Posted on October 21, 2026
By Mekahlo Medina and Génesis Miranda Miramontes
After weeks of powerful waves battering the Long Beach peninsula, a major project to restore the beach is now getting underway.
Crews are moving into place Tuesday morning as part of an 11 million dollar effort to rebuild the shoreline.
The crews are starting to move at 72nd Place, getting ready for a project that could dramatically change the shape of the beach.
A couple of weeks ago, three powerful storms battered the peninsula, tearing apart sections of the boardwalk and seawall, washing away sand and leaving some homes dangerously exposed to the ocean.
Now the city is spending 11.4 million dollars to dredge the nearby channel and use that sand to rebuild the beach.
The goal is to create a much wider buffer between the ocean and the nearby homes, especially with winter storms still ahead.
However, some residents have concerns.
“A little skeptical. The ocean is pretty powerful, and the sand has been getting washed away, but it looks like they’re putting in a really good effort,” Chad Morgan, a Long Beach resident, said.
The work will stretch from 61st to 72nd Place, but crews won’t be able to work right away between 64th and 66th Place, where some of the worst damage occurred. That area is still considered too dangerous.
The project has been planned since 2023, long before the recent storms hit. And now the race is on to get the beach rebuilt before more powerful waves arrive.
