Category Archives: Great Park Coalition

Take the Airport Survey ASAP – Deadline April 27th

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We previously shared info and an email about the new online Phase 3A Community Survey about the City’s Airport Conversion Project. We urgently request making your opinion heard by completing the Airport Conversion Project Survey. As we’ve mentioned previously, the survey is complicated and may take some time — the info below is designed to assist you in this process and cut the time to under 10 minutes.

One of the GPC Advisory Committee members prepared a “Voter Guide” to make the survey process quicker and easier — if desired. Using this guide it can take no more than 10 minutes if you generally follow the info and move quickly through the screens without making comments. NOTE: The deadline is April 27th, please take the 10 minutes and knock it out NOW. Take it with your spouse, partner, friends and neighbors so that everyone’s voice is counted.

GPC has edited the Voter Guide to make sure the guide mostly offers you a variety of suggested response choices and what those responses mean. We do feel that to maintain the integrity of the process it is essential that you make up your own mind and we are committed to ensuring the City’s outreach process has integrity and reflects what the public wants.

Again, we need you to participate so we can help make a great park happen for our community.

Staff and the consultants will consider this Phase 3A survey input to create 3 Options for the Airport Site by mid-May, and then in July the City Council will choose one option that will move forward for in-depth refinement and then environmental review. So please help get the Great Park our community deserves!

Click here to take the survey., then follow the Voter Guide below!

GPC Voter Guide

If you only have 10 minutes. What you do is drag and drop the alternatives in the order you prefer. You can also add comments if you like to each alternative.

Layer 1: Connectivity & Mobility

Suggested orderings:
• A, B, C, D (to minimize new roads), or
• B, A, C, D (to allow one North/South connector road only), or
• C, D, B, A (if you think there should be more car access)

Layer 2: Water & Topography

Suggested orderings:
• B, A, C, D (if you want to de-emphasize natural water), or
• C, B, A, D (if you don’t want a big lake), or
• C, D, B, A (if you want to emphasize natural water)
Comment: Integrate some water into our Great Park & don’t keep it all underground!

Layer 3: Ecology & Passive Uses

Choose the level of Ecology & Passive Uses that you would like to see in the Great Park.

Layer 4: Active Park Uses

Choose the level of Active Park Uses that you would like to see in the Great Park.

Layer 5: Housing

The Great Park Coalition supports the creation of a park that complies with Measure LC to avoid a ballot measure that will likely delay closure of the airport at the end of 2028.

• For this reason we suggest this order: A, B, C, D

After ordering, there are a number of questions about the specifics of housing. These questions are optional, and you can choose to check “no housing” options. You can also choose to answer if you want to give input in case there is housing in the future (which again, would require a ballot measure), and that is up to you.

Suggested comments: Please build a park that complies with Measure LC and does not trigger another ballot measure.

Layer 6: Revenue Generation

Suggested orderings:
• B, C, A, D (to allow “small” revenue generation in/around the park, plus adaptive re-use), or
• A, B, C, D (to emphasize adaptive re-use, minimize overt use of park space for revenue)

For #41 – choose #1

Notes: This question is confusing as it is unclear which proposed uses are LC compliant. The GPC is supportive of revenue-generation uses like permitting sports fields, bike rentals, and snack shops if they can be implemented without a ballot measure (an open question at this point), but not supportive of uses that would definitely require a ballot measure such as housing, which also will privatize the land, take away public park and recreation space, and might not generate any net funds for the park.
GPC suggests we please support prioritizing revenue generation options that generally will remain on the sides of the Great Park, and be located in existing adaptively-reused structures. 



Important Next Step in the Airport Conversion Project

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Phase 3A of the Airport Conversion Project has Officially Launched!

