Santa Monica City Council
February 13, 2024

SUPPLEMENTAL DETERMINATION OF THE CITY OF SANTA MONICA

LANDMARKS COMMISSION ESTABLISHING EXTERIOR CHARACTER DEFINING

FEATURES FOR THE CITY HALL SITE
I. PURPOSE
The Landmarks Commission hereby prepares and adopts a Supplemental Determination that identifies the contributing historic elements and features of the landscape and grounds surrounding Santa Monica City Hall (“City Hall”) relative to its status as a designated City Landmark.

II. REGULATORY SETTING
Santa Monica Municipal Code (SMMC) Section 9.36.060(a) states that the Landmarks Commission shall have the power to “Designate Structures of Merit, Landmarks and Landmark Parcels, and to make any preliminary or supplemental designations, determinations, or decisions, as additions thereto, in order to effectuate the purposes” of Santa Monica Municipal Code Chapter 9.36. SMMC 9.36.120 (f) further states that the Landmarks Commission has the power to make preliminary or supplemental designations, determinations or decisions, as additions to its designation determinations.

III. HISTORICAL CONTEXT AND SETTING
The City Hall building dominates the broad, relatively symmetrical and formal landscape which visually supports the structure’s monumentality and prominence on the site. The building exterior is an example of the 1930s PWA Moderne style of architecture, which emphasized balanced massing, smooth lines, symmetrical fenestration, faceted corners, and the use of understated decorative elements. The architectural composition of City Hall consists of a three‐story central pavilion flanked by two‐and‐a‐half story symmetrical wings.

The building’s distinctive architectural features include the stepped and faceted mass, stylized vertical fluting, horizontal streamline detailing, a variety of decorative ornamental features and tile work. The foot print, scale, form, balanced massing, classical proportions and concrete masonry construction of the building are the primary architectural and design characteristics that have a direct relationship with the landscape setting. The projecting central pavilion, the L‐shaped wings to the north and south with recessed courts, a rear U‐shaped courtyard to the east, and the faceted treatment of the building’s corners, all directly influence the figure/ground relationship of the architecture with the surrounding landscape. Likewise, the site layout, design, and proportions of the various landscape components relates directly to the building’s footprint, scale, massing, design composition, and distinctive monumental architecture.

City Hall is oriented facing west toward Main Street and is situated in the center of a generally flat site which consists of approximately 6.24 acres. The existing setting for Santa Monica City Hall is defined by its open character and symmetrical organization which presently appears much as it did during the historic period of significance (1938‐1957). The City of Santa Monica Landmarks Commission
May 23, 2011 Meeting

landscape setting is distinguished by an expansive front lawn that encompasses the majority of the western front of the site. The symmetrical layout of the sidewalks, planters and planting beds reinforces the architectural design of the PWA Moderne City Hall, and the original Palm tree plantings still enliven the west and south facades of the building and define the northern border of the site.

IV. CITY OF SANTA MONICA LANDMARKS COMMISSION ACTIONS
A. On October 16, 1979, the Landmarks Commission designated the structure and site known as Santa Monica City Hall as a City Landmark pursuant to Landmark Designation Criteria #1, #2, #3, #4, and #5 identified in SMMC Section 9.36.100. (Attachment A)
B. On January 9, 2011, the Landmarks Commission filed a request to supplement the Landmark designation of City Hall to identify exterior character defining features.

C. On May 9, 2011, the Landmarks Commission reviewed and considered the analysis presented in the “Character Defining Features Analysis – Santa Monica City Hall Landscape and Grounds”, prepared by PCR Services Corporation, dated April 2011, and conducted a public hearing in accordance with the requirements established by Santa Monica Municipal Code Section

9.36.120(f), and voted by motion to adopt this supplemental determination identifying and establishing the character defining features of the landscape and grounds surrounding City Hall.

V. ESTABLISHMENT OF CONTRIBUTING HISTORIC ELEMENTS AND FEATURES

OF THE LANDSCAPE AND GROUND SURROUNDING CITY HALL
The Landmarks Commission hereby determines that the following are the character defining features of the City Hall site:

A. Windmill Palms in the north and south gardens at front of City Hall; B. Concrete planters flanking the front entrance of City Hall; C. Dedication marker for City Hall;
D. Rectangular planting bed and brickwork in the center of the main entrance walkway;
E. Concrete curbs and brickwork flanking the main entrance walkway; F. Concrete sidewalks and brickwork throughout much of the site including the scoring pattern, proportions, textures, color and finish; G. Concrete entry steps and brickwork at the front, rear, and south side; H. Lawn areas (north and south) in the front of City Hall and at the southeast corner of the site;
I. Council Parking lot and design configuration, north of City Hall; J. Canary Island Date Palms (3) in the Council Parking lot area; K. Mexican Fan Palms (7) overlooking the Santa Monica Freeway and adjacent to the south elevation;
L. The steeply-graded terraced hill, adjacent to the Freeway and remnants of

the retaining walls;
M. Foundation planting beds surrounding City Hall;
N. Flagpole;
O. Memorial Rose Garden and dedication marker; and
P. Symmetrical configuration of the landscape and hardscape elements at the front of City Hall
VI. RECORD OF DETERMINATION
I hereby certify that the above supplemental determination to its October 16, 1979 designation of City Hall as a City Landmark accurately reflects the determination of the Landmarks Commission of the City of Santa Monica on May 9, 2011 as determined by the following vote:

AYES: Bach, Fresco, Genser, Kaplan, Lehrer, Shari, Chair Berley ABSTAIN: none
ABSENT: none
NAYES: none
Respectfully Submitted
May 23, 2011
____________________________________
Ruth Shari, Chair Pro-Tem
Attest:
____________________________
Scott Albright, AICP
Landmarks Commission Secretary

CHARACTER DEFINING FEATURES ANALYSIS

SANTA MONICA CITY HALL

LANDSCAPE AND GROUNDS
1685 MAIN STREET

SANTA MONICA, CALIFORNIA
Prepared for
City of Santa Monica
1685 Main Street, Room 212
Santa Monica, CA  90401
Prepared by
Margarita J. Wuellner, Ph.D.

