Reflecting on the Past and Envisioning the Future of the Santa Monica Airport Site

A Zoom Link will be made available in the days approaching the event for those who wish to attend virtually. Doors open at 5pm. Discussion starts at 5:30pm.

The Santa Monica Conservancy is hosting an OPEN listening session to discuss heritage resources as part of Phase II of the Santa Monica Airport Conversion Project (SMAC), the City’s plan to create a preferred scenario centered on a great park at the airport site (192 acres). The event will begin with a reflection on the cultural heritage of the land and the aviation history that shaped Santa Monica’s development.

Short presentations by community leaders and local historians will be followed by a public discussion. We’ll document your input regarding which histories and landmarks should be acknowledged, and what types of amenities could best present this history to park visitors. 

“The future scenario will enhance connections to the rest of the city, create a quality public realm and increase the quality of life for residents, workers, and visitors of Santa Monica. The public process for this project is consistent with past City Council direction to establish a plan for future use of the land, and to address the community’s interest in the creation of parks, recreation, cultural, and educational amenities and to address community goals and priorities as they relate to current and future generations.” (SMAC)

To understand the legal frameworks and history, please visit the City of Santa Monica’s Project Website. You can read the City’s documentation outlining Measure LC here, a summarised version of the measure can be found on Ballotpedia. Watch SMAC’s video on site opportunities here.

As a group, we will be discussing and logging responses for the following questions (provided by the City of Santa Monica) from the lens of history and heritage conservation:

1. What excites you most about the opportunity to reuse the Santa Monica Airport land to new community amenities and uses when it closes? 
2.  What concerns you the most?
3. What are the greatest needs in your community TODAY and how might the airport closure create opportunities to address those needs?
4. What are the greatest needs facing FUTURE GENERATIONS and how might the airport closure create opportunities to address those needs?
5.  If the City’s financial resources are limited, how important to you is the conversion of the Airport to new community uses compared to dedicating financial resources to other civic projects/programs?
6.  How could we improve our engagement efforts for this project to get more people involved?