and 24? 

Tonight I watched many videos from around the world displaying parking systems for both small and large spaces.  While watching I realized that every one of them showed 1 car being easily and quickly parked or retrieved.  It was so simplistic it made me laugh.  I remember an evening in Manhattan when a group of us went to see a show.  The last parking lot with any space available was in a very thin and very tall building with an elevated vertical parking system.  They charged a whopping $60 to park the car and that was 8 or 9 years ago.  We waited well over an hour to retrieve the car.  All of the shows let out at about the same time and the lots were inundated. 

The other thing that really struck me while I was watching these videos was the desolation of the parking lots.  I couldn't imagine retrieving my car at 3:00 AM without experiencing a great deal of fear. 

I can only imagine the stress levels of people waiting for their cars to be delivered to them when they are late for an appointment.  Imagine having to wait for 10 or 15 cars before yours is delivered!  Downtown has a large workforce most of which finish their work day between 5 and 6 PM.  How long would it take for them to get their cars out of these lots? 

We didn't come up with any solutions, but it was an interesting conversation and has my wheels turning (pun intended). 

What do you think?

Update 9/3/08

The owner of Apex Skypark in Anaheim contacted me about the concerns expressed in this post.  As a manufacturer of Robotic Parking Solutions and a company currently involved with the City of Long Beach in an effort to bring these solutions to us, I offered them space on this site to respond. 

Please visit their article at:

Downtown Long Beach-Belmont Shore-Parking Solutions-Long Beach California

Posted on August 03, 2008 05:01:43 by Laurie.Manny

Long Beach - Best Neighborhood for Walking

One of the most appealing draws to living in Long Beach CA is the walkability of many of our local neighborhoods. Well, somebody finally decided to start ranking walkable neighborhoods across the country. Walk Score has ranked 2,508 neighborhoods in 40 of the largest US cities to help buyers find walkable communities to live in.

Long Beach California has been ranked as the 8th Most Walkable Neighborhood!

1. San Francisco
2. New York
3. Boston
4. Chicago
5. Philadelphia
6. Seattle
7. Washington D.C.
8. Long Beach
9. Los Angeles
10. Portland
11. Denver
12. Baltimore

see the rest here...

Long Beach Neighborhood Walk Scores:

52% of Long Beach has a Walk Score of 70 or above.

85% of Long Beach has a Walk Score of at least 50.

15% of Long Beach lives in a Car Dependent Neighborhood.

What do these scores mean?

Here are some general guidelines to how these rankings work:

• 90-100 = Walkers' Paradise: Most errands can be accomplished on foot and many people get by without owning a car.
• 70-89 = Very Walkable: It's possible to get by without owning a car.
• 50-69 = Somewhat Walkable: Some stores and amenities are within walking distance, but many everyday trips still require a bike, public transportation, or car.
• 25-49 = Car-Dependent: Only a few destinations are within easy walking range. For most errands, driving or public transportation is a must.
• 0-24 = Car-Dependent (Driving Only): Virtually no neighborhood destinations within walking range. You can walk from your house to your car!

How It Doesn't Work: Known Issues with Walk Score

Walk Score admits that Walk Score is just an approximation of walkability. There are a number of important factors that contribute to walkability which are not part of their algorithm:

• Public transit: Good public transit is important for walkable neighborhoods.
• Street width and block length: Narrow streets slow down traffic. Short blocks provide more routes to the same destination and make it easier to take a direct route.
• Street design: Sidewalks and safe crossings are essential to walkability. Appropriate automobile speeds, trees, and other features also help.
• Safety from crime and crashes: How much crime is in the neighborhood? How many traffic accidents are there? Are streets well-lit?
• Pedestrian-friendly community design: Are buildings close to the sidewalk with parking in back? Are destinations clustered together?
• Topography: Hills can make walking difficult, especially if you're carrying groceries.
• Freeways and bodies of water: Freeways can divide neighborhoods. Swimming is harder than walking.
• Weather: In some places it's just too hot or cold to walk regularly.

More information on how the walk score is determined can be found here.

When seeking walkable Long Beach neighborhoods nobody knows the areas better than your Long Beach Realtor. Search Long Beach Homes for sale and consult your Realtor to find out which Long Beach neighborhoods best suit your specific needs.

Posted on July 26, 2008 12:09:00 by Laurie.Manny

Southern California Living - Long Beach and Pasadena

The Long Beach Real Estate Home Blog is pleased to welcome guest author, Pasadena California Realtor, Irina Netchaev.

Southern California Living - Long Beach and Pasadena

Many home buyers are looking to relocate and move to Southern California to enjoy our beautiful year-round sunny weather and be close to both snow and ocean. 

The hardest question of all is whether to buy a home in a beach community like Long Beach or to find a home in a foothills city like Pasadena.

Both, Long Beach and Pasadena are excellent places to live.  Long Beach, California has a beautiful selection of homes for sale in wonderful neighborhoods like Belmont Heights where you can buy a home for around $800,000 and be a few short blocks away from the beach.

For city living at its best, but still close to the beach, then a Downtown Long Beach Condo is waiting for you.  Downtown Long Beach has gone through extensive revitalization and there are many high and low-rise condos and lofts with spectacular views which can be purchased for as little as $69,990, or for as much as $2,699,999; many of which are high rise luxury condos on the waterfront (prices based on 2 and 2+ bedroom units).  Downtown neighborhoods vary greatly in price.    

Of course, Long Beach wouldn't be Long Beach without the Queen Mary, the Long Beach Aquarium of the Pacific, East Village Arts District, Long Beach Convention Center, Long Beach Museum of Art, and you're just a ferry away from Catalina Island and the Port of Long Beach where all the wonderful cruise ships are waiting to take you to romantic destinations.

Long Beach is also 35^th largest city in the nation and the 5^th largest city in California.

Pasadena California is about 35 miles away from the beach, but is nestled in the San Gabriel Foothills.  If you decide to buy a home in Pasadena, you'll be minutes from hiking trails and a short drive to the mountains where you can enjoy winter skiing.

Old Town Pasadena has also undergone an extensive revitalization over the last 10 years.  Beautiful live-work lofts are being built, as well as a nice selection of condos and townhomes are available for sale ranging anywhere between $600,000 to over $1,000,000.  Pasadena's business center is located in the South Lake District where you can buy a 1 bedroom condo for as little as $400,000 and be steps away from great restaurants and boutiques.

Pasadena is full of historic neighborhoods and has many historically designated landmark districts like; Historic Highlands , Bungalow Heaven and Madison Heights.  Homes for sale in Pasadena are available starting at $500,000, but average closer to $955,000. 

Read more »

Posted on July 11, 2008 21:49:56 by Laurie.Manny