By Daily Press staff
There’s cause for celebration at Pacific Park on the Pier this weekend as it celebrates 10 years of amusing millions of people. Nestled in the middle of the three-mile Santa Monica coastline, illuminating the city’s skyline with more than 7,000 light bulbs and helping to draw more than 3 million guests annually to the Santa Monica Pier is Pacific Park, officially celebrating its 10th year as part of the Santa Monica landscape on May 26.
Since opening in 1996, Pacific Park has entertained more than 10 million guests, provided more than 24 million rides on its 12 amusement rides and has awarded more than 1.9 million pieces of plush at its Pier Pressure Zone’s 21 midway games, officials said. Pacific Park has received numerous accolades and achievements in its 10-year run including its Pacific Ferris wheel’s selection by Reader’s Digest as Best in America 2006 and its solar-power conversion in 1998.
Pacific Park’s successful business model centers on philanthropic spirit including in-kind donations of more than $100,000 to various organizations in the community since 1996. The park also established a partnership with the Santa Monica Police Activities League (PAL) and created PALpalooza, its flagship charity event held annually at Pacific Park to raise funds for PAL’s youth programs comprised of cultural, educational and recreational curriculums.
With a seaside appeal to meeting and event planners, the Park has hosted numerous private and special events for organizations including Microsoft, Columbia Pictures, Pepsi, the Democratic National Convention, UCLA Children’s Hospital and McDonald’s.
The two-acre amusement park on the Santa Monica Pier boasts several eye-popping stats from daily operations over the last 10 years including: ■ The spinning of more than 462,000 pieces of cotton candy. ■ The scooping of more than 42,000 gallons of ice cream. ■ The brewing of 651,000 cups of coffee. In addition, Pacific Park has served as location to more than 200 television commercials and shows, music videos, feature films and photo shoots, with more than 500 cameo appearances. The park has also enjoyed top billing in the opening shots for NBC’s Tonight Show with Jay Leno and served as location for television’s No. 1 program American Idol on Fox.
A variety of celebrities have been spotted enjoying themselves at Pacific Park including Angelina Jolie and son Maddox, Halle Berry, Dustin Hoffman, Cher, Mark Wahlberg, Lily Tomlin, Vince Vaughn, Keanu Reeves, Adam Brody and Paris Hilton among others.
The Santa Monica Pier is no stranger to fame and attention. Looking back, the pier has achieved several milestones since opening on Sept. 9, 1909, including the debut of the Hippodrome building in 1916, the dedication of the Santa Monica Arch and Route 66 designation in 1939, the first appearance of the Carousel in 1942, the citizen-driven Save Our Piers Forever campaign in 1973, the creation of the Pier Restoration Corporation in 1981, the Hippodrome building and carousel receiving National Historic Landmark status in 1983 and the opening of Pacific Park in 1996. Citizens sought for SMC commission
Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on May 24, 2006. Read the original PDF.