The belief system that powers condo sales in downtown Long Beach

They’re calling it Pine@Sixth, with that little character for the “at” sign, which raises the question: Which Pine at Sixth? There are four corners: the old Press-Telegram building—soon to be lofts; Rite-Aid (formerly Thrifty); and the units built to replace the old Long Beach Plaza.
Which [...]

The Walker Building: Home is where the floating stairway is

When the Southern Californian thinks of a home, he/she thinks of a house: back yards, roofs, weird neighbor across the street who insists on painting his house that color.
Apartments? No. Apartments are not homes, thinks the Southern Californian. Apartments are those things that faded celebrities die [...]

Ex-Blue Cafe entertainment booker Vince Jordan, Texas nightclub kin Joe Irwin and former  King’s Fish House manager Paul St. Bernard serve their version of an open-faced club sandwich

PHOTO by RUSS ROCA
Humans need tangibles, and so it’s tough to write about a subterranean blues club downtown that’s yet to open, as well as its adjoining Southern [...]

PHOTO by DANIEL DE BOOM
Much has been written about the imminent closing of Acres of Books with nary a mention of its neighbor on the corner, Jack’s Liquor & Deli. While the developers are still presumably trying to find a fit for that revered bookstore in their block-wide construction scheme, there is no place in [...]

We got this email from a reader. Perhaps other readers can help?
“For those that aren’t familiar with the subject of this email, I’m referring to 110 W. Ocean Blvd. It’s the old historic building with flags on top that sits on the SW corner of Pine and Ocean. I have an important concern to share [...]

Lots of applause all around for Richard Florida at yesterday’s economic summit of Downtown Long Beach Associates, in part because Florida says the things we want to hear: (1) that Long Beach is already well on the way to becoming a hub of creativity, and is therefore (2) exempt from some of the laws of [...]

State of Downtown: The Downtown Long Beach Associate’s Fourth Annual “State of Downtown” presentation feat CSULB President F. King Alexander, Mayor Bob Foster and more. 11:30am-1:30pm.
HYATT LONG BEACH 200 S Pine Ave, Long Beach 90802. 562.485.3136; downtownlongbeach.org.
Howard Tate: The best Philly soul back now after a 30-year hiatus.  Call for info.
SAFARI SAM’S 5214 W Sunset [...]

Espirit de Lafayette at the walk thru time

MORE PHOTOS IN OUR LAFAYETTE GALLERY HERE
Two men in blue suits walk the sidewalk at Broadway and Linden, maps in their hands and mumbling about architecture, and then the one stops, turns, and looks up: “Oh,” he says, tipping back to trace the corner of the Lafayette. “Oh [...]

University by the Sea: Too much to do downtown: Roman history taught by Mayor Bob Foster, an Art Deco walking tour, movie screenings in the recently unearthed Jergins Tunnel. It’s all the knowledge you can handle for a couple bucks—some of it’s free, too. Noon-9pm. $20; $10 for students; Free for students 12 and younger.
UNIVERSITY [...]

University by the Sea tries teaching Long Beach about itself–and the Romans, Che and crumping

JERGINS TUNNEL PHOTO COURTESY HISTORICAL SOCIETY OF LONG BEACH
You know how sometimes you’ll sit around your house all stoned, and you and your friends will have some amazing idea? Let’s go to the Vietnamese market and buy live catfish and put [...]