PCR Services Corporation
233 Wilshire Boulevard, Suite 130
Santa Monica, California  90401
April 2011

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Table of Contents

1.0 INTRODUCTION.........................................................................................................................................................1

1.1 Location and Setting ................................................................................................................................................................ 2

1.2 Research and Survey Methods ............................................................................................................................................ 3

2.0 HISTORICAL CONTEXT............................................................................................................................................7

2.1 Santa Monica ............................................................................................................................................................................... 7

2.2 Ocean Park ................................................................................................................................................................................... 8

2.3 Transportation Improvements in Santa Monica .......................................................................................................... 8

2.4 City Beautiful Movement ..................................................................................................................................................... 10

2.5 Moderne Architecture .......................................................................................................................................................... 13

2.6 Landscape Architecture ....................................................................................................................................................... 14

2.7 Parks, Places and Spaces in Santa Monica .................................................................................................................... 15

2.7 Santa Monica City Hall: Building and Landscape ...................................................................................................... 17

2.8 Santa Monica City Hall Landscape: Events and Public Use ................................................................................... 23

3.0 CHARACTER DEFINING FEATURES ANALYSIS....................................................................................................48 Existing Description ...................................................................................................................................................................... 48 Character Defining Features ...................................................................................................................................................... 50 APPENDIX A ‐ LANDMARK DESIGNATION FOR SANTA MONICA CITY HALL April  2011
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List of Figures
Figure 1 Regional Location and Project Vicinity Map ............................................................................................................ 3 Figure 2 Assessors Tract Map .......................................................................................................................................................... 4 Figure 3 Site Map ................................................................................................................................................................................... 5 Figure 4 Vicinity of City Hall in 1895 (Sanborn Map, Santa Monica, 1895, Sheet 10) ........................................... 25 Figure 5 Future City Hall site in 1918, showing former Olson Lumber Co. on future City Hall site with proposed Main Street to west, low land to north, and steep gulch to southeast (Sanborn Map, Santa Monica, 1918, Sheet 17) .................................................................................................................................... 26 Figure 6 View showing area of “low land” northeast of Colorado Boulevard and Ocean Avenue, with Pacific Electric car traveling west through arroyo; future City Hall site is on high land to south on right side of photo, and Patten & Davies Lumber Co. appears to north in background (Santa Monica Public Library Image Archives) .................................................................................................................................. 27 Figure 7 City Hall site in 1950, showing Olympic Boulevard and Sears Roebuck Co. to north, Private Street to south, and Veteran’s Temporary Housing Project to west (Sanborn Map, Santa Monica, 1950, Sheet 17) .............................................................................................................................................................................. 28 Figure 8 City Hall under construction, November 16, 1939 (Santa Monica Public Library Image Archives)29 Figure 9 City Hall, 1939, view to northeast, showing new concrete sidewalks, freshly planted concrete planters flanking the front entrance, and palm trees at north border of site (Santa Monica Public Library Image Archives) ................................................................................................................................................ 30 Figure 10 City Hall, 1939, showing freshly sodded front lawn and concrete sidewalks; planters at front entrance are still empty; two palm trees appear northwest of the building; furnishings include wood benches along the main entrance walk and along the front of the building; an additional palm was located at the southwest corner of the lawn .................................................................................... 31 Figure 11 First Floor Plan, Santa Monica City Hall, August 4, 1939 (Donald B. Parkinson and J. M. Estep Associated Architects) .................................................................................................................................................... 32 Figure 12 Post Card, 1939, depicting New City Hall, Santa Monica, California (Santa Monica Public Library Image Archives) ................................................................................................................................................................ 33 Figure 13 New City Hall, November 23, 1939, prior to dedication (Los Angeles Public Library) ....................... 34 Figure 14 City Hall Entrance, 1939, showing daisies in planting bed at front entrance, concrete planters flanking front entrance (still unplanted), and brick steps to entrance (Santa Monica Public Library Image Archives) ................................................................................................................................................ 35 Figure 15 City Hall, 1940, showing palms planted along south elevation and at southeast corner of building, decorative foundation plantings in the rear courtyard, and palm tree was planted at northeast corner of the parking area north of the Jail (City of Santa Monica). ............................................................ 36 Figure 16 City Hall, ca. 1940, plantings at northwest corner of building (City of Santa Monica). ....................... 36 Figure 17 Historic appearance of Santa Monica City Hall, ca. 1940‐1941, after landscaping had been completed (Santa Monica Public Library Image Archives) ............................................................................. 37 Figure 21 City Hall during the 1950s (Santa Monica Public Library Image Archives) ............................................. 41 Figure 23 Aerial View, City Hall in 1975 (Annual Report for the Fiscal Year 1974‐1975) ..................................... 43 Figure 24 City Hall in 1975, view to north (Annual Report for the Fiscal Year 1974‐1975) ................................. 44 Figure 25 City Hall entrance, ca. 1982, before the installation of the succulent garden (Los Angeles Public Library) ................................................................................................................................................................................. 45 Figure 26 City Hall entrance, 1983 (Los Angeles Public Library) ..................................................................................... 46 Figure 28 Landscaping ........................................................................................................................................................................ 53 Figure 29 General view from northwest corner of site toward main entrance, view to southeast .................... 54 Figure 30 General view from southwest corner of site toward main entrance, view to northeast .................... 54 Figure 31 General view of main entrance, view to southeast ............................................................................................. 55 Figure 32 Veterans Rose Garden (1951) in original Planting Bed (1939), view to east ......................................... 55 List of Figures (Continued)
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Figure 33 Planting Bed along north side of Main Entrance Walk, view to east ........................................................... 56 Figure 34 Planting Bed along south side of Main Entrance Walk, view to east .......................................................... 56 Figure 35 Intersection of Main Entrance Walk with sidewalk along Main Street, view to north ........................ 57 Figure 36 Entrance to City Hall, view to southeast ................................................................................................................. 57 Figure 37 Foundation plantings along south elevation, view to east .............................................................................. 58 Figure 38 Foundation plantings along west elevation, view to south ............................................................................. 59 Figure 39 Foundation plantings along west elevation, view to north ............................................................................. 59 Figure 40 Curved row of mature palms at northern border of site, view to northwest ......................................... 60 Figure 41 Mature palms and one tree at northeast corner of parking area, view to northeast ........................... 60 Figure 42 Remaining tree plantings at north entrance to lawn from parking lot, view to north ........................ 61 Figure 43 Mature exotic tree in North Garden, view to south ............................................................................................ 61 Figure 44 Ornamental tree plantings near parking area, view to northwest .............................................................. 62

City of Santa Monica Santa Monica City Hall
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CHARACTER DEFINING FEATURES ANALYSIS

1.0 INTRODUCTION
This report presents the results of a character defining features survey and analysis of the landscape and grounds associated with Santa Monica City Hall, Santa Monica, California. This cultural landscape analysis was conducted by PCR Services at the request of the City of Santa Monica (City). The park site to the west across Main Street from City Hall is currently in design phase for the Palisades Garden Walk Project. This future park project also includes the landscape located on the front portion of the City Hall site. Because of the potential for the Palisades Garden Walk project to impact the landscape associated with the City Hall, PCR Services was asked to conduct a character‐defining features analysis to identify the contributing historic elements and features of the landscape and grounds surrounding City Hall. This analysis will be used by the City in their review of the proposed project design to ensure the Palisades Garden Walk/Town Square project is consistent with the Secretary of the Interior’s Standards for the Treatment of Historic Properties with Guidelines for Preserving, Rehabilitation, Restoring, and Reconstructing Historic Buildings (the Standards), (Weeks and Grimmer, 1995).

