Tonight, I'll be installed to my first, full four-year term on the City Council. State Senator Alan Lowenthal will swear me in. I am thankful to Senator Lowenthal for his early support of my campaign and his advice and mentorship.

As I move into these next four years, I feel confident that we are delivering on our campaign promises, and making big and important changes not only in the First District, but throughout Long Beach.

So thank you for your support, and please take a look at some of our accomplishments during my first year in office:

New Legislation

I authored or co-sponsored several important pieces of legislation in my first year in office. They include:

- The creation of www.HireLB.com: We launched the city's first job portal. The new site connects local jobseekers to employers, and assists residents and businesses to access city services and programs.
 

- Online Public Calendars for Elected Officials: We authored legislation to make elected officials’ calendars public and on-line.
 

- Development of the “Go Long Beach” iPhone application for the City of Long Beach: The smartphone application will bring our city one step closer to becoming a technology leader and is expected to launch soon.
 

- Google Campaign: Passed resolution to apply for the new innovative Google Broadband service and executed letter writing campaign for it.
 

- The Equal Benefits Ordinance: Ensuring that the city only does business with companies that provide benefits for registered domestic partners equal to those of married spouses. I’m very proud that our city is taking a stand for equality and civil rights.
 

- Arts Initiative: I sponsored and passed a comprehensive arts legislation package that included the creation of a Blue Ribbon Commission to examine ways to increase funding for arts and improve the distribution of those funds in the community; the striking an obsolete section of the municipal code that banned all street performances apart from special events; the creation of a new permitting process for nontraditional entertainment venues like bookstores, cafes and art galleries, allowing them to offer some entertainment as a way of activating their shops and neighborhood commercial districts; and an exemption for struggling artists paying a business tax on a live work space.
 

- Lobbying Ordinance: The City Council unanimously approved a new Lobbying Ordinance that Councilwoman Gerrie Schipske and I proposed . My thanks as well to the City Attorney for crafting a solid and fair ordinance. It moves us in the direction of a more transparent government.
 

- Smoking Ban at Bus Stops, Farmer’ Markets and Small Parks: In a great victory for clean air, health, and the welfare of children, smoking is now illegal at bus stops (including 212 used by LBUSD) and farmers’ markets in the City of Long Beach, and will soon be prohibited in small parks. Councilwoman Suja Lowenthal has been a great partner in our smoking ban efforts.
 

- Residential Green Building Standards: We requested the city manager’s office to work with local environmental and architectural experts to create residential green building standards and incentives.
 

- Local Housing Preference: Authored legislation to encourage local preferences in workforce housing.

A Leaner & More Efficient Government

We passed a lean budget last year that retained critical services and that in many ways made government more efficient and leaner. Even in a difficult economy, we were able to save our Downtown Fire Station from cuts and increase funding for sidewalks & streets. In this upcoming budget, public safety and innovative government reform will be priorities.

Crime Continues To Drop

Crime has continued to drop this year not only in the First District, but City-wide. We have been actively working with our police officers and command staff to address community concerns and increase police presence in affected neighborhoods. The residents have played an important role in crime reduction with the creation of new neighborhood watch groups.

Strongly Supported Breakwater Study

We are moving forward with funding the city's commitment to study the reconfiguration of the Breakwater. We led letter writing efforts and submitted over 700 letters of support to the Army Corps of Engineers. Removing and reconfiguring parts of the Breakwater may be able to bring waves back our beaches, improve water quality and marine life, and still preserve the safety and security of our oil-producing islands and homes and businesses near the beach and on the peninsula.

A New Courthouse Downtown

We successfully completed a land swap that will allow the state to build a new County Courthouse on Broadway in the West Gateway area. The new Courthouse will be located in the First District and will bring new jobs, businesses and commerce to the area. Our letter-writing campaign helped ensure that the State will respect the needs of our community when designing and building the new courthouse downtown.

