Bixby Knolls Business Improvement Association

What Bixby Knolls Business Improvement Association does

The Bixby Knolls Business Improvement Association (BKBIA) is a 501(c)(6) nonprofit Business Improvement District (BID) established by Long Beach City Council Ordinance C-6646 on September 21, 1989, and incorporated as a nonprofit in the fall of 1993. It serves approximately 900 businesses within a defined geographic district in Long Beach, California (north of the 405 Freeway to 46th Street, Long Beach Boulevard to Atlantic Avenue), delivering supplemental municipal services including street cleaning, security patrols, marketing, and event programming. Core offerings are a portfolio of recurring community event programs — First Fridays Art Walk, Concerts in the Park(ing Lot), Strollers walking club, Kidical Mass family bike ride, Literary Society book club, and Knights of the Round (Turn)Table music club — together with facility rentals at the Expo Arts Center (a 27,000 sq ft arts hub leased from the City of Long Beach) and the Bixby Board Room, plus a business directory, facade improvement support, and small business grants through the affiliated Bixby Knolls Community Foundation 501(c)(3).

BKBIA has no proprietary technology platform. Its technology stack is a standard WordPress website (bixbyknollsinfo.com), a Square checkout integration for donations and room bookings, and mainstream social media channels (Instagram, Facebook, X). Business operations are run by five staff members (Executive Director, Project Manager, Content Manager, Events & Marketing Intern, and First Fridays Coordinator in training) under an elected eleven-member volunteer board. Revenue is generated from three streams: annual business assessments collected by the City of Long Beach and returned to BKBIA, facility and meeting-space rental income, and donations/sponsorships routed through the foundation. The organization publicly disclosed in 2025–2026 that it has lost much of its City of Long Beach funding and is actively soliciting community donations to sustain operations.

Name

Bixby Knolls Business Improvement Association

Legal name

Bixby Knolls Business Improvement Association

Website

https://bixbyknollsinfo.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1989

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Bixby Knolls Business Improvement Association is a 501(c)(6) nonprofit Business Improvement District in Long Beach, California, serving approximately 900 district businesses through recurring community events, facility rentals at Expo Arts Center, supplemental municipal services, and small business grants via an affiliated 501(c)(3) foundation.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Long Beach

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure, Others

Revenue model

1. Business Assessments: Annual assessments collected from businesses in the district by the City of Long Beach, then returned to BKBIA for revitalization, promotion, street aesthetics, and security programs.
2. Facility Rentals: Rental income from Expo Arts Center and Bixby Board Room for community events, meetings, and gatherings.
3. Donations and Sponsorships: Business sponsorships, community donations to the Bixby Knolls Community Foundation (501(c)(3)), and event sponsorships from organizations like Port of Long Beach and LA County Arts & Culture.
4. Program Sponsorships: Month-to-month or one-time donations supporting key programs including First Fridays, Clean Team, Concerts, and other community events.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

The Bixby Knolls Business Improvement Association (BKBIA) is a nonprofit Business Improvement District organization managing supplemental municipal services for approximately 900 businesses within a defined district in Long Beach, California. Its core operations involve organizing and producing recurring community event programs (First Fridays Art Walk, Concerts in the Park(ing Lot), Strollers walking club, Kidical Mass bike rides, Literary Society book club, Knights of the Round TurnTable music club) that drive foot traffic to member businesses, operating the Expo Arts Center venue and Bixby Board Room for facility rentals, providing a business directory, delivering clean team and security patrol services, and administering small business grants through its affiliated Bixby Knolls Community Foundation.

Product overview

Bixby Knolls Business Improvement Association operates as a community-focused organization offering a portfolio of event programs and facilities rather than a unified technology product. Core offerings include the Bixby Board Room (meeting space rental) and Expo Arts Center (event venue), both available for community and professional bookings. The organization runs multiple recurring event programs including First Fridays Art Walk, Concerts in the Park(ing Lot), Knights of the Round (Turn)Table music listening club, Literary Society book club, Strollers walking club, and Kidical Mass bike rides. Additional services include the Business Directory, Small Business Grants, and Facade Improvements Program. The association also organizes special initiatives like Black Business Month, Hispanic Heritage Month, and Women of Bixby to support local businesses.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Bixby Board Room A dedicated meeting space at the Expo Arts Center seating up to 20 guests, equipped with a presentation TV, conference web camera, high-speed Wi-Fi, and charging ports. Available for rent at $75/hour for regular use and $60/hour for non-profits (2-hour minimum), supporting business meetings, trainings, workshops, and networking groups.
• Expo Arts Center A 27,000 sq. ft. community arts hub at 4321 Atlantic Avenue, Long Beach, CA, available for art exhibits, theater productions, comedy shows, community meetings, and private events. The property is leased from the City of Long Beach and managed by BKBIA.
• First Fridays Art Walk A monthly art walk event held on the first Friday of each month where participating Bixby Knolls businesses stay open late with special sales, promotions, in-store activities, and first glimpses of new services and products. Designed to drive foot traffic to district businesses.
• Concerts in the Park(ing Lot) A summer concert series that transforms local parking lots into vibrant gathering spaces, featuring rotating lineups of bands playing crowd-favorite hits. Sponsored by Port of Long Beach and LA County Arts & Culture.
• Knights of the Round (Turn)Table A monthly music listening club where participants listen to historically significant albums from all genres track by track and discuss them in a book-club style format. Hosted at Beachwood Brewing & Distilling.
• Literary Society A monthly community book club meeting on the second Wednesday of each month, focusing on American classics as well as current releases, with special guest discussion leaders and authors participating. Hosted at Dream Come True Tea & Party Room.
• Bixby Knolls Strollers A neighborhood walking club meeting every Saturday morning at Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf, featuring free coffee sponsorship and approximately 3.8-mile routes that change weekly. Open to residents and visitors.
• Kidical Mass Bike Ride A monthly family-friendly bike ride held on the third Sunday, approximately 4 miles long, departing from Georgie's Place/Pixie Toys with free ice cream provided after the ride. Operated with CSI Patrol Service lead car and Pedal Movement maintenance support.
• BKCF Small Business Grants Small business grants offered through the affiliated Bixby Knolls Community Foundation (BKCF) 501(c)(3) to support local businesses in the district.
• Facade Improvements Program Business support service assisting Bixby Knolls businesses with redesigning their storefronts, including graffiti removal, signage, and promotional flyers.