The City Hall building and site at 1685 Main Street was designated City of Santa Monica Historic Landmark #10 in 1979. The property was designated under criteria 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5 of the City’s Landmark Ordinance.

A copy of the designation is provided in Appendix A. The building symbolizes elements of the cultural, social, economic, and political history of the City because it has been the center of city government since 1939 and because it was constructed by the Works Progress Administration (WPA). It has aesthetic value because of the notable exterior and interior tile work and the interior murals designed by Stanton McDonald‐Wright. It is associated with important historic personages and events in local history. It embodies the distinguishing architectural characteristics of the Classical Moderne style and is representative of the work of notable architects Donald B. Parkinson and J. M. Estep.

The property was formally determined eligible for listing in the National Register of Historic Places in 1996 as the result of survey conducted for FEMA after the Northridge earthquake by Historic Resources Group (HRG) to comply with Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act (NHPA). By virtue of this determination, the City Hall was included in the California Register of Historical Resources. A historic structure report was prepared by HRG for Santa Monica City Hall in 2003 which identified the existing historic architectural features of the building and assessed their condition, but did not analyze the landscape.

The period of significance identified for Santa Monica City Hall in the historic structure report was 1938 to 1951, encompassing the design and construction campaign and extending to the date of last alteration, which assumed significance over time, and was close to the fifty year mark.1 According to the historic structure
report, the period of significance did not include additions and alterations after 1951 that have been determined non‐significant.2

To date, the period of significance and themes associated with the City Hall landscape have not been defined sufficiently to support a thorough and accurate character‐defining features analysis of the historic landscape.

1 Personal communication with Christy Johnson McAvoy, Historic Resources Group, March 14, 2011. 2 Historic Resources Group, Santa Monica City Hall, Historic Structure Report (January 17, 2003).

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The Section 106 survey and historic structure report used the National Register’s 50‐year threshold at the time of the survey, and the period of significance was broadly defined in the landmark designation due to the continuing importance of City Hall as the center of government and its association with significant personages. Based upon this information, the landscape generally has two periods of significance, 1939‐ 1940 for architecture, art and design, and “since 1939” for cultural, social and political history and historic personages as a part of City Hall. However, this period of significance is too broadly defined to support a thorough and accurate character‐defining features analysis of the City Hall landscape. Therefore, it was necessary to develop a historic context, identify the period of significance and themes associated with the landscape, and determine the historic appearance of landscape during the period of significance before an accurate character‐defining features analysis could be completed. The results of this research and analyses are presented below.

1.1 Location and Setting
The Santa Monica City Hall (City Hall) is located at 1685 Main Street, Santa Monica, California (see Figure 1, Project Location Map). The City Hall faces Main Street to the west, and is bounded by 4th Street on the east, State Highway Route 10 on the north, and Olympic Drive on the south. City Hall is situated at the north corner of Lot 1, Block 3 of the Bandini Tract (Assessor’s ID 4290‐012‐902) (see Figure 2, Assessor’s Tract Map).

The City Hall is oriented facing west toward Main Street and is situated in the center of a generally flat site which consists of approximately 6.24 acres (see Figure 3, Site Map). The landscape setting for City Hall is distinguished by an expansive front lawn that encompasses the majority of the front part of the site. The main entrance to the site includes a large rose garden flanked by symmetrical entrance walks. Concrete sidewalks provide for pedestrian circulation across the City Hall site and around the building. Vehicular access is via drive ways at the northwest and southeast corners of the site, and vehicular circulation and parking is served by the Council parking area at the north end of City Hall and the alley that runs behind the building to the east. Existing landscape plantings include approximately 20 tall palms and a variety of trees, shrubs, succulents, and ornamental plantings. There are concrete planters flanking the main entrance to the building, and foundation plantings exist along the front and side elevations of the building. Tall Windmill Palms enliven the front façade of City Hall and a couple of Mexican Fan Palms punctuate the south facade.

The northern border of the site overlooking the Santa Monica Freeway (I‐10) is screened by a tall hedge and features a row of distinctive mature Mexican Fan Palms; and several tall Canary Island Date Palms mark the northeast corner of the site. The new City Police Headquarters is situated immediately behind City Hall to the east. The entrance at the south end of the building is beautified by a contemporary designed landscape featuring an infinity edge reflecting pool, cascade and lower pool. The southern border of the site features a contemporary landscape improvement and a recently updated streetscape along Olympic Drive. The park site for the Palisades Garden Walk Project is located to the west across Main Street from City Hall. The surrounding environment south of City Hall includes the Superior Court Building at 1725 Main and the Santa Monica Civic Auditorium (Landmark) at Main and Pico. Other notable structures in the vicinity include Main Street Bridge across the Santa Monica Freeway (Route 1) just north of City Hall; Sears Roebuck and Company (Landmark) situated across the freeway to the north; the McClure Tunnel over Route 1; and Santa Monica Pier (Landmark) to the northwest.






 
 

 

 



 



 







  
    










 



 

 




 














 




















 




















 












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FIGURE
Source: Aerial Express, 2009; PCR Services Corporation, 2010. 0 200 400 Feet
Character Defining Features Analysis, Landscape and Grounds, Santa Monica City Hall, Santa Monica, California
Site Map

PROJECT SITE
3 Main Street
4th Street
Olympic Drive
Colorado Avenue
10 1
Ocean Avenue
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1.2 Research and Survey Methods
A pedestrian survey of the City Hall site was conducted on January 18, 2011 by Margarita J. Wuellner, Ph.D., Director of Historic Resources, PCR Services Corporation. The survey was conducted in accordance with the Office of Historic Preservation, Instructions for Recording Historical Resources (March 1995), J. Timothy and Genevieve P. Keller, “How to Evaluate and Nominate Designed Historic Landscapes,” National Register Bulletin 18 (U.S. Department of the Interior, National Park Service, 1985), and Charles A. Birnbaum, ASLA, “Protecting Cultural Landscapes: Planning, Treatment and Management of Historic Landscapes,” Preservation Briefs 36 (National Park Service, 1994). The site was physically examined to locate contributing landscape features remaining from the period of significance (1938‐1951) associated with Santa Monica City Hall. The Survey Area (Figure 3) included the City Hall site and immediate vicinity. The survey involved visual examination, photographic documentation in color 35mm digital photographs, and physical identification of existing landscape features. Notable plantings, landscape features and furnishings within the Survey Area are described in the landscape analysis and a list of character‐defining features is provided in Chapter 3.

