On Friday, April 4, 2025, Long Beach welcomed the inaugural World of Waterfronts (WoW) Symposium, a first-of-its-kind gathering that brought together a global community of waterfront changemakers—planners, designers, policymakers, developers, and advocates—to explore how waterfronts can be reimagined as thriving, sustainable, and inclusive public spaces.

Co-hosted by Studio One Eleven and Placemaking US, with support from the Port of Long Beach, Jerico Development, and Intertrend, the one-day event drew insights from international success stories and local case studies. The Symposium highlighted the urgency and opportunity of revitalizing waterfronts in the face of climate change, urban growth, and shifting community needs.

As Long Beach looks ahead to the 2028 Olympics, the WoW Symposium served as a platform for sharing visionary approaches, sparking collaborations, and learning from cities around the world.

 Event Highlights

• Long Beach Waterfront Vision with Carline Hua (City of Long Beach Community Developement)

• Keynote Conversation with Laurie Schwartz (Baltimore Waterfront Partnership)

• Global Success Stories Panel featured speakers from Paris, Auckland, Philadelphia, Halifax, and Cleveland

• West Harbor Site Tour, offered an insider look at a transformative redevelopment effort along LA’s waterfront

• Local Perspectives Panel with voices from San Francisco, San Pedro, LA County, and Long Beach

• Networking Happy Hour overlooking the waterfront

Reflections

1. Designate a Waterfront Champion
Every great waterfront needs someone whose primary focus is its long-term vision and day-to-day progress. Empower a dedicated leader or team to advocate for the waterfront, build coalitions, and maintain momentum.

2. Start Small, Act Fast
You don’t need to wait for a master plan to get started. Pilot projects, pop-ups, and temporary activations can spark energy, test ideas, and build community support for larger transformations.

3. Embrace a Do–Learn–Do Mindset
Waterfronts thrive when we’re willing to experiment. Try something, see what works, adapt, and repeat. This iterative approach keeps projects nimble and responsive to community needs.

4. Think About the Fish
Beyond human-centered design, our waterfronts are ecological systems. Protecting biodiversity, water quality, and marine life isn’t a side effort—it’s central to building sustainable, resilient waterfronts. Design with nature in mind.

5. Collaboration is Key
The most successful waterfronts are co-created across sectors—bringing together community voices, public agencies, private developers, and cultural institutions. Break silos and build trust.

6. Waterfronts as Social Infrastructure
Waterfronts should be places of belonging—where public space meets public life. The physical design matters, but so does programming, accessibility, and the stories we tell through the spaces we shape.

Speaker Presentations

These presentations from our amazing speakers offer valuable insights and are available to view in the below links:

• Carline Hua – City of Long Beach Downtown Shoreline Vision Plan

• Laurie Schwartz  – Waterfront Visioning in Baltimore and Long Beach

• Global Success Stories Panel – Revitalization Around the World

  • Paris, France – Experience the Games Waterfront Activation in the Greater Paris Metropolis 
  • Aukland, New Zealand  – Placemaking and Aukland’s City Cente Waterfront
  • Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
  • Cleveland, Ohio, USA
  • Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada

• Local Perspectives Panel – Building from the Ground Up

  • Guneet Anand, SiteLab Urban Studio, San Francisco, CA, USA 

Watch the Recording

Missed the event or want to revisit the conversations? You can watch the full Symposium recording here:

• Carline Hua  – City of Long Beach Vision

• Laurie Schwartz  – Waterfront Visioning in Baltimore 

• Global Success Stories Panel – Revitalization Around the World