Survey closes on April 27th

The City of Santa Monica has launched Phase 3A (Three Scenarios) in the planning and outreach process for the Great Park at the Santa Monica Airport. We are excited to share this envisioning of the three scenarios including a critical public survey that we urge you to take before the survey closes April 27. There is a new Virtual Education Session (VES) that explores different approaches to understand potential benefits, impacts, feasibility, and trade-offs of six different layers (or master plan systems) for community feedback in the Layers Survey.

Since last year the City has been conducting a planning process for the conversion of the airport into a park, consistent with Measure LC. Phase 2 of that process recently culminated at the Jan. 28 City Council meeting where the Council adopted the 5 Guiding Principles for the process. The council directed staff and Sasaki, the City’s consultants, to begin the next stage, Phase 3, which will result in staff and Sasaki devising three alternative scenarios, centered on a great park, for the future of the site. These scenarios will be presented to City Council on July 8.

We have now reached an important juncture where staff and Sasaki are asking for critical input from the public. Specifically, the City’s team has released a survey to have the public compare and give feedback on six dimensions of the planning process. For each dimension you get to rank four different alternatives.

Top priority for all supporters of the Great Park is taking the survey — there are less than two weeks available before this survey closes on April 27th so it is critical you take it quickly!

Phase 3A Timeline and Next Steps:
• NOW: New VES and Layers Survey Launch;
• April 27th: Layers Survey Ends;
• May 5th: Letters of Interest due;
• May 17th: Save the Date! Community event showcasing the three test fit scenarios;
• May 17th: Online tool for feedback on the three test fit scenarios opens;
• Mid-June: Online tool closes;
• July 8th: Three test fit scenarios presented at the City Council meeting;
• Fall 2025: Preferred scenario engagement. 

In the survey, the City’s team asks you to “think big about what the full build-out of your ideal future site would be.” Accompanying the survey is an excellent video explaining this survey’s rather sophisticated methodology, terminology, and goals. The video is around 45 minutes long, and we highly recommend that you watch it before you take the survey (and keep in on your screen, because you may want to check back to video while taking the survey). The survey should take about 20 minutes, but can take significantly longer if you add comments (which we encourage you to do). After each section you can add comments about each of the alternatives included in the survey; for instance, you can say what you like and don’t like about each alternative.

Most of the survey involves sorting out competing ideas for park uses and design. As an organization, we have never taken a position about what will go into the Great Park, but we know everyone has their own ideas about that. This survey is your opportunity to give your own feedback about the park. Go for it and have fun!

Note: You may recall that City Council directed the team to come back with one scenario that was not compliant with Measure LC, to investigate means of financing the park by using land at the airport, including by means of housing or other development. We were not surprised by that. As you know, we oppose any ballot measure to override LC, particularly prior to airport closure, not only because we want to maximize the size of the park, but also because such a measure would increase the risk of outside forces, including the aviation industry, trying to hijack the process, and because a ballot will delay the park planning progress. However, we don’t think that you should ignore the parts of the survey that deal with housing and financing. The survey is set up so that you can both prioritize (“vote for”) scenarios that do not require a ballot measure and still comment on housing and financing issues which may nonetheless be relevant in the future.

We don’t want to sugarcoat it – watching the video and taking the survey can take well over an hour of your time. But this is a critical step in the Great Park planning process, and we believe that you will find taking the survey to be a very satisfying use of your time. So, please set aside some time to take this important survey. The survey closes April 27th!​

Please don’t hesitate to reach out to The Great Park Coalition or Airport2Park if you have any questions and/or would like to discuss any of these upcoming events.

Also please see:
Santa Monica Democratic Club meeting: The Future of SMO Airport

The Santa Monica Democratic Club (SMDC) has scheduled a membership meeting for April 23, (plus one in May or June) at which differing views on the conversion will be presented. SMDC’s plan after April meeting is to set up an ad hoc working group that will, in conjunction with SMDC’s board, develop recommendations to present to the membership for a vote at a later date still to be determined.
read more here


Santa Monica Democratic Club meeting: The Future of SMO Airport

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In addition to the Launch of Phase 3 Airport Conversion we want to give you a heads up about two extremely important meetings on the Airport Conversion with the Santa Monica Democratic Club (SMDC): one next week on April 23 and one in May or June. SMDC plans to use the meetings to make recommendations to City Council in July when it Council considers the three proposals that will be coming from staff and Sasaki for the Great Park and the future of the airport land in general.