Opening & Supporting New Businesses

Our office has been working with the Downtown Long Beach Associates and local neighborhood groups in a retail retention and recruitment process. We have welcomed new businesses into the First District, and are looking forward to major new retail openings later this year. These include the new Kress Market on Pine, Fresh & Easy at City Place, The Fourth Street Deli, the Infinite Yoga Studio, and other new boutiques and national chains.

New Parks & Open Space

We are working with numerous communities to build and open new parks and green spaces. Here are some of our projects:

- K-9 Corner: We have opened the first solar-powered park in the city – the K-9 Corner dog park at Pacific and Ninth. This park was an idea and project of the North Pine Neighborhood Alliance.
 

- 14th Street Skate Park: We secured funding and opened the 14th Street Skate Park, a world-class skate park long sought by residents.
 

- 14th Street Basketball Courts: We have secured funding and are breaking ground on the new Court @ 14th Street this September.
 

- Seaside Park: We are dedicating and opening this new park in September. The park includes a new soccer field, a new playground and large open spaces.
 

- Drake Park Expansion: We have completed the planning stages of the Drake/Chavez greenbelt and expansion project, and have secured the funds for the Environmental Impact Report that will start this fall.
 

- Mary Molina Community Garden: We are moving forward with designs for a new Community Garden on the Westside.
 

- Craftsman Park: Designs and community input have moved plans forward for a new park in Craftsman Village.

Created 400 New Parking Spaces

Our parking initiative is nearing the completion of its first stage, with several businesses having agreed to participate in opening their lots to the public at night, and we are in conversations with several more. With the help of city staff, we have already created 400 new spaces district-wide, and are on track to create 500 new spaces by the end of the first year.

Planted Over 200 New Trees

We have planted over 200 new trees throughout Downtown Long Beach with the support of our city departments, the Redevelopment Agency, the Downtown Long Beach Associates, and community volunteers.

Installed Over 150 New Bike Racks

We have installed over 150 new bike racks throughout the First District and plan on installing an additional 100 before the end of the year.

Pacific Avenue Taskforce

We formed the Pacific Avenue Taskforce, which has been working on projects all along Pacific Avenue. This taskforce has succeeded in planting new trees, installing new trashcans, painting utility boxes, painting the light poles, updating the Pacific Avenue community garden, installing bike racks, new street banners, and cleaning up over 80 building code violations. Next up is planning for a new Pacific center median and repaving the length of the street.

North Pine Avenue Taskforce

This new taskforce is focusing on Pine Avenue between 3rd Street and Anaheim and will team up with the North Pine Neighborhood Alliance, interested area residents, Pine Avenue businesses, the City's Community Development Department, the Redevelopment Agency and Downtown Long Beach Associates to put together a plan to address numerous challenges and opportunities along one of our City's most important streets. We will be addressing business façade improvements, green spaces, tree plantings, and residential properties.

Storefront Activation Program

We have launched a storefront activation program with the support of the Redevelopment Agency, Downtown Long Beach Associates and the Arts Council of Long Beach. In the last few months, we have activated empty lots and storefronts at the old Newberry building and City Place storefronts on the 400 block of Pine with graphic art. We painted 25 murals on the old Press-Telegram building at 600 Pine, and installed Dolphin Art at what was once the last boarded up lot on Pine Avenue.

Pine Avenue Streetscape Plan

The Redevelopment Agency is in the final stages of gathering community input to reconfigure the streetscape on Pine Avenue. We have been meeting with businesses, property owners and residents to design a new look for Pine Avenue. Included in the new plan will be new sidewalks, landscaping, street furniture, lighting and pedestrian walkways. We hope to break ground on the project in 2011.

New City Urban Farm

We broke ground and began planting at the New City Farm, which will be operated by New City Schools and will add green space to our community by provide exciting, hands-on educational opportunities to students and community members. The Farm comes out of a partnership we facilitated between the Long Beach Housing Development Company and the New City School.

