Thursday, October 1, 2026
A single “no” vote. A failure to pass. Passionate voices of a disappointed community. An executive session — and a “no” changes to “yes.” The measure passes.
That was the story of one agenda item at the Long Beach City Council meeting Tuesday night.
The meeting took place in a packed room, with most attendees there for one reason: to see the city approve a new lease agreement with MLK Center Inc., so it can continue using its building on Riverside Boulevard as a community center.
“This item is probably the most important one of the night, and it’s one that I’ve been working on almost daily since I was appointed as city manager,” Dan Creighton said before the drama began. “Let’s be clear: The MLK Center was formed to provide a service, and although no agreement will ever be perfect to all stakeholders, I do believe that this agreement balances the impacts and costs to the city with the benefits provided to the community. We must get back to providing services to our children, our elderly and the community in general.”
According to the terms of the new 12½-year lease, the MLK Center will pay the city $2,000 per year in rent, cover all of its utility costs and continue to use the building as a community center.
The city began an eviction process against the MLK Center in 2022, saying that it “consistently failed to meet” with city administrators to negotiate a new lease. But the council kept reiterating how vital the center is to the community. Finally, this new lease effectively puts an end to that process.
“This is a ‘we’ situation,” Council President Brendan Finn said on Tuesday. “The Martin Luther King Center is an essential part of the North Park community, but it’s also an essential part of Long Beach. We all gain when the Martin Luther King Center is working and firing on all cylinders, and when it’s not, Long Beach is not doing well.”
As the council initially discussed and raised questions about the lease and the resolution, Councilman Roy Lester said he was troubled about one detail in the proposed lease: the center’s option to eventually purchase the building for $1.
Lester said he didn’t believe state law allows such a provision when a property is valued at millions of dollars. The city’s deputy corporation counsel, Joe Lupo, disagreed, saying that if a city or municipality were to “provide a gift for the public benefit or public purpose, that it would be upheld,” and that this was just that kind of situation.
“The reason why a lot of these things are in the lease is because we’re trying not to beat them on the head,” Corporation Counsel Frank Dikranis added in response to Lester’s argument, referring to the center. “They’re struggling to survive, and the city has a lot of power, and we don’t want to exert all that power. We wanted to get them out of court, we want to get them running and get these kids some relief.”
Following council members’ discussion and their expressions of appreciation that a lease was finally on the table — despite Lester’s apprehension — attendees shared their thoughts on the agreement, and encouraged the council to approve it.
“It’s nourishing for our community, and the whole City of Long Beach,” Jackie Odom, one of the center’s founding members, said. “I want to personally thank you for this opportunity to see this day come, that the MLK Center is getting back on their feet. Roy, as far as the $1, it was written originally in our lease that we will have that building for $1. That gives us hope, and gives us a dream that one day we might own that building. Don’t ever underestimate us.”
“I want to thank the council for doing what you’re doing for this lease,” Terrence Harris said. “These kids really need it, and you guys are doing an excellent job in helping with this lease.”
The measure needed an 80 percent supermajority of the council — meaning four of five members — to pass, but Councilman Chris Fiumara was absent, which left only four present to vote. John Bendo, Mike Reinhart and Finn voted “yes.” Lester voted “no,” and was met with boos and exclamations of, “Come on, Roy!” from residents.
After the announcement that the measure had failed, Lester’s surprised expression made it clear that he had not considered the mathematical implications of his vote with only three others casting theirs, and the council quickly voted to go into executive session. Twenty minutes later, they returned and announced that Lester had changed his vote.
“To be honest, I thought that the lease could be done with three votes, so it wasn’t that big of a concern to me,” Lester said. “But I have heard tonight that a lot of the programs are being held up because of this lease, and I know how important the MLK Center is, and I know how important these programs are. I really don’t want to be the one stopping this.”
The announcement that the lease measure had passed was met with applause and cheers.
