Marijuana dispensary opening in Long Beach (near Lakewood)

estimated at under $4,000. In previous years, a Lakewood home suffered major fire damage from a skyrocket that landed on their roof.

“We know there was still a lot of illegal fireworks use,” said City Manager Thaddeus McCormack. “But I hope Lakewood residents appreciate the amount of effort that their city puts into battling the use of illegal fireworks and keeping it from being even worse. I want to thank the residents who took the time to call in about illegal fireworks use or used the Lakewood Connect App…and thank all the Deputy Sheriffs and public safety staff who worked hard over the July 4th period.”

Lakewood is known throughout Southern California as a city that takes strong action and does everything it can to deter and reduce the use of illegal fireworks.

The City of Lakewood does not allow marijuana dispensaries to locate in the city. However, Long Beach does allow them, and a new one is nearing completion on the south side of Del Amo Blvd. just west of Bellflower Blvd. in the Lakewood Village neighborhood of Long Beach. The City of Lakewood has no permitting or zoning control over Long Beach’s decision to allow that dispensary to open.

“Haven” is the name of the Long Beach dispensary. “On the bright side, Haven’s building appears to be well designed,” said Lakewood City Manager Thaddeus McCormack, “and it is an established company with six existing stores and seven more being developed. Keeping in mind that Haven is in Long Beach and not Lakewood, they do publicize their intention to be a good neighbor in the community and to donate funds to community causes. Haven is also known as a company that takes extra steps for security and public safety, which is a high priority for our city.”

The City of Lakewood will be monitoring safety and other issues with the new dispensary after its expected opening in August, according to McCormack, and will communicate any concerns to Long Beach officials.

It is possible that Haven will advertise its new store as being in “Lakewood” because it is located in the Lakewood Village area of Long Beach. The City of Lakewood has no control over that advertising decision by the company.

The bridges of Rynerson Park to be reinstalled in September

Rynerson Park in Lakewood has three bridges that cross over the flood control channel in the middle of the park. The bridges are key for providing access to many areas of the park.

The north and south bridges needed structural refabrication to extend their useful life, but new bridges would have been very expensive to purchase and install.

City staff found a company that does bridge refabrications for a fraction of the cost of new bridges, and is well-respected with good reviews from other customers.

The north and south bridges of the park were removed in midJuly and sent to an off-site facility for the refabrication. They are expected to be reinstalled by the end of September. During that time, the central ADA-accessible bridge of the park will remain in place and provide park access from Studebaker Rd., in addition to the main driveway.