Thursday, October 1, 2026
The Long Beach City Council appointed seven members to its newly established Planning Board at its Feb. 18 meeting — a long-anticipated step to enhance the city’s development and land use oversight.
Barry Alton, Jason Clancy and Brian Patton will each serve a three-year term on the board; Kelly Spada and Kevin Martinsen, a two-year term; and Joseph Lucas and Andrea Gauto, a one-year term.
“It’s going to protect Long Beach from people that would do it harm,” City Council President Brendan Finn said of the new board. “And it’s going to make Long Beach into, I think, not a better place, but certainly we’ll have a more cohesive plan for going forward.”
The council received numerous applications for the volunteer positions but selected seven people based on experience and community representation. Applications were submitted from people who live in nearby towns, but anyone who does not live in Long Beach wasn’t considered for a position on the board, city officials said.
“This is something that we’ve been looking at quite a while,” City Manager Dan Creighton said. “I’m very excited about this item, to appoint members to the Planning Board. We did have many applicants, so not everyone could be picked. Obviously, there was some logic into how we picked.”
A few of those appointed were chosen for their prior involvement — Alton from the city’s Zoning Board of Appeals and Patton, Martinsen and Lucas from the former Planning Advisory Board, which is now known as the Land Use Committee. The remaining five positions were filled after discussions with applicants and their perspectives on development, environmental concerns and urban planning.
“I’d like to thank everybody who applied,” Creighton said. “I mean, this is not a paying job, it’s a volunteer position. I really appreciate all the input from the community. I think we chose seven good people. I’m sure there were other people who would be just as good, and we’ll keep them in the bond file and look to bring them on in the future.”
The board will be tasked with reviewing proposed developments, including commercial and mixed-use properties, subdivisions and residential projects exceeding three units. Board members will assess these projects before they advance to the next stages of approval.
Community member James Hodge voiced concerns about North Park, a neighborhood that he believes has been neglected in past development efforts. He also pointed to the Bayfront area, which qualifies for environmental remediation funding, and called for the inclusion of a Community Benefits Agreement, a formal, legally enforceable agreement made between developers and local governments or community organizations. These agreements aim to address and reduce the potential negative effects of large-scale infrastructure projects or other developments on the surrounding community.
“Keep us in mind and make sure that somebody is there at the table, understanding and recognizing that all of their plans should come through the community,” he said. “We should be a part of it because, again, the largest part of the Planning Board’s position will be in that immediate community.”
Crystal Lake, a longtime community member, echoed concerns about the board’s knowledge of local history and the impact of future developments. She emphasized that the board must understand the background of the North Park community, particularly given its history with real estate changes and environmental challenges.
“I think it’s imperative that each and every member of the board have understanding of the dynamics of what’s been there, what’s there and what actually could be there,” she said.
Lake also raised concerns about the transparency of the process of selecting the board’s members. She noted that the community had little opportunity to provide input into the selection of the members, and their resumes were not made available to the public.
Councilman Roy Lester agreed with Lake’s concerns regarding the Planning Board’s appointment process. He expressed frustration that the community had limited involvement in getting to know the applicants or choosing the board’s members, and stressed the importance of transparency in the selection process.
The City Council approved the appointments to the Planning Board by a vote of three to one — with council members Finn, Mike Reinhart and John Bendo giving the thumbs up. Lester cast the lone dissenting vote, while Councilman Chris Fiumara was absent from the meeting.
Appointees were selected from different neighborhoods throughout Long Beach to give the Planning Board broad representation. Training for board members has already begun, and a meeting has been scheduled for early March. Some appointees had already participated in preliminary training sessions alongside members of the Zoning Board of Appeals and the Land Use Committee.
