AIR CRE, an 1,800 member Los Angeles-based commercial real estate trade association, recently hosted a sold-out boat tour of the Port of Long Beach. Executive director Tim Hayes reported that attendance for the annual event—held annually for over a decade with only two years off due to the pandemic—was approximately 170.
Given its location in one of America’s busiest industrial real estate markets and ports, it is no surprise that most attendees were industrial brokers – comprising 1,400 to 1,500 members out of AIR CRE’s total membership. During their time on board they heard from assistant captain Tyler Askari who provided commentary on current and future port construction projects as well as technological improvements such as self-driving robots unloading container ships and the newly opened Long Beach International Gateway Bridge between Long Beach and Terminal Island which can accommodate larger vessels than its predecessor Gerald Desmond Bridge (1968). Attendees also learned about domestic challenges facing the port such as competition from New Jersey’s second busiest port in America – something which The Port Of Long Beach is actively working to change.
