A dangerous intersection where pedestrians and bicyclists are frequently injured by cars could soon be replaced with a $2.4 million park, according to a Long Beach city report.
Long Beach City Council voted Wednesday to vacate a block of the west side of Martin Luther King Jr. Avenue south of 7th Street to allow for the construction of a city park.
The new park will include new bus stops, new sidewalks, a picnic area, an art plaza, and a skate plaza, according to the report.
Only one intersection had more collisions in Long Beach than Martin Luther King Jr. Avenue and 7th Street between January 1, 2005 to September 1, 2010, according to the report. People on foot and bicycles were most often injured, the report said.
No other park is located within a half-mile of the intersection, where about 32,000 people live, the report said. The city expects to complete the park in fall 2016, according to the Long Beach Press-Telegraph.
Along with making the street safer, adding a park on the block will "provide a focal point for some of the city’s significant cultural institutions," like the nearby Museum of Latin American Art, according to non-profit Long Beach design firm City Fabrick.
