Courtesy photo
Long Beach Mayor Rex Richardson and Marriott General Manager Imran Ahmed speak to hospitality workers at their annual appreciation gathering in Long Beach.

The Long Beach area is busy preparing for two big events that are scheduled to bring a massive influx of visitors and business to the region in the next few years.

Mayor Rex Richardson joined Marriott official Imran Ahmed and Long Beach Visitors’ and Convention Bureau Chief Steve Goulding at a hospitality appreciation night this week.

The mayor briefly highlighted preparations for the FIFA World Cup, the 2028 Olympics and the Paralymic Games.
Anticipating millions of visitors, Richardson said the long awaited 12,000-seat Long Beach amphitheater opens next month. When opened, he said, the venue will become “the largest waterfront amphitheater on the west coast.”

The new venue will become an attractive option, “if you like music, and you love Southern California, and love our waterfront,” the mayor said.

Hospitality workers listen to Long Beach Mayor Rex Richardson as Marriott Airport GM Imran Ahmed looks on. Courtesy photo

Next year, FIFA, Federation Internationale de Football Association, the international governing body of the World Cup is coming to the Los Angeles region “and we’re planning fan experiences in Long Beach,” said Richardson.

“And in 2028 comes the big show,” the mayor said, noting that Long Beach “will have 18 sports for the 2028 Olympics, larger than any other venue,” Richardson told the hospitality workers.

Richardson said in addition to 18 ticketed sports, Long Beach will house one-third of the paralympic games associated with the Olympics. “That’s 161 ticketed events expected to draw two million tourists to the city of Long Beach in the summer of 2028.

“So tourism is big business in the city,” he added.

All these people “are going to need a place to stay,” he said, “ so we have a lot to look forward to,” said Richardson.
“We can’t do it without Imran, without the Marriott, or without all of you, a broader community,” he said.

Ahmed, who is the General Manager of the Airport Marriott, thanked his staff and the broader hospitality community for their dedication to their profession, providing excellent service to the visitors of Long Beach.
The hotel manager said “this year has been been a challenge,” noting that “not all of the usual segments were performing up to expectations.”

Ahmed thanked Richardson, Goulding and the hospitality professionals for their work to fill in the gaps to make up for the sagging segment. “We fixed that,” said Ahmed. “It took a while, but we fixed it.”

He said the annual hospitality appreciation night is held in appreciation of his hospitality staff, the Convention and Visitor’s Bueeau along with local businesses who work in cooperation to facilitate a growing segment of the hospitality industry in Long Beach.

Ahmed said this year’s country western themed appreciation event was about “just saying thank you to everyone who makes this hotel and this industry so successful” in Long Beach.
“We do this every year,” he said.