Shoreline Village has long occupied a particular place in Long Beach’s heart across its four-decades-plus existence. Part waterfront dining destination. Part whimsical seaside village. And part backdrop for first dates, family outings, and an afternoon spent doing very little beyond wandering along the water…
Since opening in 1982, that nostalgia has become one of its greatest assets. But wooden buildings sitting beside saltwater, well, age. Boardwalks, railings, and lighting need replacing. And preserving a place people love requires occasionally getting underneath the charm to address what is wearing out.
First announced back in 2023, is the work now underway at Shoreline Village. It will preserve 90% of the existing buildings while adding more than 5,000 square feet of public outdoor space, according to property management. The project also promises more open harbor views, new art, and better spaces for outdoor movies and live entertainment.
“We’re not erasing 40 years of history,” said Debra Fixen, director of property management at Shoreline Village, who oversees the redevelopment for Pacific Ocean Management. “We’re building the next chapter of it.”
The Shoreline Village plans circulating online aren’t necessarily the plans being built
One of the biggest sources of confusion, Debra says, is the continued circulation of older Studio One Eleven drawings. Those images depict an earlier proposal, not the project as it stands today. Among the significant differences: The parking garage is no longer being built. Shoreline Village will retain surface parking, add approximately 80 spaces, and adjust its entrances and exits.
The former arcade building has already been demolished, a change that will help open views that buildings and additions had gradually blocked, particularly that of The Queen Mary and DTLB. But the arcade business is staying at Shoreline Village: Fun Factory’s Pelican Pier is building out a new location next to the bike shop. An opening date has not yet been announced.
Debra says the project will retain the same overall amount of tenant space, with some businesses moving within the property. That means current shops, restaurants, and attractions will remain open throughout construction, with the arcade’s new location still being completed.
The distinction matters: The redevelopment is intended to make more room for people to gather and explore while keeping the shopping and dining village that brings them there in the first place.
The updated Shoreline Village: More room to wander—and more reasons to stop along the water
For visitors, some of the most meaningful changes will happen between the buildings.
More than 5,000 square feet of new public outdoor space will create additional room for strolling and gathering. Harbor views? Improved with more than 100 linear feet of additional boardwalk, opening up the waterfront that should be the centerpiece of a place like Shoreline Village.
Two new semicircular buildings, nicknamed the “yin and yang” buildings by the project team, will incorporate stepped seating areas. One will provide a view of the Queen Mary; the other will look toward the marina and DTLB. Debra described the surrounding area as a place for art and smaller performances, giving visitors another reason to linger along the water.
The boardwalk itself will receive new decking, railings, and lighting. And one planned addition will turn a portion of that walking surface into a canvas: an ocean-themed projection show, with imagery cast onto the boardwalk at scheduled times.
“It is an appealing possibility for a waterfront often experienced as a collection of destinations,” Debra said. “With it, the walk between those destinations becomes an experience in itself.”
Outdoor movies, a better stage, and art by local artists will be the cherry on top for Shoreline Village’s revamp.
The existing Off Broadway stage area will be opened up and improved, with a large screen and a better setting for live entertainment. This includes a dedicated outdoor movie screening area for everything from Olympic watch parties to new movie programming created by Kris Gragson, the man behind Moonlight Movies on the Beach.
Debra says the improvements will “support Shoreline Village’s longstanding commitment to free and affordable community entertainment.”
Local artists are being brought into the process, with original wall murals and a kinetic artwork planned for the property. Other interactive ideas, including a wishing wall, remain under consideration as the art program takes shape. Those details will matter as much as the architecture. A mural, a moving sculpture, or a movie beside the harbor can give residents a reason to return without needing to make a restaurant reservation or plan a shopping trip.
“The latest design took years of planning and included feedback from the community and council members,” Debra said. “A recurring request was to preserve Shoreline Village’s nostalgic, whimsical character—a priority that remains central to the work.”
The love-lock tradition is staying, but visitors should retrieve their existing locks.
For some visitors, the most personal piece of Shoreline Village is a small padlock attached to a railing: a marker of a proposal, an anniversary, or a relationship that began beside the water.
Those railings will be replaced as construction reaches them. Management is asking anyone who wants to keep an existing lock to retrieve it by the end of 2026, and encourages visitors to do so soon. The exact removal date has not been set because it depends on construction material deliveries.
A new, dedicated place for love locks is planned as part of the redevelopment, though its final design is still being worked out. Visitors should not assume their current locks will be transferred to the new installation.
“We know what these locks mean to people. Proposals, anniversaries, first dates,” Fixen said. “That’s exactly why we’re building a new home for them as part of this project, not just taking them away.”
That carousel? It’s not the historic one from The Pike.
The carousel formerly in the arcade will not return under the current plan. Debra also clarified that it was not the historic carousel from the original Pike, despite circulating online claims. A smaller carousel could be considered later, she said, but it is not a confirmed addition as the current carousel saw little patronage.
In the meantime, Shoreline Village continues to host events during construction, including its annual Long Beach Zombie Walk and Halloween Party on Saturday, Oct. 17, from 7 to 10PM.
And beyond the construction fences, the promise of the remodel is a waterfront with more places to sit, more art to discover, more room to walk, and more opportunities to gather around music or a movie. For a village whose greatest asset has always been its relationship to the water—and the memories people make there—those are changes worth paying attention to.
