The spirit of Santa Monica was buzzing around the campus of John Adams Middle School, as local leaders gathered for the 2024 State of the City event on Thursday to touch on city successes and the challenges to come.
After a meet-and-greet in the John Adams courtyard, featuring performances from student musicians and a host of informational booths from city and regional organizations, the community packed into the school’s performing arts center to hear speeches from Mayor Phil Brock and City Manager David White. Brock was introduced after opening remarks from Vice Mayor Lana Negrete and a national anthem performance by Samohi Choir member Valentina Manco.
In his first State of the City event as mayor, Brock stated that he viewed the Leap Day of Feb. 29 as a chance to reflect on city accomplishments and future goals, with an eye toward Santa Monica’s 150th birthday in 2025. The mayor took time to thank everyone in his purview, from bus drivers and custodians to the bevy of city staff members in attendance.
“They work tirelessly every day to serve each of you, our community members,” Brock said. “They’re diverse in background and ideas, they’re intelligent and innovative, and above all, they truly care about this place we call home.”
With a background in the parks and recreation sector of the city, the mayor called “natural resource[s] and beautiful open space” the spirit of the city, expressing the surge of community events in local parks that brought residents together, such as the Americana in the Park series and the Endless Summer CAMP (Community, Art, Music, Picnic) at Tongva Park. Brock made a special announcement regarding the future of parks by proclaiming he will move forward legislation to rename Virginia Avenue Park to Lloyd Allen Park, named after the 102-year-old local activist who fought for the park throughout his life. Allen, the 2021 recipient of the city’s Black Excellence Award, was on-hand to receive the news.
Brock then turned his attention to other environmental causes, such as the need to plant more trees in the city, something he said he needed “everyone’s help on.”
“It is our community struggle against climate change,” Brock said. “We need to plant trees, we need to make sure we don’t have heat islands, and we need to make sure that those apartments and houses that never had air conditioning in Santa Monica because they never needed it, still won’t need it, because they have trees.”
Brock also called for developers working in Santa Monica to plant “copious amounts of trees” as part of their projects to make the best of a situation where he bemoaned that the state government has “walked all over” zoning and design standards.
“If we’re not allowed to alter your height and density, please give us trees and open space at every one of these new buildings,” he added.
The mayor continued to passionately ask for residents to petition California legislature and Gov. Gavin Newsom to “give us our city back” when it comes to local control over zoning, stating that while Santa Monica wishes to still welcome residents of diverse incomes into the city, local control over the future of housing is still paramount.
“We welcome new residents, but when we’re having height and density that we can’t control in our neighborhoods and on our streets, we need to make sure that our city and all cities in California have a chance to control our own destinies,” Brock said. “And that needs to not be a wish, it needs to be a demand of your legislators and it needs to be a demand of our governor. We need to be able to control how our city looks.”
After touching on other subjects like arts and entertainment advances, his “vow” to keep residents as safe as possible and the recovery of local business, Brock let the city manager take the stage for a detailed look at city priorities.
On addressing housing and homelessness, White called creating and sustaining affordable housing “the most critical means for addressing homelessness,” lauding a total of 150 apartment units recently added to the city’s affordable housing supply along with 221 units currently under construction, including 57 city-funded permanent supportive housing units at The Laurel.
White also touched on housing advancements like updated affordable housing requirements, allowing new housing in previously non-residential zones, and the encouragement of moderate income housing development. He noted that the city’s efforts are “being recognized” by the state, with Gov. Newsom recently designating Santa Monica as a “Prohousing community,” joining 37 other jurisdictions across the state that have “demonstrated success in breaking down barriers to housing production.”
“This is a huge honor and achievement … as we move forward in addressing homelessness and addressing the housing crisis, the city is in the process of putting together a strategic plan to guide our work in this key priority over the next five years,” White said.
The city manager transitioned into the priority of a clean and safe community, specifically discussing transportation successes like a 14% year-to-year increase in Big Blue Bus ridership and the 120 lane miles of bikeways “that encourage green commuters,” including the “welcome addition” of lanes on 17th Street from Pico Blvd. to Wilshire Blvd.
“As an avid biker myself, I’m all-in, and I so very much appreciate it,” White added.
White also spoke on justice, equity and diversity becoming a new priority for City Council in the past year, as well as a more active nightlife and business growth on the Third Street Promenade and beyond. He said that the bolstered economic recovery and other accomplishments have left him “extremely optimistic” for the future of the city.
“We’ve shown that we can weather the most difficult storms and still remain true to our city’s values and ethos,” he noted. “Santa Monica continues to be a place that people feel lucky to be a part of.”