It is no surprised that political organizations have become involved in this planning process and that some have already taken or are taking positions on the airport conversion. Where most political organizations in Santa Monica establish their policies through their boards or steering committees, the SMDC commendably does so through a largely open process and ultimately a membership vote.

To this end, the SMDC has scheduled a membership meeting on April 23 at which differing views on the conversion will be presented. SMDC reached out to the The Great Park Coalition (GPC) members and the Santa Monica Airport2Park Foundation (A2P) to participate. A2P will send a representatives favoring a Measure LC-Compliant Great Park and David Pettit, Senior Attorney for the Center for Biological Diversity and member of the Santa Monica Commission on Sustainability, Environmental Justice and the Environment, is also scheduled to speak. We understand that SMDC’s plan after the April meeting is to set up an ad hoc working group that will, in conjunction with SMDC’s board, develop recommendations to present to the membership for a vote at a later date still to be determined.

While SMDC is still finalizing all the presenters for the April 23 meeting, they have informed Airport2Park that at least one proposal for housing at the airport will be presented — this is the “Cloverfield Commons” proposal that several speakers promoted at the Jan. 28 City Council hearing. This proposal calls for half of the land at the airport to be used for building housing and, it would appear from the proposals seen, divide much of the remaining land into small parks rather than a great park. It would, of course, require a ballot measure that would likely delay the closure of the airport.

It is clear that pressure is being brought on SMDC to support conversion plans that would require a vote to amend Measure LC. It is our hope that SMDC will recommend that the City pursue an LC-compliant conversion plan that will not require a new ballot measure and vote. This is not only because the Great Park Coalition stands for building the maximum-size great park that’s possible on the land. It is also because the The Great Park Coalition fears that a ballot measure before the City has planned the Great Park – and demonstrated it’s feasibility – will invite the aviation industry to respond with its own ballot measure to maintain the airport – open as is.

If you are a member of the SMDC, we urge you to mark April 23 on your calendars and plan to attend the meeting. If you are a registered Democrat and wish to join SMDC, you can join and vote at the subsequent meeting (if you join more than 30 days before the meeting.) For info on SMDC, click here.

The Santa Monica Democratic Club is an opinion leader in Santa Monica and so, again, these are very important meetings concerning the future of the Great Park.

Please don’t hesitate to reach out to The Great Park Coalition or Airport2Park if you have any questions and/or would like to discuss any of these upcoming events.

SUPPORT for the GREAT PARK: @Council Tues. 1/28

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Call to Action:
Support Airport2Park and the Great Park Coalition

Tomorrow: – This Tuesday, January 28th City Council will be reviewing the new Santa Monica Airport Conversion Project “Guiding Principles.” The City staff has compiled these principles from all the questionnaires that the community answered and from all of the public meetings. Along with our community and partners we are excited by the “Guiding Principles” as they clearly reaffirm the communities priority requesting a Great Park that “Starts with Nature” and is Measure LC compliant. The “Guiding Principles” are (in order): Start with Nature, Inspire Wonder, Balance Economics, Amplify Versatility, and Celebrate Place.

We are asking your support! Here is what you can do:

1. Send a brief email to the City Council showing your support for a “Guiding Principles” for a Great Park that is Measure LC compliant.

Send to:  councilmtgitems@santamonica.gov
Subject: Item 7.A. – Support for a Great Park and SMAC Project Guiding Principles

See section below on how to send your email:
See background information section below for Airport2Park and the Great Park Coalitions’s take on the staff report and suggested talking points

2 Attend the TUESDAY (January 28th) Council Meeting. Item 7.A. should be heard around 6:30pm but get there early to get a seat! This is historic and we need you there.

