Residents get chance to let city know what they want at facility
MAIN LIBRARY They grabbed their post-cards and wrote to a loved one about their day at the beach. Some chose to lounge on the sand and soak in some rays while others swam laps in the historic swimming pool or ate a picnic lunch in the lush, public gardens area.
When it comes to spending an afternoon at the Annenberg Community Beach Blub, formerly the condemned Marion Davies estate at 415 Pacific Coast Hwy., residents have a lot of ideas in mind.
During a community meeting Saturday, residents had the chance to make their ideas known to city staff, which is in the middle of developing a series of programs and services to be offered at the beach club, which is currently under construction with a planned opening date of December 2009.
As part of the discussion, participants were asked to take postcards featuring artistic renderings of the beach club and write down what their ideal beach experience would be.
“When opening facilities there are many different expectations,” said Barbara Stinchfield, director of community and cultural services at City Hall. “Some expectations are met and some are not met … It is important for us to meet with you and gather input before it opens.”
Stinchfield and her staff are trying to avoid any missteps. When they opened the dog park at Airport Park earlier this year, they received plenty of negative publicity after Los Angeles residents learned they would not be able to use the dog park out of a concern that there would not be enough room to accommodate them. It turned out that there was plenty of space for Angelenos and their pooches and Santa Monica residents seemed not to The community meeting, which was attended by roughly 30 residents, began with a brief history lesson and overview of the project.
Originally developed in the 1930s by William Randolph Hearst for his mistress, actress Marion Davies, the property at 415 PCH was once home to a grand 110-room mansion designed by architect Julia Morgan, who also designed Hearts Castle in San Simeon. As with other Hearst projects, the mansion contained entire rooms from European buildings. Other features included guest houses and a pool lined with tiles designed by Morgan.
In no time the property became a hot spot on Southern California’s “Gold Coast,” as this stretch of beach was called due to the many opulent residences and the lavish lifestyles of their owners and friends.
Hearst and Davies sold the house in 1945 to a private hotelier who, for a short period of time, operated it as a luxury hotel. After the hotel venture failed, the mansion was demolished and the property was sold to the State of California in 1959. For the next 30 years, the property operated as a very popular private beach facility called the Sand & Sea Club.
When the operating lease for the club expired, the city of Santa Monica opened it for seasonal public use until the 1994 Northridge Earthquake severely damaged all structures on site. Subsequently, the City Hall embarked on an extensive public input process to re-imagine the role of this site as an important public gathering place on Santa Monica State Beach. The resulting reuse plan was adopted by City Council in 1999.
In 2004, Wallis Annenberg and the Annenberg Foundation became aware of the project and its broad-based community benefit. Their interest and generosity in the form of a $27.5 million grant paved the way for the site’s rehabilitation and eventual reuse.
The historic pool will be rehabilitated, a new locker building will be constructed, an event house will be added and the remaining Morgan-designed guest house will be brought back to life.
Much of Saturday’s discussion was focused on traffic, parking and homelessness.
Residents seemed concerned about the lack of parking and the fact that two lots on or adjacent to the property would not be set aside for the club, but would be open to all beach users. There will be a total of 277 spaces. A north lot has been out of operation for many years and will be reopened along with the club, adding some additional spots, city staff said.
There are also talks with Big Blue Bus about adding a line that will serve the beach. Another option would be to operate a sand tram that could take visitors from beach lots further down south to the beach club.
When it comes to traffic, there were some rumblings about PCH and the possibility of installing a traffic light at the entrance of the beach club. In a lawsuit filed by a handful of property owners living adjacent to the beach club, City Hall agreed to try has hard as possible to get the traffic light. There is concern that without a light, those trying to access the club may be put in harms way because of the heavy traffic load on PCH. One resident said he didn’t want a traffic light because it would cause even more congestion on PCH.
City staff said the traffic light would only change from red to green when drivers would be exiting the club and turning left to go north on PCH.
In regards to homelessness, there was concern that during evenings and off-peak periods, the homeless would take over areas of the beach club that are free to the public. Certain areas, mainly the pool and showers, would be open only to those who pay a nominal fee, city staff said.
In response, city staff said there will be security 24-hours a day to monitor the club. Lighting will be installed as will security cameras. Public bathrooms will be located near city staff so that they can monitor usage. The public beach area will be closed off at dusk along with the entire facility to prevent people from camping out.
Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on November 5, 2007. Read the original PDF.