Snoop Dogg, Super Bowl champ Willie McGinest give time and money to help pay for a Kroc Center. What’s next? Raising the last $17 million

The volume on the tape recorder had to be turned up all the way to catch some of what he was saying, but multimedia star Snoop Dogg and three-time NFL Super Bowl champ Willie McGinest had strong words for their native Long Beach Wednesday, in announcing more than $5 million in in-kind donations toward someday building a $140 million Kroc Center in central Long Beach.

“There’s more to Long Beach than downtown Long Beach,” Snoop said at one point–immaculate as usual in a dark denim vest, white-on-blue-striped oxford shirt and tie, his eyes hidden behind shades.

“A lot of people got the conception that Long Beach is based on what it looks like downtown. Because I go around the world and I travel and people say ‘I’ve been to Long Beach and it’s nice, its nice and it’s nice,’ and I’m like ‘Have you been to the part where I’m from?’ so they can understand that it’s not just based on downtown Long Beach.

“It’s about time they start building up the Sixth District, because some of the greatest people in Long Beach have come from the Sixth District.”

This example of a Ray & Joan Kroc Corps Community Center–funded in part by a $76 million endowment from Joan Kroc’s restricted $1.5 billion gift to the Salvation Army–should accomplish just that.

(Does her name sound familiar? She’s the widow of McDonald’s restaurants founder Ray Kroc.)

A much-needed update of the 19-acre Hamilton Bowl/Chittick Field site immediately north of Pacific Coast Highway at Walnut Avenue, it will feature a world-class gym and sports complex; sports playing fields, an aquatics complex, play yards, walking trails, gardens–and even the possibility of areas to make art and to practice and perform music.

“You look at that, you can’t even imagine what’s there right now,” said McGinest, a 15-year National Football League star who is a free agent after having played for the New England Patriots and the Cleveland Browns.

As he examined renderings of the facility, McGinest remembered playing baseball there–and the mini-dust storms that resulted from running the bases at Hamilton Bowl.

“You have Olympic facilities from this side–they look like a magical world or something compared to what’s there now,” McGinest said.

“When I saw the picture, I’m still in awe of stuff like this. I played sports so I understand how much this means just on the sports side of it. Whenever I wanted something like this, I would have to go outside Long Beach to find something like this.

“Now, this is the opportunity for guys like me, for the young athletes coming out, to keep them–to keep everybody–right here.”

Sixth District Councilman Dee Andrews–whose involvement Snoop and McGinest praised as absolutely crucial to getting them involved–agreed.

“The Kroc Center is a place with hopes for all–and remember that word ‘all.’ But the most promising aspect of the central area is the crown jewel of Long Beach Poly High School,” Andrews said.

“Poly is one of the best athletics programs in the nation. There is no other high school where more young people are recruited into the professional athletics.

“Poly could utilize the Kroc Center for its home games. My call is for all Poly graduates to come home and help build this center. The first large step starts with one giant leap with the help of Snoop Dogg and Will McGinest,who are all alumni to Poly.”

McGinest has pledged his time to make the Kroc Center a reality; and Snoop, Andrews said, “has committed to a $5 million in-kind cash donation. Snoop has agreed to create a music single with others–just himself if necessary–to describe the experience in Long Beach and how the Kroc Center is a beacon of hope to young kids to stay out of trouble.

“This summer, it will be able to be downloaded, and all the proceeds will go to the Kroc Center. He has agreed to perform a concert to raise money and awareness for the Kroc Center.”

And that’s it, right? Not quite.

Even with Snoop and McGinest’s committments, fundraisers are still $17 million short of reaching their goal and triggering a $76 million endowment from Joan Kroc, Salvation Army Major Glen Madsen said during an interview in the unofficial green room at Ristorante daVinci–a lounge hidden behind a secret door disguised as a giant framed mirror.

Where exactly is the Kroc Center project?

“We’re just finishing up the Environmental Impact Report,” said Dave Neary, one of the powers behind Ristorante daVinci; he’s also chairman of the Long Beach Salvation Army Advisory Board.

Plans “are currently in plan check,” Neary continued, at the press conference. “We hope to have them out some time in July, and that being the case–and the EIR receiving its final approval–with any luck, we’ll break ground in August or September.”

“Well, I’ll tell you,” Madsen said afterwards. “The reality is, we still need to raise the last $17 million. Until we raise that, we can’t have a groundbreaking.”

“I’m just really telling you, this is going to bring people from all over to get behind this now,” Andrews said hopefully as the press conference neared its end–but remarks he’d made earlier sounded arguably closer to the reality.

“I ask everyone to ask themselves, ‘What can I do to help?’ ” Andrews had said as the afternoon began. “Dig deep into your pockets, concentrate on the idea to make this dream a reality.”

Yes, dig. Dig a little deeper, for just a little longer.

Tags: California, Chittick Field, Cleveland Browns, Dave Neary, Hamilton Bowl, Joan Kroc, Long Beach, Long Beach Polytechnic High School, McDonald's restaurant, National Football League, New England Patriots, Ray & Joan Kroc Corps Community Center, Ray Kroc, ristorante davinci, Salvation Army, Salvation Army Mayor Glen Madsen, Sixth District Councilman Dee Andrews, snoop dogg, Southern California, The District Weekly, Theo Douglas, Willie McGinest