Sending an email:

For those of you writing an email to Council, we suggest you write your comments in your own words. You may if you wish choose to focus on the key points listed in the background information section below. A2P has not provided a template because Council naturally pays more attention to unique personal emails than they do to clones. We have provided a DRAFT Email below. Thank you in advance for taking the time to participate in this important Great Park milestone.

When writing a public comment email, for the email to become part of the permanent meeting record, please email Council no later than 11AM on Tuesday, January 28th. More information about submitting written comment can be found here.

The subject line of your email should detail what meeting item you are talking about (copy/paste the line below) viz:

Re: January 28, 2025 City Council Meeting – Item 7.A. – SMAC Project Guiding Principles

Either click here to begin an email to Council or address your email (copy/paste the email addresses below) to:
councilmtgitems@santamonica.gov, lana.negrete@santamonica.gov, caroline.torosis@santamonica.gov, jesse.zwick@santamonica.gov, ellis.raskin@santamonica.gov, barry.snell@santamonica.gov, natalya.zernitskaya@santamonica.gov, dan.hall@santamonica.gov, david.white@santamonica.gov

DRAFT TEMPLATE – Please personalize and use your own voice.
Dear Mayor Negrete, Mayor Pro Tem Torosis, and Councilmembers:

[Brief information about yourself, why a Great Park is important to you]

The data gathered so far from the City’s SMAC Project process overwhelmingly supports the restoration of our City’s original Great Park on the land currently occupied by the Santa Monica Airport. Please support the proposed Guiding Principles and creation of a Great Park that is compliant with Measure LC, financially-feasible, publicly-owned, and can be opened for public use on Day One, January 1, 2029.

Thank you!
Sincerely,
[YOUR NAME]

Background Information: (Aiport2Park)

Tuesday (Jan 28th) the “Guiding Principles” derived from the City’s outreach process will be presented to council to give guidance and directions to staff on the next phase of the Park Planning process, which is to prepare three possible park plans to bring back to the community and Council a few months later. One of these three plans will then be selected for full design in preparation for airport closure at the end of 2028. The meeting agenda can be found here. The park presentation is item 7 on the agenda and we anticipate it will start around 6:30. We encourage everyone to attend, you don’t necessarily have to speak as we have organized a slate of speakers, but it is important that we make a strong show of support at this first airport-related meeting for the new Council. A slate of speakers from Airport2Park and the Great Park Coalition (and its member organizations) will be presenting to Council at that meeting emphasizing the need for a fully LC-compliant Great Park. We also encourage you to submit an email under public comment (see below) in support of an LC-compliant Great Park.

Here is the link to the 48-page staff report on the outreach process and the results of the Guiding Principles phase, and here is the link to the associated City Attorney’s FAQ document relating to LC and airport closure. Both of these documents are worth reading if you need to catch up with the current state of the process. The following bullet points summarize A2P’s key takeaways from these documents:

The Guiding Principles as written in the staff report are strongly pro-park and aligned with what we had hoped to see. They are (in order): Start with Nature, Inspire Wonder, Balance Economics, Amplify Versatility, and Celebrate Place.  If you submit written comments, please encourage Council to adopt the guiding principles as written.

The results of the phase-2 survey are overwhelmingly in favor of a Great Park. Of the top 50 items people “want to see in the park”, fully 98.8% represent “common park uses”. Only one non-park use made an entry at #39 with 1.2%. The public overwhelmingly wants an LC compliant Great Park. We could not have asked for a better result.  If you submit written comments, please encourage Council to emphasize the need for a park that is fully LC compliant with an incremental buildout plan that begins with some form of public access on day 1. Please also emphasize that Council should not place any ballot measure to modify LC prior to closure. Doing so would likely draw a Measure D 2.0 from the national aviation lobby.

