YMCA demolishes Rascals Teriyaki Grill building to make way for expansion
The YMCA did not provide details for its upcoming project for the former site of the popular restaurant, which closed over a year ago and sat vacant until it was razed last week.
After 18 years as something of an East Long Beach landmark, the last vestiges of Rascals Teriyaki Grill were torn down and bulldozed away last week.
The popular East Long Beach eatery near Cal State Long Beach first opened in 2006 and served locals for 17 years before shuttering on Aug. 12 of last year. The Los Altos Family YMCA next door owns the land that Rascals sat on and informed the restaurant owners in 2019 of plans to expand.
“It’s been a good 17 years,” Phil Kiyokane, one of the restaurant’s owners, said last year ahead of the closure.
YMCA officials said the organization is not ready to share details about the impending project but said they are “excited” about what’s to come.
Monica Wong, director of marketing and communications for the Los Altos branch, said the demolition of the former restaurant will “provide much-needed improvements, including additional parking and enhanced safety for our facility” while plans are finalized.
A page on the organization’s website previously outlined a proposal for a two-story, 25,000-square-foot fitness facility next door to its existing facility on Bellflower Boulevard near Atherton Street. The project could include a new pool, rooms for group activities and fitness classes as well as a child watch center, according to the now-deleted webpage.
“In the meantime, we continue to operate as usual, offering all our regular programs and services to the community,” Wong said.
The existing facility already offers a host of services, including an outdoor pool, exercise equipment, exercise classes and personal training, after-school and day camp programs, and more, according to its website.
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