Survey and research is essential before undertaking any project involving a historic landscape. Findings help to identify a landscape’s historic period of development and bring greater understanding of the associations and characteristics that make the landscape or history significant. Research findings provide a foundation to make educated decisions for work and can facilitate ongoing maintenance and management operations, interpretation and eventual compliance requirements.3 Historical research included review of the City
records on the local Landmark designation for City Hall, the Historic Structure Report for Santa Monica City Hall (2003), a reports and research associated with the City Hall Jail Retrofit project on file at PCR, review of historic maps and photographs in local library and City collections, and review of local newspapers and published histories. Research was conducted for the development of the historic context for the City Hall landscape and to document the historic appearance of the property, presented in Chapter 2. No historic planting plans were available from the City and building permits provide no information on landscape improvements. If more information is desired in the future about particular individual features, further research is recommended in City records (i.e. meeting minutes and budget appropriations) and the records of the City Forester, if available, for detailed information on specific landscape improvements.

Historic landscapes include residential gardens and community parks, scenic highways, rural communities, institutional grounds, cemeteries, battlefields and botanical gardens. They are composed of a number of character defining features which individually or collectively contribute to the landscape’s physical appearance as they have evolved over time. In addition to vegetation and topography, cultural landscapes may include water features such as ponds, streams and fountains; circulation features such as roads, paths, steps and walls; buildings; and furnishings, such as fences, benches, lights and sculptural objects. Most historic properties have a cultural landscape component that is integral to the significance of the resource. A historic property consists of all its cultural resources – landscapes, buildings, archaeological sites and collections.

Historic landscapes fall into several categories, designed landscapes, vernacular landscapes, historic sites, and ethnographic landscapes. A designed landscape, such as the City Hall site, is a landscape that was

3 Charles A. Birnbaum, ASLA, Preservation Briefs: 36, Protecting Cultural Landscapes: Planning, Treatment and Management of Historic Landscapes, Technical Preservation Services, National Park Service, U.S. Department of the Interior, 1994 (http://www.nps.gov/hps/tps/briefs/brief36.htm, accessed February 4, 2011).

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consciously designed or laid out by a landscape architect, master gardener, architect, or horticulturalist according to design principles, or an amateur gardener working in a recognized style or tradition. 4 Designed
historic landscapes are classified according to type. The landscape associated with City Hall can be classified as civic design.5
Contributing character‐defining landscape features identified on the City Hall site are those resources which are associated with the period of significance and retain integrity (location, setting, design, materials, workmanship, feeling, and association).

2.0 HISTORICAL CONTEXT
The existing landscape setting associated with the City Hall site is associated with several important historical themes developed below, including the history of the communities of Santa Monica and Ocean Park; Transportation Improvements in Santa Monica; the City Beautiful Movement; Moderne Architecture; Landscape Architecture; development of public Parks, Places and Spaces in Santa Monica; the Santa Monica City Hall: Building and Landscape; and the Santa Monica City Hall Landscape: Events and Public Use.

2.1 Santa Monica6
In 1875, the original town site of Santa Monica was surveyed, including all of the land extending from Colorado Street on the south to Montana Avenue on the north, and from 26th Street on the east to the Pacific Ocean on the west. Between 1893 and the 1920s, the community operated as a tourist attraction, visited primarily by wealthy patrons. During this period, the areas located just outside of the incorporated city limits were semi‐rural in setting and typified by scattered residences. After the advent of the automobile in the 1920s, Santa Monica experienced a building boom, which included the development of the area known as Ocean Park, located to the south of the downtown commercial district.

During the 1880s, Santa Monica’s downtown commercial district consisted primarily of development along Second Street from Utah (Broadway) to about a half block north. By 1888, a hotel and theater occupied the northeast corner of Third Street and Broadway. In the 1890s, two of the City’s three most distinctive commercial buildings of the period were constructed along Third Street: the Keller Block (Carroll H. Brown, architect) which is still extant at the southwest corner of Broadway; the Bank of Santa Monica Building (demolished) at the southeast corner of Santa Monica Boulevard; and the Whitworth Block (altered) at 1460 Second Street.

The Central Business District developed early in the history of Santa Monica as the location of commercial businesses catering to both local residents and the City’s many visitors. Due to the rise of the Central Business District, the southern part of Santa Monica became the hub of activity. Today, Second Street and Third Street still comprise Santa Monica’s commercial core. It is roughly bounded by Wilshire Boulevard, Second Street, Colorado Avenue, Fourth Street south of Santa Monica Boulevard and Seventh Street north of

4 Ibid.
5 J. Timothy Keller, ASLA, and Genevieve P. Keller, National Register Bulletin 18, How to Evaluate and Nominate Designed Historic Landscapes, U.S. Department of the Interior, National Park Service, 1985, (http://www.nps.gov/nr/publications/bulletins/ pdfs/nrb18.pdf, accessed February 4, 2011).
6 Portions of this section were adapted from the “Santa Monica Historical Resources Inventory 1985‐1986, Final Report, pp. 28‐59 and State of California, Department of Parks and Recreation, Historic Resources Inventory Form Update, Central Business District and Third Street Promenade. Prepared by Tearnen, Bricker, and Field, 1998.

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Santa Monica Boulevard. Many buildings within the district are commercial, interspersed with residential uses. The most prevalent styles are those associated with the 1920s and 1930s, including: Spanish Colonial, Art Deco, and Classically‐influenced buildings. These buildings range from one to twelve stories in height and are clad in a variety of materials, such as stucco, brick, and concrete.

2.2 Ocean Park
Ocean Park was a seashore amusement center at the southerly limits of Santa Monica, part of which is within the corporate limits of Santa Monica, and the remainder of which lies in present‐day Venice, annexed to Los Angeles. Ocean Park developed somewhat independently from the rest of Santa Monica. Separated from the city’s commercial core by an arroyo, Ocean Park was initially oriented toward the beach. Within the city of Ocean Park, Abbot Kinney created his unique Venice resort, approximately a mile south of Santa Monica.7

Abbot Kinney and his associates erected a series of piers and other tourist attractions in the late 19th century. After the turn of the century, building activities in Ocean Park intensified. Recognizing that a rail link to Los Angeles would be the key to development of the area, in 1893 Kinney donated land for the right‐ of‐way and a depot for the Santa Fe railroad. The community took the name Ocean Park in 1895. The Ocean Park Pier was developed in 1898, with adjacent Pier Street as one of the area’s early commercial streets.8 Main Street became the commercial corridor of the developing Ocean Park community, servicing both permanent residents and visitors who lived in the cottages, bungalows, and courts that sprang up as far east as Lincoln and beyond. By the close of the teens, a substantial portion of Ocean Park was improved. By the 1930s, buildings occupied most of the available parcels in the area and older improvements were removed to provide space for newer development. Ocean Park assumed its modern identity during the 1930s as a year‐round community.9 This change shifted the focus of commercial centers from Pier Avenue to Main Street; and commercial establishments of the period appear to have catered to Ocean Park residents, rather than tourists.10 Ocean Park’s established pattern of small‐scale development continued in the post‐World War II era. Today, a multi‐layered and diverse historical legacy in terms of age, styles, and building types characterizes Ocean Park.11

2.3 Transportation Improvements in Santa Monica12
The Main Street Bridge was built to connect the downtown commercial core with the area to the south of the arroyo and is associated with early 20th century transportation improvements in the City of Santa Monica.

