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The amount of
public open space has remained relatively
constant over the past five years. There are
over 428 acres of public open space in the City
of Santa Monica. Santa Monica State Beaches and
the Chess Park represent about 246 acres of open
space. The neighborhood parks and dog parks
represent 120 acres of open space. Public
gathering places like the Santa Monica pier and
the Third Street Promenade represent 10.9 acres
of open space.
The city’s
‘Green Streets’, San Vicente Boulevard, Olympic
Boulevard and Fourth Street, represent almost 17
acres of open space. The Main Street Community
Garden, the Park Drive Community Garden, the
Civic Center demonstration garden, and the Ocean
Park Boulevard demonstration garden represent
1.43 acres of open space. Other public lands in
the city including Mount Olivette Reservoir and
Woodlawn Cemetery comprise 32 acres of open
space. |
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● Airport Park opened this year, providing
8.3 acres on the eastern edge of Santa Monica
Airport, an area previously lacking open space.
The park features a play ground and a dog park,
as well as a lighted synthetic turf sports
field.
● Euclid Park opened this year, providing
a .34 acre neighborhood park on Euclid Street
between Broadway and Colorado. This “pocket”
park
adjacent to a the 13-unit Hacienda del Mar, a
residence for people with disabilities. The
park has children’s play areas and green space
for lounging.
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The city has begun
development of a public beach club at the former
Marion Davies Estate at 415 Pacific Coast
Highway which will provide beachfront,
recreational open space to the public
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The goal for
this indicator is to develop and maintain a
sufficient open space system so that it is
diverse in uses and opportunities and includes
natural functions/ wildlife habitat as well as
passive and active recreation with an equitable
distribution of parks, trees and pathways
throughout the community. Parks and open spaces
are important because they accommodate
recreation, allow contemplation, and promote
community gathering. Public parks provide the
common open space people need for recreation,
whether active or passive, organized or casual.
Generally, open space is unpaved, and accessible
free of charge.
Part of the impetus for the new parks mentioned
herein is the city’s Parks and Recreation Master
Plan, a 20-year plan for over $142-million worth
of improvements to Santa Monica’s parks, open
spaces, and community facilities. The city
celebrated the 10th year of that
20-year plan in 2007.
As a part of the plan, construction has begun at
the future Annenberg Community Beach Club at 415
Pacific Coast Highway. The club will be the
first public beach club in California and will
open in 2009. This 5-acre beachfront property,
rich with history will be transformed into a
public beach club for all to enjoy. A recent
community workshop yielded suggestions for ways
to make ingress and egress to this club more
sustainable, such as providing a bike valet, and
extending the Mini Blue route to the site, and
adding a walking overpass from Palisades Park.
Other
projects in process
include the Beach Greening
Project and Reed Park Improvements. |
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