{"id":134169,"date":"2026-01-15T03:41:17","date_gmt":"2026-01-15T03:41:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/134169\/"},"modified":"2026-01-15T03:41:17","modified_gmt":"2026-01-15T03:41:17","slug":"construction-begins-on-long-beach-amphitheater-with-concerts-promised-starting-in-june-long-beach-post-news-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/134169\/","title":{"rendered":"Construction begins on Long Beach Amphitheater, with concerts promised starting in June \u2022 Long Beach Post News"},"content":{"rendered":"

Crews broke ground today on the Long Beach Amphitheater, the city\u2019s $21.3 million outdoor entertainment venue set to open this summer.<\/p>\n

The temporary venue is set to run for an initial 10-year period while the city considers a permanent plan. It\u2019s become a major piece of Mayor Rex Richardson\u2019s vision to use industries like tourism and entertainment to replace declining oil revenue that has traditionally bolstered the city\u2019s budget.<\/p>\n

He also hopes it solidifies Long Beach\u2019s place as a music destination. During his speech at the groundbreaking, Richardson recalled attending his first concert at age 16 and later seeing Prince and B.B. King perform.<\/p>\n

\u201cNow, we get to have those moments right here in Long Beach,\u201d Richardson said.<\/p>\n

Long Beach Amphitheater will have 11,000 seats with grandstands at 36 feet high, facing a 51-foot high stage backdroped by the city\u2019s skyline.<\/p>\n

Planners estimate the venue will host more than 300,000 people across more than 100 shows in its first few years.<\/p>\n

Construction has already begun. Supplies began arriving in December, Richardson said in an interview after the groundbreaking.<\/p>\n

Originally promised to open in fall 2025, an inaugural show is now set for June 6, with a performer still to be announced.<\/p>\n

The venue initially had a $14 million price tag, but that\u2019s grown to $21.3 million.<\/p>\n

That money was needed, city officials said, to offset increased construction and labor costs, add sustainability features, add accommodations for public transit and deliver a more \u201cpremium venue\u201d with upgraded seating and a VIP lounge.<\/p>\n

The increased cost will also pay for two more screens on stage.<\/p>\n

\"\"A rendering of the Long Beach Amphitheater. Courtesy Legends\/ASM Global.<\/p>\n

The venue\u2019s location, tucked on a small piece of land on a peninsula next to the Queen Mary, has the potential to cause traffic and parking headaches. Richardson said that will be assuaged by a bevy of options outside of driving, including a water taxi, shuttle, rideshares and even a helicopter.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe have to think about this less as, \u2018How do I get my car right there?\u2019\u201d Richardson said.<\/p>\n

At last week\u2019s City Council meeting, Richardson called the Long Beach Amphitheater a \u201clow-hanging fruit revenue opportunity\u201d for the city.<\/p>\n

Conservative projections show that the venue should pay for itself within eight years, according to the city\u2019s Economic Development Department, leaving room for a projected $7.4 million in profit during its final two years of operation.<\/p>\n

At his State of the City address,<\/a> Richardson noted the venue has already secured $11 million in private sponsorships.<\/p>\n

\"\"City officials shovel dirt at the groundbreaking for the Long Beach Amphitheater on Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2026. Photo by Jacob Sisneros.<\/p>\n

Three bands \u2014 Toto, Motley Cr\u00fce and Five Finger Death Punch \u2014 already have shows scheduled.<\/p>\n

Long Beach is paying the massive venue-management company Legends\/ASM Global to run the amphitheater. Their contract includes a $15,000 monthly fee for consulting work until it opens and a $300,000 annual fee thereafter. They also get an 18% commision on the sale of naming rights and an opportunity to make money on concessions. <\/p>\n

At the groundbreaking, Dan Hoffend, the company\u2019s executive vice president of convention centers, said the venue will not only host \u201cbig bands\u201d but will also create opportunities for musicians looking to launch their careers.<\/p>\n

\u201cGenres of music were created and discovered here in Long Beach,\u201d Hoffend said.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>Dan Hoffend, executive vice president for Legends\/ASM Global, speaks at the groundbreaking for the Long Beach Amphitheater on Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2026. Photo by Jacob Sisneros.<\/p>\n

Homegrown bands include Sublime, Tijuana Panthers and War, along with rappers Snoop Dogg, Warren G and the late Nate Dogg.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is really big,\u201d said Kelvin Anderson, founder of the renowned record shop VIP Records. \u201cThis is the city of art, music and entertainment, so I\u2019m all in on it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Anderson said he hopes to have a replica VIP Records sign<\/a> installed at the venue and wants to host festivals with funk and soul music acts.<\/p>\n

At the groundbreaking, Port of Long Beach CEO Noel Hacegaba said that the port has a band called \u201cThe TEUs\u201d (the standard unit of measurement for cargo containers) that is lining up to play.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf you need somebody to break this amphitheater in for free, we\u2019ll be happy to be the opening act to the opening act to the opening act to the opening act to Sublime,\u201d he joked.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Crews broke ground today on the Long Beach Amphitheater, the city\u2019s $21.3 million outdoor entertainment venue set to…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":133832,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[33],"tags":[131,133,132],"class_list":["post-134169","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-long-beach","tag-long-beach","tag-long-beach-headlines","tag-long-beach-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/134169","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=134169"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/134169\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/133832"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=134169"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=134169"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=134169"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}