7 Charles Sumner Warren, Santa Monica Community Book, 1944, 35‐37. 8 Fred E. Basten, Santa Monica Bay: Paradise by the Sea: a Pictorial History of Santa Monica, Venice, Marina del Rey, Ocean Park, Pacific Palisades, Topanga & Malibu, Hennessey + Ingalls: Los Angeles, 1997. 9 Myers, William A., and Ira L. Swett. Trolleys to the Surf; The Story of the Los Angeles Pacific Railway. Glendale: Interurban Publications, Inc., 1976.
10 Leslie Heumann, “Department of Parks and Recreation series 523 form, 2000-2100 Blocks of Third Street District.” 11 Fred E. Basten, Santa Monica Bay: Paradise by the Sea: a Pictorial History of Santa Monica, Venice, Marina del Rey, Ocean Park, Pacific Palisades, Topanga & Malibu, Hennessey + Ingalls: Los Angeles, 1997. 12 Portions of this section were adapted from the “Historic Resources Technical Report Santa Monica Civic Center Specific Plan:

Historic Resources Survey, Evaluation, and Analysis of Project Impacts,” prepared by PCR Services Corporation for the City of Santa Monica, March 2004.

James W. Lunsford, The Ocean and the Sunset, The Hills and the Clouds: Looking at Santa Monica. 1983.

Sanborn Fire Insurance Maps, City of Santa Monica.

Paula A. Scott, Santa Monica: A History on the Edge, Charleston, SC: Arcadia Publishing, 2004.

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The Bridge is noted for its role in providing increased connectivity, and in turn, development between the city’s commercial core and the Ocean Park neighborhood, known during the 1910s and 1920s as South Santa Monica. Members of both neighborhoods recognized the function of the Main Street Bridge as more than a transportation improvement; the Bridge initially had a symbolic role as an embodiment of civic unity. With the development of the Santa Monica City Hall starting in 1938, Main Street and the Main Street Bridge provided access to Santa Monica’s civic core.13
A deep arroyo, occupied today by the Santa Monica Freeway, once separated Santa Monica’s commercial district and the Ocean Park neighborhood. In the late 19th century, the arroyo functioned as a track bed for the Southern Pacific Railroad (SPRR) and the Pacific Electric Railway. While the immediate vicinity of the arroyo was sparsely populated, it was in proximity to the city’s earliest resorts. The Arcadia Hotel, circa 1887, was located nearby on a bluff overlooking the Pacific Ocean to the south of present day Colorado Avenue until it was demolished in 1908.

The rapid growth of Santa Monica during the 1920s generated an increased need for transportation connectivity and the Main Street Bridge, circa 1926, created a link, via Main Street, between the city’s growing commercial core and Ocean Park. Upon completion, the Main Street Bridge extended Main Street across the arroyo. Traveling south, Main Street bisected the mostly vacant area owned by the SPRR until it reached the former Santa Fe Railroad’s right of way and a small residential pocket that occupied the southeast corner of the quadrant. From there, Main Street turned diagonally southwest to connect with the existing segment of Main Street in Ocean Park. The Bridge still occupies its original location despite numerous changes to its setting over the past eight decades.

The challenging topography from the Pacific Ocean inland to the vicinity of the Fourth Street Bridge created the need for a variety of permanent crossings since at least the 1890s. An 1891 Sanborn map depicts a thin north‐south bridge over the natural arroyo, occupied today by the Santa Monica Freeway. An elevated boardwalk that extended from the bridge provided access from the bluff to the beach and Arcadia Bath House below. By 1895, a more substantial wooden bridge in the same vicinity was built (Figure 4). This bridge, known as the Ocean Avenue Bridge, had three separate lanes for the passage of wagons, automobiles, and pedestrians. A period photo depicts the passage below the bridge just wide enough for a single train track.14 The wooden bridge was replaced by a concrete structure in 1902 (demolished 1934). By the late 1930s, with the former rail passage widened and converted to automobile use, the road below was known as Olympic Boulevard. Olympic Boulevard ran through the tunnel until it was rerouted in the 1960s. In 1966, the Santa Monica Freeway reached the Pacific Coast Highway via the tunnel (known today as the Mc Clure Tunnel). Throughout its history, the Main Street Bridge has spanned rail lines, Olympic Boulevard, and the Santa Monica Freeway.

13 “Historic Resources Technical Report Santa Monica Civic Center Specific Plan: Historic Resources Survey, Evaluation, and Analysis of Project Impacts,” prepared by PCR Services Corporation for the City of Santa Monica, March 2004. 14 Louise B. Gabriel, Santa Monica Historical Society Museum. Images of America: Early Santa Monica. Charleston, SC: Arcadia Publishing, 2006.

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2.4 City Beautiful Movement
The ideals of City Beautiful Movement were popular throughout the nation from the 1880s to 1920; the later City Beautiful continued into the 1930s and continued with a loss of purpose but with a remarkable consistency of technique into the 1940s. The City Beautiful Movement originated with the work of social reformers and visionary urban designers and planners who sought to ease squalid urban conditions with the construction of squares, boulevards, parks, and monumental public buildings. In the broadest sense, the City Beautiful Movement was political, for it demanded reorientation of public thought and action toward urban beauty. The environmental reorganization necessary for grand aesthetic achievements required an altered political structure, including state enabling legislation, new public institutions, and grants of power to private entities to build railroad stations and other semipublic buildings. The reorganized urban politics was remarkably flexible and encompassed both new and vitalized administrative agencies with expanded popular participation. The movement involved a politics of accommodation between the expert planning professional and the enlightened citizens on the board or commission that set the basic planning goals and oversaw construction.15
Chicago’s Daniel Burnham was a leading City Beautiful Movement proponent and the grand public works and architecture constructed for the 1893 World’s Columbian Exposition in Chicago would serve as the inspiration for City Beautiful Movement proponents for decades afterwards. Urban plans often cited as exemplary of City Beautiful ideals include Washington, DC’s McMillan Plan (1901‐2), developed by a commission that included Daniel Burnham, Frederick Law Olmsted, Jr., Charles F. McKim and the Plan of Chicago, co‐authored by Daniel Burnham and Edward H. Bennett in 1909. City Beautiful Movement designers typically used stately architectural styles for buildings and public works, particularly Classical Revival and Beaux‐Arts, which are characterized by the use of detail, monumental columns, balustrades, statuary, and sculptured spandrels.16
The hallmark of the City Beautiful Movement was the civic center, the grouping of public and private buildings—city hall, municipal auditorium, public library, major financial institutions—in the heart of downtown. The civic center was intended to be a beautiful ensemble, grouping public buildings around a park, square, or intersection of radial streets in a manner that allowed for the visual delights of perspectives, open spaces, and the contrasts between buildings and their settings. The civic center was meant to serve as a powerful symbol of community, shared values and purpose. Its architectural motifs were echoed in school buildings, police stations, fire houses, park structures, and other municipal outposts throughout the cities that possessed them.17
In Santa Monica, the selection of a site for the first city hall was hotly contested during 1901 partly because of the old rivalry between the North and South sides of town. Sites at Third and Utah, and Fourth and

