From port to resort: Long Beach sees its future in Queensway.Long Beach officials are close to choosing a developer to build a 225,000-square-foot retail and entertainment complex - the centerpiece of a seaside project that officials hope will make people think of Long Beach as a resort, and not just a port. Once selected by the city from two finalists, the developer will enter into exclusive negotiations with Long Beach to design and build a commercial center expected to feature theme restaurants, movie theaters, stores and comedy and magic clubs. The commercial center will be at the heart of the Queensway Bay project. The center, combined with another retail complex nearby, will cost at least $100 million to develop, officials said. The entire Queensway Bay project - a shore-side development that will also include an aquarium, boat launches and an events park - is the most visible part of a plan by city officials to remake Long Beach's image. "The purpose of the project is to make downtown Long Beach the premiere waterfront attraction in Southern California Southern California, also colloquially known as SoCal, is the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. Centered on the cities of Los Angeles and San Diego, Southern California is home to nearly 24 million people and is the nation's second most populated region, ," said Robert Paternoster paternoster: see Lord's Prayer. , the city's director for the Queensway Bay project. Long Beach was hit hard in the early '90s by the downsizing (1) Converting mainframe and mini-based systems to client/server LANs. (2) To reduce equipment and associated costs by switching to a less-expensive system. (jargon) downsizing of the aerospace industry, and is still dealing with its repercussions repercussions npl → répercussions fpl repercussions npl → Auswirkungen pl , including the recent bid by Seattle-based Boeing Co. to purchase McDonnell Douglas McDonnell Douglas was a major American aerospace manufacturer and defense contractor, producing a number of famous commercial and military aircraft. It merged with Boeing in 1997 to form The Boeing Company. Corp., whose military transport aircraft division is based in Long Beach. Long Beach city officials want to use Queensway Bay and other projects to transform the area from one tied to aerospace and seaports This is a list of the world's seaports: Atlantic Ocean
While most of the Queensway Bay project is being funded through public money including revenue bonds, federal highway funds and federal urban development loans the seaside retail/entertainment complex will be built by a private developer. The developer chosen will also build a separate 235,000-square-foot retail complex near the city's recently refurbished Long Beach Convention Center. That complex would be more of a traditional retail center, Paternoster said. Although Paternoster and other city officials declined to identify the two finalists who were narrowed down from 15 original candidates - insiders identified them as San Diego-based OliverMcMillan LLC (Logical Link Control) See "LANs" under data link protocol. LLC - Logical Link Control and San Diego-based TrizecHahn Centers, a division of Toronto-based TrizecHahn Corp. The company to develop the project is expected to be chosen within two months. TrizecHahn and OliverMcMillan officials declined comment. Long Beach city officials are hoping that the new retail/entertainment complex - as well as other planned Queensway Bay draws, such as the $100 million Long Beach Aquarium of the Pacific The Aquarium of the Pacific is located in the city of Long Beach, California at the mouth of the Los Angeles River. The aquarium features a collection of over 12,500 animals representing almost 1,000 different species. and the Downtown Harbor boat launch - will help make Long Beach a tourist destination A tourist destination is a city, town or other area the economy of which is dependent to a significant extent on the revenues accruing from tourism. It may contain one or more tourist attractions or visitor attractions and possibly some "tourist traps". . "We want to create so many things to see and do in Long Beach that it creates the need to stay overnight," said Linda Howell-DiMario, president and chief executive officer of the Long Beach Area Convention and Visitors Bureau. Howell-DiMario said that the purpose of the center, as well as the entire Queensway Bay project, is to create a "critical mass" for Long Beach - the point at which tourists have to stay over at least one night in order to take advantage of all the city's attractions. The purpose of that, Howell-DiMario said, is to generate more occupancy taxes from the city's hotels, as well as more tax revenue from the city's restaurants, stores and clubs. "All of that creates yet another tax base opportunity for us in sales and use taxes Sales and use tax refers to:
Long Beach currently attracts about four million visitors a year, and they bring upwards of $390 million into the local economy each year, Howell-DiMario said. The anchor for Queensway Bay, Howell-DiMario said, is the Long Beach Aquarium of the Pacific. The aquarium - which will feature an underwater acrylic tunnel surrounded by sharks and the world's largest coral reef coral reef Ridge or hummock formed in shallow ocean areas from the external skeletons of corals. The skeleton consists of calcium carbonate (CaCO3), or limestone. A coral reef may grow into a permanent coral island, or it may take one of four principal forms. exhibit in its 150,000 square feet of exhibit space - is expected to attract between 1.5 million and two million visitors a year. It is scheduled to open in June 1998. Other features of Queensway Bay include the nearby Long Beach Convention Center, which recently underwent a $111 million expansion, and the Downtown Harbor, which will be the launching site for whale watching Whale watching is the practice of observing whales and other cetaceans in their natural habitat. Whales are watched most commonly for recreation (cf. bird watching) but the activity can also be for scientific or educational reasons. , diving, sightseeing and dinner cruise boats. The entire Queensway Project is expected to be completed between June 1998 and June 1999. |
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