What do you think about the Olympics coming to Long Beach? Let the city know

Long Beach wants to hear from residents ahead of the 2028 Olympic and Paralympic Games, when the city will host a total of 18 sporting events.

The 10-minute online survey, which is open through Sept. 30, asks respondents to give their general feelings about the arrival of the games, rank the lasting impact they want to see, provide concerns about attending and rank which free activities they would want to accompany the festivities.

You can take the survey here.

It’s the first step in a series of efforts for residents to provide feedback on everything from parking to the impact on local businesses, said Sean Devereaux, the city’s community engagement officer.

Long Beach just wrapped up a series of World Cup watch parties that city officials hope will be a road map for events surrounding the Olympic and Paralympic games.

From mid-June to mid-July, the city budgeted $800,000 to host 56 public watch parties and its annual Open Streets event during the international soccer tournament. About 50,000 people attended the city’s watch parties, city spokesperson Laath Martin wrote in an email.

The city will know the final amount spent for the events “in the coming days,” Martin wrote.

Most of the watch parties happened on Pine Avenue in downtown Long Beach, but for July’s knockout stage, they shifted to parks — with one event held in every city council district.

Ian McCall, owner of ISM Brewing on The Promenade, said the watch parties boosted sales at his business throughout the tournament.

For the most popular matches — aka, anytime Mexico and USA played — the brewery was “packed to the gills” with fans overflowing from the watch party on Pine Avenue.

On other match days, McCall said sales were still 15-20% higher than usual.

Restaurants and bars throughout Los Angeles also saw a similar boost from the games.

Data gathered from Long Beach’s online survey will help the city hone its approach for the Olympics and “ensure that the games are available to everyone in Long Beach in some capacity,” Devereaux said.

City staff also plan to host in-person meetings and events in various neighborhoods to get more tailored feedback, Devereaux said.