15 See Norman T. Newton, “City Beautiful Movement and City Planning,” in Design on the Land, the Development of Landscape Architecture, (Boston, Massachusetts: Harvard University Press, 1971), Chapter 29; and William H. Wilson, The City Beautiful Movement (Baltimore, Maryland: Johns Hopkins University Press, 1989). 16 The 1901 Plan for Washington, DC, The City Beautiful Movement, http://xroads.virginia.edu/~cap/CITYBEAUTIFUL/city.html.

Accessed February 9, 2009; John J‐G Blumenson, Identifying American Architecture: A Pictorial Guide to Styles and Terms, 1600‐ 1945, (New York: W. W. Norton and Company, 1981).
17 Peter Dobkin Hall, “Setting, Landscape Architecture, and the Creation of Civic Space in the United States, 1790‐1920.” (John F.

Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University, November 2006), http://www.hks.harvard.edu/fs/phall/Civic_Space_WIP.pdf, accessed March 17, 2011.

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Oregon were considered and the latter was finally selected for the first city hall. Among the more important improvements of the early 1900s on the North side was the building of an Auditorium in 1901, in connection with the North Beach Bath house. The first city hall was dedicated March 19, 1903, built by H.X. Goetz, contractor at a cost of $38,000. Besides the new municipal offices, a public library was provided with pleasant quarters.18
However, it wasn’t until the two sides of the City were formally connected with the opening of the Main Street Bridge in 1926 celebrated by public ceremony, and the construction of the new City Hall in 1938‐39, that a centralized Civic Center began to take shape in Santa Monica. Completion and dedication of Santa Monica’s $250,000 post office and Federal Building in 1938 and initiation of work on a link in the Roosevelt Coast Highway south of Colorado Avenue were also important steps in the development of the municipality.19 For years the new City Hall site had been referred to as “no man’s land” because of its non‐developed acres in the heart of the city, and had been considered as a possible site for a Civic Center at some time in the future, but it was not until the efforts of the city officials, Chamber of Commerce, and other organizations were combined to aggressively seek a solution to the problem of acquisition and improvement, that any considerable steps were taken to bring the old dream into a new and vital reality. Construction of the new City Hall on the “no man’s land” not only served to “weld together the Santa Monica and Ocean Park sections of the city,” but “would at the same time develop surrounding properties and enhance valuations in a portion of the city that would otherwise be dormant and undeveloped for another decade or more.”20 When the new City Hall was dedicated on November 25, 1939, it represented “the fulfillment of a long‐ cherished municipal dream.”21 Over 5,000 persons thronged the City Hall lawn and another thousand occupied the speaker’s platform at the main entrance, including national, state and city officials, among them mayors and executives of many Southland cities who came to congratulate Santa Monica. Mayor Edmond S.

Gillette declared the new Civic Center would “weld all sections of the city into one community, eliminating old factional lines.”22 An illustrated map depicting the city in the Evening Outlook’s Souvenir Edition commemorating the newspaper’s 65th year of publication shows the “New City Hall and Civic Center” clearly labeled, indicating the public’s identification of the New City Hall with a new Civic Center had been successfully achieved.23
Completion of a $300,000 branch Courthouse and County Building in the Santa Monica Civic Center was observed by dedication ceremonies on July 27, 1951. The new building was dedicated to “justice and good government,” and hailed as a “symbol of democracy, a place where the people can go for a determination of their rights.” Mayor Russell K. Hart spoke for the Santa Monica City Council, which donated the building site.

The building was designed by architects Frederic C. Barienbrock and Robert Kliegman to harmonize with the architecture of the adjoining City Hall.24 Soon outgrowing its original needs, two‐story wing additions adding

18 Luther A. Ingersoll, Ingersoll’s century history, Santa Monica Bay cities (L.A. Ingersoll, 1908), 216‐225. 19 “Los Angeles County,” Los Angeles Times, Jan. 3, 1939, p. F6. 20 “S.M. City Government Housed in Fine Structure, Civic Center Plans Carried to Fruition During Past Years,” Evening Outlook, November 22, 1940, p. 22 top.
21 “City Hall Dedicated: State and Federal Officials Join in Santa Monica Ceremony,” Los Angeles Times, Nov. 26, 1939, p. B12. 22 Ibid.
23 Evening Outlook, November 22, 1940.
24 “Santa Monica Dedicates New County Building,” Los Angeles Times, July 28, 1951, p. A5.

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more than 90,000 square feet to the county building were officially authorized by the Board of Supervisors in January 1965.25
Across from the Civic Center along the west side of Main Street, Rand Corporation developed the $7 Million Rand Research Center building and campus during the early 1950s. Ground breaking ceremonies were held on November 21, 1951. Formerly the site of an emergency housing project for 152 veterans and their families, the eight‐acre site for the building was purchased from the City of Santa Monica for $250,000.26 The Rand complex was recently demolished (within the last decade) but several Palms and Magnolia trees which once beautified the Rand campus and parking area during the 1960s still appear to survive on the site.27 The Civic Center became fully established with the construction of the Civic Auditorium (1958) designed by Welton Becket and the addition of the County court building on Main Street during the 1950s. The multimillion‐dollar Santa Monica Civic Auditorium was designed to provide facilities for conventions, cultural, community, athletic, recreational, stage and operatic events. The focal point of the auditorium plan was the center line of Main Street, with landscaping and parking spaces ultimately to include virtually the entire southern end of the Civic Center bounded by Main Street, 4th Street and Pico Boulevard.28 A six‐day celebration marked the completion of the $2,900,000 Civic Auditorium on June 15, 1958, with actor Glenn Ford, Santa Monica High School Alumnus, as master of ceremonies, City Manager Randall M. Dorton, and Architect Welton Becket as speakers.29 In 1959, the Civic Center property was expanded west of the Civic Auditorium for automobile parking.30
As a part of the 1958 Civic Center improvements, 1.72 miles of Pacific Electric track were removed starting easterly of Lincoln Boulevard and continuing to Paloma Avenue in Venice, two blocks south of Rose Avenue.

