A 5.6-acre surface parking lot north of the Hilton Long Beach and World Trade Center in Downtown has been sold, and construction on the long-planned six-building residential development known as West Gateway is set to begin next year.

Port of Long Beach staff confirmed the agency closed on the sale of the property to Dallas-based Trammell Crow Residential on Sept. 1 for $30.25 million.

The project at 600 W. Broadway consists of 756 residential units in six buildings ranging from seven to 30 stories, according to Reece Pettersen, development associate for TCR.

“The opportunity to own a project of this scale with on-grade amenities, ocean views, walkability and transit connections is very rare in Southern California,” Pettersen told the Business Journal.

The project is fully entitled and broken up into three phases, Pettersen said, with the first two expected to break ground in mid-2023. The first unit move-ins are expected in the fourth quarter of 2025, he added.

The project includes over 1,500 parking stalls, according to city staff. Most of the parking will be located in a nine-story parking garage, Pettersen said. Some of the parking garage spaces will be reserved for the adjacent hotel and office tower, which utilize the current surface parking lot, the company said.

Planning for the project began in early 2017, Pettersen said. The Long Beach Planning Commission first approved the development on July 18, 2019, according to city records.

Original plans included a 40-story tower, which would have become the tallest building in the city—a title recently assumed by the 35-story Shoreline Gateway. Plans also included a 21-story tower. In April, however, the firm amended its plans with the city, decreasing the size of the towers, while increasing the height of the other buildings.

The final project includes the tower, two eight-story buildings and two seven-story buildings as well as the parking garage.

While a portion of West Gateway will be obscured by the 27-story World Trade Center, the development is set to add to the Long Beach waterfront skyline. The project’s tallest building will easily rise over the Hilton hotel, which is exactly half its height at 15 stories.

The development will include “neighborhood-serving” retail on the southeast corner of Broadway and Maine Avenue, Pettersen said. A lease for the space has not been signed, he added.

The expansive project includes a laundry list of indoor and outdoor amenities for residents, Pettersen said, including:

  • Club lounges with a gourmet kitchen, billiard table, poker room, banquette seating, lounge and dining areas and flat screen TVs;
  • A coffee bar lounge with banquette seating;
  • An indoor-outdoor fitness studio with an adjoining kids’ entertainment suite and a separate studio for yoga, TRX and spin with on-demand fitness programming;
  • A modern business center with flat-screen TVs, presentation-ready work areas, a large conference room, communal tables and a lounge area;
  • A pool lounge with a coffee bar, kitchenette, games and seating;
  • A pet spa and grooming station;
  •  A mail center, including Amazon parcel lockers with 24-hour resident access;
  • High-speed Wi-Fi in all common areas;
  • A bike station and storage room;
  • A luxe pool and spa deck with an outdoor kitchen, fire features, gaming, daybeds and other furnishings;
  • Multiple courtyards with community gardens, fire features, barbecue grills and game areas;
  • A sky deck and room with a fire pit, trellis structure and seating.

In addition to the amenities located within the project, Pettersen noted the Downtown location also is its own amenity.

“Tenants can walk to dinner, experience public art and be part of an energetic community,” he said. “Residents of Downtown Long Beach not only enjoy proximity to major job hubs in Orange and L.A. counties with access to multiple modes of transportation, they can come home to a walkable and bikeable coastal lifestyle.”