"Every summer, from as early as I can remember (around 1947) I would travel with my grandparents from Phoenix to Long Beach. Though the years blur in my memory, what stands out clearly are my summer days at Rainbow Pier with my mom, where she'd rent me a paddleboard to skim around inside the lagoon, and those spent at the Pike. This was before the breakwater was built." -Richard Dowdy
There are many stories similar to this one, where many childhood memories consisted of the Pike and surfing in Long Beach. It is important to understand and listen to those who have seen the changes in Long Beach firsthand. The information being passed along is evidence that we should not take for granted because eventually we will only be able to look back at stories passed along from one generation to the next.
With so many people still living today who have experienced these unfortunate changes in Long Beach, we should be able to Sink the Breakwater. Stories such as this are very powerful because they have more meaning than something you might read in a textbook. Most of us already know that the quality of Long Beach needs to improve, but many people do not realize that the Long Beach Breakwater has been a huge cause of the downfall. Maybe this will make people curious and wonder if what I am saying is really true because most of us living today cannot think of wonderful childhood memories in downtown Long Beach. At least we all know that Long Beach needs to make some improvements. Either way, there is heaps of factual evidence and recollections of the changes that have been made in Long Beach, and these have occurred since the breakwater was built.
I would like to mention that by adding the "New Pike" in Long Beach, they have begun to try and make improvements to the city. This obviously is not the same as it once was, but at least we are moving toward a more positive direction. The next thing we need to do is bring back waves and a cleaner beach to Long Beach because arcades, shops, and restaurants are not going to increase tourism, or keep Long Beach residents in the city they used to enjoy.
For more information and personal stories about the Pike, visit:
The Pike
2 comments:
I agree, shops and arcades do bring tourists but not as many as there could be. Im from New Zealand, and when you hear someone say Long Beach California, you think of sun and surf. But reading these blogs have put a tarnish on that vision. when i go to Long Beach i want to see a clean beach with golden sand and rolling waves, and different activities, like learning how to surf? by sinking the breakwater it might make this possible and there would be alot more tourists arriving to your shores to enjoy a beautiful clean Long Beach.
Thank you for your perspective. I think that many people hold the same opinion. Even people in the
United States have no idea that Long Beach does not have waves. People tend to think of surfing when they think of California, and unfortunately that is not always the case. There would be waves still in Long Beach, however, if we had not intervened with the environment by building the Long Beach Breakwater. Hopefully we can reconfigure this in order to bring waves back as well as a cleaner beach for all to enjoy.
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