Mayor Pam O’Connor Cuts Ribbon to Reopen Palisades Park 

Photo by Sasha Stone

Sasha Stone 

Mirror Contributing Writer 

   An excited crowd gathered at noon on Wednesday, August 18, at the Rose Garden in Palisades Park to witness the ribbon-cutting that signaled the park’s reopening and reclaim their park following its eleven month, $4.5 million dollar renovation. 
   Before cutting the ribbon, Mayor O’Connor individually thanked everyone involved in the project, from the City Council members who formed a half-circle behind her to the construction crew and maintenance department, each earning a round of applause.
   Though the tone of the ceremony was overwhelmingly positive, the event was not without its share of controversy. For years, residents of Santa Monica have clashed on how deal with the city’s homeless. A social worker present at the ribbon-cutting hinted that the park renovation was, in part, meant to remove the homeless people from the park. Another onlooker remarked upon the recent changes of Santa Monica which have greatly increased its tourist traffic, remarking, "It will never be the way it was twenty years ago". 
   Once the ribbon was cut, however, the crowd was ready was ready to celebrate, spreading out towels, unpacking picnic baskets on the new tables, and letting loose their frolicking children to enjoy the riches of the new and improved site.
   The renovation of the northern span -- from Arizona Avenue to the northern city limits -- continues the improvements completed during the Phase I renovation of the south end of the park, and includes new benches, lighting, drinking fountains and trash cans. New irrigation and drainage systems have been installed along with new pathways, including a separate jogging path along the edge of Ocean Avenue that now runs the entire length of the park. 

Photo by Sasha Stone
   The park has also undergone an aesthetic make-over, including an enhancement of Inspiration Point, returning it to a more natural landscape with a new picnic area under the canopy of trees. The Rose Garden is highlighted with new paths and planting, and the Pergola has been restored. Ninety trees, including thirty new palms, have been added. Shrubs and ground cover have increased from 15,000 square feet to about 81,000 square feet of drought-tolerant plants. New fencing has been installed and relocated in the areas that were closed after the 1994 Northridge earthquake. The beach access stairway at Montana Avenue has been repaired and will be open for use as well as the other beach accessways in the park at Idaho Avenue, Arizona and Broadway. 
   Additional improvements on the park and beach front are expected to be completed by the end of September. The official dedication of both Palisades Park and the South Beach improvements, Phase I of B.I.G., will take place on October 2 as part of the “Big Stroll into the Millennium” community celebration. The South Beach and Palisades Park improvements are funded primarily by the Los Angeles County Proposition Bond Acts, Safe Neighborhood Parks Act of 1992 and the Park, Beach and Recreation Act of 1996, and is the first project to be completed as part of the City's Parks and Recreation Master Plan, a 20-year, $142 million-plus worth of improvements to Santa Monica Parks, open spaces and community facilities.