The building itself, built on the site of the old Pacific Electric depot station, has endured as the only original structure remaining of the Pike Amusement Zone, which flourished on the beach from 1902 through 1979.
The architect of the 14-story, 197-foot-tall landmark was Raymond M. Kennedy, who worked for the Los Angeles firm Mayer & Holland and also designed Grauman's Chinese Theatre in Hollywood.
The unusually shaped, asymmetrical Spanish Renaissance-style building, which at various places ranges from five, to seven, to ten, and to fourteen stories, features numerous balconies and terraces surmounted by an octagonal tower with a pyramidal roofed penthouse.
In 1989, the iconic Ocean Center Building and the Breakers Hotel were given historical landmark status by the Long Beach City Council. Both buildings faced an uncertain future until Pacific6 purchased the properties and moved forward with extensive renovation plans to bring them back to their former glory.