🌱 Washington Villas On Locust Break Ground + LB Holiday Arch Origins

Hey, everybody! Today, we remember our favorite hikes on International Mountain Day! It's Sylvia, your host of the Daily. Follow along to find out the most important things happening these days in town. In today's issue of the Daily, you'll find news about these stories and more...

• 🚓 An update on the flag-burning suspect
• 🏀 How Long Beach Poly boys’ basketball is doing
• 🤔 An insider’s review of the best California cuisine

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🌧️ But first, today's weather:

Heavy rain in the morning. High: 60 Low: 47.

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⛽ Three of the Cheapest Gas Stations in the City of Long Beach

• Sinclair at 5588 Long Beach Blvd., $3.89
• Noil USA, Inc. a 1234 W Cowles St., $3.94
• Food 4 Less at 6700 Cherry Ave., $3.99

🍪 Holiday Treats Poll! 🎄
December is the month for holiday treats and goodies. Which is your favorite? So far, 38.3% love See’s Candies, while 13.3% look forward to sugar cookies. Peppermint bark appeals to 6.7%, and eggnog has a loyal following of 36.7%. Poached pears, King Cake, and fruit cake are favorites for 1.7% each.

📰 Here are the top stories in Long Beach today:

1) Iroquois Avenue alleged flag-burner update: We learned on Saturday that the suspect taken into custody is a 35-year-old Laguna Niguel resident. He “faces 13 counts of arson, one count of arson to an inhabited structure, and violation of parole.” At this time, he is in jail with a $3.25 million bail. (ABC)

2) Habitat for Humanity is at work again in Long Beach. On Thursday, the organization broke ground for a 36-condo-development at Locust Avenue in the city’s Washington neighborhood. Two units “will be reserved for very-low-income residents, while 20 will be for low-income residents, and the remaining 14 will be market rate.” In dollars and cents, to be considered very low-income, a couple would make $47,650 or less; a low-income couple would make less than $76,250. There is no completion date yet for the Washington Villas project. (Long Beach Business Journal)

3) The Long Beach Poly boys basketball team has a challenging schedule this week. The teens play “six games in six days.” It seems that they’re up for it. On Friday, they beat Hillcrest 66-52. Players to watch were Cash Stokley, Austin Unegbu, Ryder Maddox, Kairi Shepherd and Jovani Ruff. On Saturday, they went up against King Drew; on Wednesday, they play Lakewood. (The562.org)

4) According to restaurant critic Merrill Shindler's Saturday report, Saint & Second at 4828 East 2nd Street offered the best California cuisine in 2022. The food is described as being “between eclectic and eccentric.” Moreover, Shindler waxes poetically about the hummus, grilled prawns and hickory smoked lamb ribs with fried basil. (Press-Telegram/paywall)

5) Do you ever wonder where the holiday arches came from that seem to have taken over Long Beach’s sidewalks? We learned on Tuesday that the city’s current favorite tradition may have begun on Parapet Street. From there, it traveled throughout the Plaza neighborhood, Willow Street and Studebaker Road. There's even scuttlebutt about unofficial competitions between city blocks. (HiLo)

📆 Today in Long Beach:

• Long Beach Hi-Po Swap Meet at 5000 E Lew Davis St (6 AM)
• Corner Garden Plein Air Workshop at MOLAA (9 AM)
• Children’s Christmas Musical "Bells of Glocken" at Bay Shore Church (9:30 AM)
• FREE Children's Workshop at MOLAA (1 PM)
• Justin Rudd's "Joy To The World" Christmas Concert also at Bay Shore Church (5 PM)

📓 From my notebook:

• "Helping members of our community who are experiencing homelessness is a top priority for our Quality of Life and bike teams. Yesterday, in collaboration with the city’s Homeless Services, we provided outreach in the downtown Long Beach." (Long Beach Police Department (CA) via Facebook)
• "Bixby had a great time with our SSOs in the Billie Jean King Library, learning about all the great work these men and women do to keep our community safe! He even gave one of our SSO's some top secret gift-wrapping tips! 🎄 💙" (Long Beach Police Department (CA) via Facebook)
• "COVID-19 Long Beach UPDATE: ❗️ The City of Long Beach has entered the Medium (Yellow) Tier of COVID-19 Community Level, the second of three tiers outlined by the CDC." (Long Beach City via Facebook)
• "Our City of Long Beach Animal Care Services will host their First Annual Happy Howlidays 🐾 Series! Share your compassion with LBACS by donating toys and supplies for the animals at the shelter during the holidays! 🎁" (Long Beach City via Facebook)
• "The City of Long Beach is seeking a qualified organization with experience in affordable housing, and trust among Long Beach residents and neighborhood organizations, to establish and operate a Community Land Trust (CLT) Program." (Long Beach City via Facebook)

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• Frosty's Winter Wonderland In Corona — (Visit website)
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Events:

• Torrance Antique Street Faire Holiday Show (December 11)
• Holiday Pops with your Long Beach Symphony (December 17)
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That's it for today! See you soon for another update.

— Sylvia Cochran

About me: Sylvia Cochran works out of sunny Southern California and has been freelance writing full-time since 2005. She loves dogs, cats, books, plays Best Fiends (don't judge), embraces social justice, and tries to live out Micah 6:8.

Have a news tip or suggestion for an upcoming Long Beach Daily? Contact me at LongBeach-CA@Patch.com