Immediately after the tracks were removed, the City initiated a Civic Center access and beautification program which was completed in time for the opening of the new Civic Auditorium. A bus terminal, access roads and landscaping throughout the Civic Center boundaries was included in the beautification program.

Santa Monica appropriated $92,2330 for acquisition of the right of way north of Main Street to Pico Boulevard; another access road between 4th Street and Main was to be opened in order to expedite the flow of traffic.31 Also in 1958, bids were opened for the first phase of construction on what was to be Los Angeles’ most expensive freeway up until that time ($16,500,000 per mile)—the Santa Monica Freeway. Heretofore, the Hollywood Freeway held the record, costing as much as $10,000,000 a mile.32 By 1959, Santa Monica was well on its way to becoming one of the important convention cities in Southern California.33 By 1962, the skeleton of the Santa Monica Freeway was rapidly taking shape in West Los Angeles. Construction of the freeway from the intersection of Olympic Boulevard and Soto Street to Olympic and Lincoln Boulevards near

25 “Courthouse Wings Accepted,” Los Angeles Times, Jan. 21, 1965, p. WS1. 26 “Ground Broken for Rand Center in Santa Monica,” Los Angeles Times, Nov. 22, 1951, p. A14. 27 “RAND ‘Thinks’ for Security,” Los Angeles Times, Dec. 16, 1962, p. WS1. 28 “Steps Advance for Extensive Civic Building,” Los Angeles Times, Feb. 19, 1956, p. E1. 29 “Santa Monica to Start Auditorium Fete Today,” Los Angeles Times, June 15, 1958, p. B2. 30 “Move Fails to Halt Center Expansion: Santa Monica Land Earmarked for Auto Park,” Los Angeles Times, Aug. 2, 1959, p. WS1. 31 “S.M. Civic Center To Be Improved,” Los Angeles Times, April 27, 1958, p. WS2. 32 “Santa Monica Freeway Will Be City’s Most Costly,” Los Angeles Times, Jan. 12, 1958, p. B1. 33 “Santa Monica Booming as Convention Center,” Evening Outlook, June 3, 1959, p. 23.

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the Santa Monica Civic Center was estimated to be a $200 million job (91.6% of the cost was footed by the federal government) which was expected to be complete in 1965.34

2.5 Moderne Architecture
Moderne, also referred to as Art Moderne, is a later derivation of the Art Deco style, emphasizing a modern or futuristic appearance. Unlike the Art Deco style, it often lacked ornamentation and featured a more classical, horizontal orientation. The Art Deco style traces its origins to the Paris Exposition des Arts Decoratifs of 1925 and prevailed until around 1935, when it was followed by “Streamline,” “Zigzag,” and “WPA” Moderne architecture, derivations characterized by monumental volume, strong geometric shapes, and stylized plant and animal motifs. Following the height of the Art Deco style in the early 1930s, Streamline and Zigzag Moderne architecture was an economic and stylistic response to the ravaging effects of the Great Depression. A new style was needed to express optimism and a bright look toward the future.

Moderne‐style structures continued to suggest modern values of movement and rejection of historic precedents, but with far less opulence and more restraint than the Art Deco style of the late 1920s and early 1930s. Streamline Moderne style architecture took its cue from the emerging field of industrial design and borrowed imagery from things swift and free – in particular, the ocean liner. The Streamline Moderne style reflects the national trends of the style which reached its height during the early 1940s and continued in use into the early 1950s. The Streamline Moderne style differed from the “High Art Modern Architecture” of the early 1930s in that it,
…continued to regard design as ‘styling’ and that architecture should represent or perform as an image rather than be a used as a space to radically change ones everyday life. The boosters of Streamline Moderne argued that their purpose was not to create an architecture that functioned in the same way as the ocean liner, airplane, or locomotive; rather, the buildings would symbolize those things and therefore remind one of the ‘modern’ future. 35
Notable examples of Art Deco/Moderne architecture in Santa Monica include Central Tower (1929), 1424 4th Street, designed by Eugene Durfee, Santa Monica’s first Deco skyscraper; the Bay Cities Guarantee (1929/30), 1225 Santa Monica Mall, double the height of the Central Tower, designed by Walker & Eisen; the Grand Central Market Building (1932), 1330 4th Street, also by Eugene Durfee; General Telephone (1937), 1314 7th Street, designed by Maurice Sasso, with a lobby featuring murals of New York and the great buildings of Europe; the Shangri‐La Apartments and Hotel (1939‐40), designed by William Foster and named for the mythical Tibetan mecca of James Hilton’s novel Lost Horizon; and the Sears Building (1946), 302 Colorado, designed by Roland H. Crawford, which at the time of its construction contained the largest clear‐ span interior in the United States.36
The Works Progress Administration (WPA), a Depression‐era, New Deal program established in 1934, was designed to help localities by infusing funds for new construction projects, which in turn created new jobs.

Most of the WPA projects were for the construction of public buildings or infrastructure; however, the program also had an interesting element that provided employment for artists, musicians, and craftspersons.

34 “Santa Monica Freeway Taking Shape Rapidly,” Los Angeles Times, Dec. 23, 1962, p. C13. 35 Patrick Pascal, Kesling. Modern Structures Popularizing Modern Design in Southern California 1934‐1962, (Los Angeles: Balcony Press, 2002), 10.
36 “Santa Monica’s Art Deco Architecture,” ( Hollywood, California, Art Deco Society of Los Angeles, 1994).

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The primary goal of the WPA was to put people to work and most projects were designed to spend a majority of the funds on labor, not materials. Additionally, few projects used powered machinery in order to allow for hiring more men. Therefore, WPA buildings and structures in are marked by a high degree of craftsmanship, albeit untrained, provided by primarily unskilled labor. The quality of masonry work varies widely, undoubtedly reflecting not only different teams of workers, but also their growing skills in masonry techniques. The use of local materials in order to keep costs low is another hallmark of WPA projects. This resulted in some similarities of appearance within a region. WPA projects in Santa Monica were well designed, often by a prominent local architect or regional WPA engineer. The buildings were influenced both by local traditions and contemporary styles.

As applied to the WPA buildings of Santa Monica, the character‐defining features include flat roofs, smooth exterior surfaces, vertical or horizontal fenestration openings and linear building elements. Although horizontal lines are more typical of the Moderne style across the country, WPA Moderne buildings often feature grooved bands in an otherwise smooth concrete exterior surface. Rounded corners are also common.

WPA Moderne buildings differ from other examples of this general style in that they tend to be hand constructed rather than machine‐tooled. Metal details are rare except in the window frames. Windows typically are “stock” and not specifically designed for the building.

