Long Beach Yacht Club seeks to double its space in Naples

The Long Beach Yacht Club — one of the oldest social clubs in the city — is seeking the city’s blessing this week on a significant overhaul of its clubhouse and grounds along the marina in Naples Island.

The club, which has leased the city-owned building since 1960, plans to remodel the existing clubhouse and construct a new second-story addition that will double the building’s total size to more than 41,000 square feet.

The new addition would house a pool lobby, a multi-purpose room, a bar, a roof deck, a dining area, offices and storage space.

Plans also call for demolishing the existing pool and constructing a new one, a children’s pool, spas and decking, along with a number of exterior and aesthetic improvements.

An estimate prepared for the club in 2022 showed the total work would cost up to $20 million.

The city’s Planning Commission will hold its first hearing on the project Thursday, but the work will also need approval from the California Coastal Commission.

One potential snag could be parking; the facility has just 72 spaces, while demand for parking after the expansion could be as many as 284 spots during special events, city planning documents show.

The club said many of its members live within a half-mile of the facility and either walk or boat there. The club also plans to further promote and incentivize the use of alternative transportation.

Guests could also use parking nearby in the marina’s Basin 4 parking lot, which has 316 parking spaces, and the club has the ability to lease private spaces elsewhere.

In a recent letter to its members , club leadership acknowledged that a second potential hurdle may be its public benefit. The club is a private 501(c)(7) nonprofit organized to serve its roughly 1,000 members, not the public at large as is the case for a 501(c)(3).

The cost to become a member includes a $12,500 initiation fee, $455 in monthly dues and a minimum of $240 spent on food and drinks per quarter. The public at large cannot visit without an invitation from a member.

One of the main purposes of the Coastal Commission — formed 12 years after the club occupied this space — is to protect the public’s right to access the coast.

Both the club and city planners noted that the Yacht Club has participated in a number of community and charitable initiatives since its initial formation in 1929.

Members contribute more than 1,000 community service hours annually, and it hosts a number of water safety and sailing classes and experiences for underprivileged youth at Jordan High School and the Casa Youth Shelter, among others. The club also hosts a number of sailing events that benefit the city as a whole, including the Congressional Cup, Ullman Sails and the Catalina Island Series.

The Planning Commission will consider the project at 5 p.m. Thursday, July 18, in Civic Chambers, 411 W. Ocean Blvd. Watch the live or recorded proceedings here .

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