Quiksilver's Impact on City Discussed at Civic Meeting

Former City Council Member Leonard Remo on Wednesday provided residents with information about everything from parking to concert schedules for the Quiksilver Pro New York surfing competition that will come to Long Beach in early September.

Some 75 residents attended the West End Neighbors Civic Association meeting at the People’s Church, where Remo, who in January was appointed as secretary of labor relations, spoke for the city in providing the latest information about the event that will include a surfing competition with $1 million purse, live concerts, motocross and skateboarding events.

Events Scheduling

Remo announced that information was subject to change right up to the kickoff of the two-week long event on Sept. 1, and with that he told the crowd that the times for the events were shortened.

Because children return to school after Labor Day, none of the daytime events that Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday, such as the concerts, will occur until 3 p.m., up from the previously scheduled 1 p.m. start. And all events wrap up no later than 6 p.m. on weekdays and 7 p.m. on weekends.

Plans are set to have Quiksilver athletes visit local schools and talk to students about issues such as water and beach safety. Moreover, event organizers will work with the school district’s technology department to live stream the surfing competition into cafeterias during the day. “So that children can watch the surfing during their lunch hour,” Remo said.

Alcohol-Free Event

Quiksilver originally planned to have public bars at the live site areas, but the city negotiated to have no sale of alcohol to the public, according to Remo.

“The city took a very strong position on making this an alcohol-free event,” he said.

Remo explained that the city’s position is that it is an athletic event and Quiksilver will showcase their line of clothing, Roxy and DC, that is geared toward preteens and teens.

“We felt that part and parcel with their target audience, it supports the city’s view that we want this to be a positive and healthy event,” Remo said.

Parking and Transportation

The city has issued red parking stickers for people living in certain areas south of Park Avenue from Monroe Boulevard to Magnolia Boulevard that are for designated residential only parking. Remo encouraged these residents to obtain residents’ permits at the city clerk’s office.

Pennsylvania Avenue resident Linda Alpern asked Remo about the city’s efforts to encourage out-of-town motorists to use parking lots at Jones Beach and take shuttles to the Quiksilver site centered at National Boulevard beach.

Remo said that it will probably be faster and more efficient for motorists coming to Long Beach to take the shuttles, provided by Quiksilver, from Jones Beach rather than spend 45 minutes or more circling the city and still not find a parking spot.

The State Department of Transportation issued the city a note indicated that it will post roadside signs on the Belt, Northern State, Southern State, Loop and other parkways that will direct motorists headed to Long Beach to park at Jones Beach.

The shuttles will run from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. during the week, and until 9 p.m. on the weekend.

Calling the Long Island Rail Road a “major, major” partner in this event, Remo noted that the LIRR has created a separate schedule for the event, along with additional trains — three more on weekday mornings and three on weekends — additional personnel, as well as discounts to encourage people to use the trains. Remo said that the city is increasing the number of buses for commuters in the morning.

The only road closure will be Edwards Boulevard from Saturday, Sunday and Monday on Labor Day weekend and the following Saturday and Sunday, to allow the expected large volume of LIRR commuters to walk to the beach on a car-free boulevard.  

One West End resident asked if the city will stem the expected overflow of people who are expected to patronize the bars in the West End after the events. “Are you going to take steps to control that in some way,” he asked Remo.

Remo explained that city officials expect that if people are going to have dinner and drinks, they will be more prone to do so later in the evening, around 8 or 9 p.m., and since the events are expected to end from 6 to 7 p.m., many of them may opt to leave the city. Remo said that hopefully this would make a positive impact on the residents without taking money from commercial establishments.

“We’re presuming that without the attraction of alcohol during the day, and the fact that this is ending earlier, that a different clientele will come to this event,” Remo said. “We won’t know until it’s over, but that’s part of the goal.”

Traffic

Remo said that the events are scheduled to end so that event-goers will leave the city when residents are coming home from work.

During the week the city will “make a conscious efforts to control this event so that people will be able to come into our business community, park and establish themselves, before the events open,” he said.

Remo noted that if there is a surf event is held on a particular day, it will probably start at 9 a.m. during the week, and competition-spectators will be circling neighborhoods at the time for parking.  

“Every effort has been made to truncate this event so that we can get our residents in and out of town,” Remo said.

Financial Impact

A Tennessee Avenue resident asked Remo about the financial impact the event is going to have on the city and how that will affect residents.

“We’re going to be seriously inconvenienced,” the resident said. “I go back to school those two weeks. I’ll be coming home at 4 p.m. and parking is going to be a nightmare and traffic is going to be worse. And I see the benefits to the business, and I think that’s great, and I see the exposure this community is going to get, and, again, I think that’s great. But for us, the residents, we’re going to be seriously inconvenienced. What’s the benefit for us? Now if you tell me we’re bring in money and going to build a new boardwalk, that’s awesome.”

Remo said that there would be an economic impact study that will show the effect the event had on the city, and it will probably be released by mid-October.

“It’s not going to necessarily put $5 in my pocket or your pocket,” Remo said, "but overall for the community it should generate millions, and part of that will be generated in hotel tax revenues, sales tax revenues, and items like that.”