> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://www.smdp.com/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # Schools and city learn to share - URL: https://www.smdp.com/schools-and-city-learn-to-share/ - Published: 2007-12-19T16:00:00.000Z - Updated: 2026-10-25T01:31:06.000Z - Author: Melody Hanatani - Tags: Education, Malibu, #archive-import *Big plans ahead for civic center* Plans to further joint use opportunities between the Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District and the Santa Monica city government are moving forward for the redevelopment of Santa Monica High School and the adjacent Civic Center. The Community & Cultural Services Department is planning to secure a consultant that will study the master plans dictating the redevelopment of Samohi and the Civic Center area and determine where joint-use ventures would be possible, which could include shared recreational and cultural facilities. Joint use is defined as a use that produces mutual benefits to both the city and the district, according to Barbara Stinchfield, the director of the Community & Cultural Services. Financing for such projects are not usually formulaic, but instead tap into the resources available to each agency — one might have access to land while another might have more funding. With limited resources available, joint use projects allow the invested parties to maximize their dollars to the fullest extent possible, said Superintendent Dianne Talarico. “There’s a possibility of doing some transformational things where students’ and the broader community’s benefits can increase tenfold when you do it through joint-use agreements,” she said. The vicinity of the Santa Monica Civic Center — bounded by Pico Boulevard to the south, Ocean Avenue to the west, Fourth Street to the east and Colorado Avenue to the north — is slowly undergoing a makeover, with bits and pieces of the neighborhood having been developed in the past few years, including the Public Safety Facility on the corner of Fourth Street and Olympic Drive and, most recently, the adjacent parking garage. The Santa Monica Civic Center Specific Plan, which outlines a vision for the area, includes more park space, residential development, athletic fields and a child development center. In the meantime, the public schools in Santa Monica and Malibu are set to undergo their own series of renovations as laid out in the Facilities Master Plan (FMP), a 20-year outline of the facilities in the school district. The projects under the FMP will be funded in part by the Measure BB bond money, which brought in $268 million to improve the facilities in the school district, approximately $57 million of which has been earmarked for Samohi. The plans for both the Civic Center area and Samohi call for the exploration of shared-use ventures, the latter of which specifically identifies shared parking between the two campuses as a possibility. The minimal number of on-site parking spaces at Santa Monica High School has long been an issue, with many neighbors complaining of students taking up neighborhood street spaces. The new Civic Center Parking Garage could be a potential place for students to leave their cars. The Samohi Facilities Master Plan also suggests creating a student drop-off zone on the Civic Center site, linking the two campuses with a pedestrian bridge that would cross Fourth Street. Joint use between the two campuses could also be a boost to Samohi athletics as a playing field is planned for the Civic Center area. “We need to have better recreational facilities for our sports program at the high school,” said Barry Snell, a school board member who has long advocated for the district to explore more athletic space for Samohi. “That would be an ideal location for parks for the residents and also develop fields so that we can play athletics on it.” Both City Hall and the school district have collaborated on other joint-use projects, including the city-sponsored after school CREST Program and the Playground Partnership Program, through which select elementary school playgrounds are opened to school-aged youth. In exchange for opening the playgrounds to the public, City Hall provides staffing and maintenance money. “We have a long history with joint use ventures with the district,” Stinchfield said. “This presents kind of a bigger picture, longer-range opportunities to do some pretty amazing things.” Jump hedline: Exploring shared use opportunities for Civic Center and Samohi Suggested pullquote: “There’s a possibility of doing some transformational things where students and the broader community benefits can increase tenfold when you do it through joint use agreements.” Dianne Talarico Superintendent, Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District Lucida Grande 40, 4 0 400 0¬ 1 0 40, Minion 40, 4 0 231A 0¬ 1 0 *Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on December 19, 2007.* [Read the original PDF.](https://s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/smdp%5Fbackissues/121907.pdf?ref=smdp.com)