Daisy Avenue Revitalization

The oldest neighborhood in Long Beach, Wilmore City, is the focus of a revitalization effort that began this year. We have begun the process of enhanced code enforcement, police patrols, façade improvement grants, and other restorations to improve the Daisy Avenue business and neighborhood district.
Latin American Parade and Festival

My office spearheaded the first annual Long Beach Latin-American Parade and Festival. It was a huge success, and we look forward to an even bigger event this year. We had over 5,000 attendees at the festival last year including visitors from around the region. The 2010 parade will take place on September 25.

Career Development EXPO

We co-hosted an employment EXPO with the Pacific Gateway Workforce Investment Network. The event assisted 150 residents seeking employment or educational opportunities to connect with career services professionals. My office will continue to sponsor job fairs and career expos to help residents through these challenging economic times.
 

Habitat for Humanity
 

Working closely with Mayor Foster and the Long Beach Housing Development, we secured new Habitat for Humanity homes for three families in our district. These low-mortgage houses make a beautiful addition to the Washington Middle School neighborhood, and provide opportunities for hard-working residents to achieve the dream of home ownership. We will continue working on similar projects with Habitat in the future.
 

Public Works Projects

- Painted the historic Downtown light poles: The old blue historic light poles north of 3rd street had not been painted in many years, and were discolored, blighted and in need of repair. Just this week we put a new coat of paint on the light poles down Pacific and 8th. We will also be repainting the poles on Long Beach Blvd. as well. They look great, and really improve the look of the neighborhood.
 

- 7th & Maine Project: Working with the Willmore City Neighborhood, we created a small garden and seating area at 7th & Maine. The site used to be used as an old dumping ground for shopping carts and trash. Today it is a beautifully landscaped garden oasis for local residents and school children.
 

-Fixed the following sidewalks:
 

1. Henderson Ave. between 15th St. and 17th St.
2. 10th St. between Maine Ave. and Daisy Ave.
3. Cedar Ave. between 4th St. and 5th St.
4. 4th St. between Linden Ave. and Atlantic Ave.
5. Orange Ave. (west side) between 9th St. to 10th St.
6. Elm Ave. between 9th St. and 10th St.
7. 5th St. between Lime Ave. and Olive Ave.
8. 11th St. between Daisy Ave. and Magnolia Ave.

- Sidewalks to be repaired before the end of 2010:

1. Elm Ave. between 9th St. to 10th St.
2. 11th St. between Daisy Ave. to Magnolia Ave.
3. Chestnut Ave. between 6th St. to 7th St.
4. Pacific Ave. between 8th St. to 9th St.
5. 14th St. between Elm Ave. to Linden Ave.
6. 5th St. between Lime Ave. to Olive Ave.
7. Magnolia Ave. between 9th St. to 10th St.
8. 9th St. between Maine Ave. to Daisy Ave.
9. 1345 Linden Ave.

- New crosswalk completed:
 

1. Pacific & 9th St.

- Courts to be repaired before the end of 2010:
 

1. Crystal Court from 11th St. to Loma Vista Dr.
2. Virginia Court from 11th St. to Loma Vista Dr.

- Major Streets to be repaired before the end of 2010:
 

1. Long Beach Blvd from Ocean to 10th.
2. Pacific Avenue from Ocean to 7th.
We are working on extending these two projects to Anaheim for 2011

- Willmore City historic signs to be installed this fall:
 

1. 4th and Magnolia
2. 10th and Park Ct.
3. 6th and Chestnut
4. 7th and Cedar
5. 10th and Magnolia
6. Chester Pl. and Loma Vista
7. Chestnut and Loma Vista

This list does not include the many curbs we have re-painted, trashcans we have installed, and other public works projects.
 

Constituent Services
 

Our top priority in my office is serving residents and addressing your concerns. We have facilitated hundreds of solution to citizens’ concerns about graffiti, tree trimmings, crime, and infrastructure improvements. We pride ourselves in great service, and quick responses.

These accomplishments could not have been possible with the support of my City Council Staff, Susana Gonzalez, Daniel Brezenoff, Lena Gonzalez and Cory Allen. A big thank you as well to our City Staff, our local business owners, and most importantly, my neighbors and friends.

Here's to the next 4 years!

Go Long Beach!

Robert Garcia