Commission votes to turn Long Beach oilfield site into 226 homes

A large single-family development planned on a former oilfield treatment site in Long Beach has taken a major step forward, receiving a commission’s vote of confidence over strong objections from some community members.

At a meeting on Thursday the city’s Planning Commission voted to advance the project, called River Park, by recommending a zone change, certification of the project EIR and other entitlements. The Long Beach City Council will have the final say, and is expected to take up the issue this fall.

“We’ve been working with this community and this piece of property for a long time, so it’s great to bring it before you and share with you what I think is a great future community in the city of Long Beach,” a representative for the developer, Integral Communities, told the commission.

He also cited as benefits the construction jobs the project would create, the more than $4 million in impact fees that would go to Long Beach, the creation of new park space and the improvement of the former oilfield property itself.

“It has been contaminated and been shut down for a long time, so this project is really what enables the ability to clean up the [property] and get it ready for development,” the applicant added.

The low-rise residential development would be one of the most significant new master planned communities in L.A. County in years, and also represent something of an outlier: While most of Southern California was built around single-family homes, in urban L.A. County major new developments have for years trended toward more vertical multifamily projects, particularly in relatively dense neighborhoods such as Koreatown. In March, Long Beach also became notably taller with the opening of a 35-story luxury residence called Shoreline Gateway, which became the city’s tallest building.

Integral’s plans for River Park call for 226 homes, divided between 74 two-story single family houses, 99 two-story townhomes and 53 three-story “carriage” townhomes. All the homes would have their own two-car garage, and 12 units would be set aside for affordable housing, a stipulation that gave the developer a height bonus.

The 20-acre property is located at 712 Baker Street, nestled between the L.A. River and 405 Freeway in Long Beach’s Wrigley Heights neighborhood. The developer would use more than 15 acres for the residential complex and dedicate nearly 5 acres to open space that would be adjacent to an existing city park. The development agreement also requires the firm make improvements to that park and another one nearby.

Integral, a Newport Beach-based firm that has three master planned community projects in Northern California, has previously said that construction could be completed in 2026.

While the project has the support of Long Beach’s popular mayor, who wrote a letter of support, it has sparked opposition from numerous neighbors and community activists, emerging as a local flash point for a growing coastal city that’s grappling with a legacy of industrial pollution and environmental racism.

Beginning in 1923, the property was part of Long Beach’s large local petroleum industry, with the site serving as an oilfield wastewater treatment plant. That operation ceased in 1988, and some remediation began in 2000, although more will be required before construction can begin, with the site cleanup falling under area water quality boards.

In a series of impassioned public comments last week, area residents cited a variety of objections, including the possible presence of western burrowing owls, but frequently expressed health concerns for future residents because of the site’s toxic past.

“This piece of land is one of the most inappropriate sites for residential development in Long Beach. There’s a reason why it is zoned commercial storage,” one resident told the commission.

Most opponents are advocating the entire 20-acre site be turned into parkland instead, although city officials dismissed that option late last year.

The planning commission voted 4-1 to recommend the project, with the lone dissenter also citing the potential for dedicating the land for park use.