The public outreach process to date has been excellent and staff/Sasaki are bringing recommendations that are entirely aligned with what the public asked for.  You might want to let Council know that you appreciate how the process has been run.

Many of you have asked why certain uses were deemed non-LC compliant in the surveys. This is explained in detail in the City Attorney’s FAQ document. The good news is that the attorney also highlighted how make these incongruous “non-LC” “recreational uses” fully compliant without the need for a ballot measure to modify LC. The answer is by creating a unique zoning district for the area which clearly defines what is considered a “recreational use”. This has been done in the past elsewhere in the City, and Council could easily do so for the Great Park so removing these issues.  If you voted for any of the following uses: “Amphitheater (small/large), Cafe, Food hall/trucks, Farmers Market, Family Friendly Beer Garden, Restaurant, or Senior Center”, you may want to tell the Council to direct staff to create a unique zoning district for the airport site to clarify “recreational uses” and so avoid any need for a ballot measure to modify LC

The City Attorney also clarified that the decision to close the airport was definitively made in 2017 with Council resolution 11026. This is critically important because those currently echoing aviation lobby misinformation to the contrary need no longer be taken seriously. A2P’s long standing position has been that the matter of closure has already been decided and that the focus now should be entirely on park planning. We are very happy that the City Attorney has now definitively confirmed this fact.

There will likely be 3 scenarios to be studied, one of which may include housing. Do not be alarmed, this is as per the original instructions, and is advisable under the CEQA guidelines to ensure that the validity and completeness of the process is not subject to legal challenge.

Council is being asked to answer 4 questions at this stage, and you may want to express how you think they should answer. The questions are:

1. Does Council have any feedback on the Draft Guiding Principles before finalization?  The answer to this is NO as the guiding principles are excellent as written.

2. Does Council authorize staff to begin exploring the feasibility of three alternative scenario concepts for Phase 3, based on the draft Guiding Principles? This was the original instruction when the process stared.  The answer is YES, we want this multi-approach so that we can all see the tradeoffs (in money/time/park content) when we make the cut down to one.

3. Does Council authorize staff to explore the feasibility of the spectrum of community preferred land uses including one scenario that is consistent with Measure LC without a vote?  The answer to this is YES. In fact, given the solution to the “common park uses” issue detailed above, we would hope that two of the three approaches are fully LC compliant.

4. Does Council authorize staff to explore the feasibility of traditional and innovative financing structures and explore alternative organizational structures and/or partnerships to construct, operate, maintain, program, and manage the site?  Again the answer is YES, we want them to get creative with financing strategies and we want them to plan for an incremental park buildout that can be implemented in stages over time as financing can be arrange. This allows future flexibility and avoids having to accept a scaled-back park or undesirable park uses based purely on a doing-it-all-at-once planning/financing mindset.

Thank you for your involvement in this crucial community building issue.

Great Park SMO Community Engagement Event

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This Saturday Dec 7th

The City of Santa Monica has invited the community to see how its feedback impacted the Draft Guiding Principles for the Airport Conversion Project.

WHEN: Saturday, December 7th, 1pm – 4pm
WHAT:  The City of Santa Monica Phase 2 SMAC Project Community Event 
WHERE: Memorial Park Gym, 1401 Olympic Boulevard (entrance on 14th Street)

Stop by anytime 1pm – 4pm for a variety of activities to fit your schedule. 
You can give feedback on the Draft Guiding Principles, which incorporate input from Phase 1, the Survey 2A results, and the Community Conversations. 

The event will feature:
• Open house-style exhibits for you to explore and provide your feedback on at your leisure.
• Three engaging activities designed to gather your input on potential future site uses, trade-offs, the scale of uses, and future site aesthetics (each will take approximately 5-20 minutes to complete).
• A Teen Forum and kid activities. Please feel free to bring your children!
• Refreshments!
• Bring your friends and neighbors!