Quantifiable outcome

• 900 businesses served within district boundaries
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers8 records

Segments6 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Twelve partnerships are on record, tiered flagship, core and minor.

• Port of Long BeachflagshipGTM or Marketing Partner · 1 July 2026Sponsor of First Fridays events and Concerts in the Park(ing Lot), providing funding for community programming that drives foot traffic to Bixby Knolls businesses.
• LA County Arts & CultureflagshipGTM or Marketing Partner · 1 July 2026Sponsor of First Fridays Art Walk events, supporting arts and culture programming in the district.
• City of Long BeachcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 21 September 1989City-chartered Business Improvement District established by Ordinance C-6646. The City collects annual business assessments and returns funds to BKBIA for district activities. City Council conducts annual public hearing review.
• Progressive Urban Management AssociatesminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerConducted independent study (Long Beach State of the BIDs) on the positive impact of BIDs in the city, referenced in BKBIA strategic materials.
• CSI Patrol ServicecoreOthersPrimary security patrol service for the business district, described as the first line of defense for safety issues. Operates lead car for Kidical Mass bike rides.
• Coffee Bean & Tea LeafminorGTM or Marketing PartnerWeekly sponsor of Strollers walking club, providing free coffee each Saturday morning. Located at 4105 Atlantic Ave, serving as meeting point.
• Pixie ToysminorGTM or Marketing PartnerHome base for Kidical Mass bike rides and 14th anniversary celebration. Local toy retailer supporting family-friendly community events.
• Pedal MovementminorGTM or Marketing PartnerBike maintenance pop-up partner for Kidical Mass 14th anniversary celebration, providing repair services at community event.
• Beachwood Brewing & DistillingcoreGTM or Marketing PartnerPrimary venue for Knights of the Round TurnTable music listening club events, hosting monthly album listening sessions.
• Taboon MediterraneanminorGTM or Marketing PartnerFormer venue host for Literary Society book club meetings before relocation to Dream Come True Tea & Party Room.
• Dream Come True Tea & Party RoomminorGTM or Marketing PartnerCurrent venue host for Literary Society monthly book club meetings at 4350 Atlantic Avenue.
• City of Long Beach (Property Owner)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerProperty owner of Expo Arts Center (4321 Atlantic Avenue), leased to BKBIA for arts and culture programming. Ownership transferred from Redevelopment Agency.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves10 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Broad incumbents

• California Downtown Association: Statewide membership association of downtown business districts, BIDs, and city centers across California. Comparable at the industry-association level, providing training, advocacy, and best-practice sharing that BKBIA could both draw from and contribute to.
• International Downtown Association: International membership association for urban place-management organizations including BIDs, downtown alliances, and improvement districts. Comparable as the umbrella industry body setting standards and advocacy for the BID model that BKBIA operates under.

Direct peers

• Old Pasadena Management District: Established BID operating in Pasadena under a property-owner assessment model with similar district-cleaning, security, marketing, and event programming functions. Comparable due to similar assessment-driven BID structure and mixed retail/F&B district mandate in the LA metro area.
• Downtown Long Beach Alliance: Another city-chartered Business Improvement District operating in Long Beach with a comparable assessment-based funding model, member services, and event-driven foot traffic programming. Most directly comparable peer because of shared city, regulatory framework, and operating model.
• Downtown Santa Monica Inc. (DTSM): BID-style management organization for Downtown Santa Monica, providing district marketing, events, and public space programming funded by area assessments. Comparable in size, mission, and event-driven foot traffic focus on a coastal mixed-use district.
• LA Fashion District Business Improvement District: Property-owner assessment-funded BID in Downtown Los Angeles focused on district cleanliness, safety, marketing, and events. Comparable assessment-based funding, mixed retail/industrial member base, and supplemental-municipal-services mandate.
• Long Beach Area Chamber of Commerce: Local business membership organization in the same city as BKBIA, providing networking, advocacy, and member services to area businesses. Comparable membership-based structure and business-advocacy mission though broader in geographic scope than a BID.

Regional players

• Visit Long Beach: Long Beach destination marketing organization promoting the city as a tourism and events destination. Comparable at the citywide marketing and event-promotion level, with potential overlap on district foot-traffic campaigns and event sponsorship coordination.
• Pasadena Chamber of Commerce: Regional business membership organization serving Pasadena-area businesses, with member services, advocacy, and event programming. Comparable in business-association mission and regional LA-metro geography, though broader than BKBIA's BID focus.

Others

• Arts Council of Long Beach: Long Beach-based nonprofit arts and culture organization that co-programs arts events in venues including the Expo Arts Center. Comparable as a co-producer on BKBIA's cultural programming line and a potential future partner or competitor for arts programming capacity.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/bixbyknolls
• Facebookfacebook.com/BKBIA
• Instagraminstagram.com/bixbyknolls
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/bixby-knolls-business-improvement-association

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles5 records

Subsidiaries1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Bixby Knolls Business Improvement Association