Sale prompts restart of long-delayed Long Beach resi project

438-unit development now expected to break ground next month

Engel Burman president Jan Burman and a rendering of the project (JWJ, Engel Burman)
Engel Burman president Jan Burman and a rendering of the project (JWJ, Engel Burman)

A long-delayed residential project in Long Beach may soon break ground.

The Engel Burman Group purchased the property from iStar Financial for an undisclosed price, according to Newsday. The developer is expecting to begin work next month, with construction lasting about 2 and a half years.

The complex will include two nine-story condo buildings and one 10-story apartment building with a total of 438 units. The six-acre lot is between Riverside and Long Beach boulevards and will include 6,500 square feet of boardwalk-level retail space, one restaurant and 1,100 parking spaces combined over two levels.

Under an approved deal, Engel Burman will be saving $49 million on property taxes over the next 25 years, on the 238 apartments being built. Full property taxes will be paid when the 200 condo units are built, according to the report.

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Previous developers and the city have been battling over the space for four decades, leaving the project blowing in the wind. There have been numerous legal problems following the space as well.

In 2018, iStar filed a lawsuit against Long Beach after the developer had a building permit revoked for not starting construction within the project’s first year. City officials approved a settlement in April, dismissing the $105 million lawsuit, which cleared the way for the Engel Burman sale.

[Newsday] — Holden Walter-Warner