Santa Monica had its share of WPA projects, including the Santa Monica Post Office (1937), 1248 5th Street, designed by Neal. A. Malick and Robert D. Murray, featuring a regionally‐inspired wave motif at its base and reliefs of the eastern and western hemisphere above the entrances. Other WPA projects in Santa Monica included the upgrade and/or full replacement of several public school facilities, particularly those that were damaged from the Long Beach earthquake of 1933. School facilities that were either repaired or built included Madison Elementary School (1937), Franklin School (1937), Roosevelt School (1936), and Barnum Hall at Santa Monica High School (1938). Many of the interior spaces of the new buildings included public art pieces comprised of tiled mosaics, murals, and/or painted theatre curtains. Barnum Hall contains two murals, a fire curtain mural and a large mosaic. Both murals are associated with Stanton MacDonald‐Wright, an internationally recognized artist of the modern era, who was also a Santa Monica resident and associated with the federal arts projects from 1934 to 1943.

2.6 Landscape Architecture37
Landscape architecture embraces planning, design and management of the landscape. It is allied to architecture and town planning, and informed by geography, botany, ecology, and horticulture. The scope ranges from garden and park design to environmental assessment, derelict land reclamation, and landscape planning. The discipline has expanded from appreciating the visual qualities of picturesque architecture and landscape in the early 19th century to cover human settlement and people’s physical relationship with the land. This can be interpreted as a democratization of ideas, which began with private garden design and then applied to a wider constructed environment, for both public and private good.

It was the American architect Calvert Vaux (1824‐95) and the journalist Frederick Law Olmsted (1822‐1903) who first used the term “landscape architecture” for their new profession. Vaux was a former partner of Andrew Jackson Downing, and with Olmsted he won the competition for New York’s Central Park in 1858.

37 Summarized from Stanford Anderson and Colin St. John Wilson, The Oxford Companion to Architecture, Volume 1, (Oxford University Press, 2009).

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Olmsted, Vaux and Company went on to design parks, campuses, and housing estates in several cities in the 1860s and 1870s. With the growth of the North American city, large municipal park systems were developed. In 1881, Olmsted and his nephew, John Charles Olmsted, began a park system for Boston, linking Boston Commons and the Charles River to Franklin Park on the edge of the city, which became known as the Emerald Necklace.

At the turn of the century, designers were applying private park and garden ideas to public projects and involving elements of utility and infrastructure in their designs. On 4 January 1899, eleven landscape architects including Downing, Vaux, son of Calvert Vaux, met to form the American Society of Landscape Architects, and in 1900 the university course in landscape architecture at Harvard University was inaugurated with Olmsted’s son, Frederick Law Olmsted, Jr., as head. Further courses were established at Cornell (1904) and at the Department of Forestry at Berkeley (1913).

A key impetus for the growth of the profession has been legislation requiring landscape plans and the use of landscape architects, for which political lobbying has been central to its development, as first envisioned by Olmsted. For example, the establishment of the American National Park Service in 1917 led to a landscape architecture division under Charles P. Punchard, Jr. The Tennessee Valley Authority, established in 1933, employed landscape architects in the design of new towns; while the New Deal policies of the Roosevelt administration included the work of the Farm Security Commission landscape architects such as Garret Eckbo (1910‐2000), who planned new settlements for migrant workers.

Eckbo with Daniel Kiley (1912‐2004) and James C. Rose (1913‐91), were classmates at Harvard in 1937‐8, and together formed the ‘Harvard Revolution’ of the 1930s, which applied Modernism to landscape architecture, and emphasized space, asymmetry, site, functionality and social ideals of public good. Ideas such as the value of public parks and gardens, street beautification, garden cities, public access to sunshine and fresh air, and ideal national landscapes, were shared by ideologies of both left and right. They were influenced by public health concerns over diseases such as rickets and tuberculosis, and also concerned about providing unemployment relief through public works; concerns common to Berlin, Paris, London, New York and Los Angeles in the 1930s.

2.7 Parks, Places and Spaces in Santa Monica
The City of Santa Monica has a long and rich history of both public and private involvement in tree planting and the creation of public parks, places and spaces. One of the earliest tree plantings in the City of Santa Monica was the Moreton Bay Fig tree, planted on the grounds of the Miramar Hotel about 1890 by Santa Monica founder, Senator John P. Jones. The fig tree is one of the largest examples of its type in the state, and is a City of Santa Monica designated Landmark.

Palisades Park was the first officially designated public open space in the City. In 1892, the founder of Santa Monica, Senator John P. Jones and developer, Colonel Robert S. Baker donated the strip bordering the palisades from Colorado Avenue (previously Railroad Avenue) to Montana Avenue, to the City of Santa Monica on condition that the said strip be forever used as a public park. Five years later in 1897, the remaining bluff property from Montana Avenue north to Adelaide Drive was donated to the City by the Santa Monica Land and Water Company, of which Senator Jones was the Major Stockholder. Rows of eucalyptus and cypress trees bordering Ocean Avenue were the first plantings in the Park. Dirt pathways along the bluffs, down the center of the Park, and along Ocean Avenue, wound through wild grasses and brush.

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Historic engineering drawings indicate that Linda Vista Drive (now the California Incline Bridge) was completed during the first decade of the 1900s.38 In 1913, at the urging of Thomas W. Dudley (Mayor from 1911‐1916), the first plan of Palisades Park was proposed by landscape architect Le Grande. He proposed a formal European design, with walkways, planters, pergolas, fountains, and a brick wall to separate the park from the noise and dust of the street. However, the proposal for the brick wall failed as it was opposed by the Santa Monica Woman’s Club with the argument that it would eliminate the ocean views. 39 In 1915 the name of the Park was changed from Linda Vista Park (Spanish for “lovely view”) to Palisades Park. J. W.

Scott, builder of the Arcadia Hotel, contributed the funds for the planting of rows of eucalyptus and cypress trees bordering Ocean Avenue along the Park. In the early 1900s, the palisades were transformed into parkland. Improvements included wide walkways, new plantings, picturesque sunshades, and a rustic fence made of branches. Many of the early trees were provided by the new Park Commissioner, Edward H.

Sweetzer, who donated much of his salary toward the beautification of the landscape.40 A designated City Landmark, Palisades Park is a good example of the City Beautiful movement that incorporated some of the formal tenets of French Beaux‐Arts landscape style in the unity and harmony of its design, the axial layout, and the incorporation of key viewpoints.

Santa Monica contains several other parks, two of which also have historical associations. Lincoln Park (currently called Reed Park), like Palisades Park, was a gift of Senator Jones to the City. Located between Seventh and Eighth (now Lincoln) on Wilshire, the park is the site of the Miles Playhouse, a Santa Monica landmark designed by John Byers. Like Palisades Park, Reed Park was planted with eucalyptus trees in the early twentieth century. Douglas Park, at Chelsea and Wilshire, is known today for its lawn bowling facility.

The park also contains several reflecting pools near a shaded picnic area. The park is located on the former site of the Douglas Aircraft factory. In addition, parks throughout the city were planted during the first half of the twentieth century. Many of these tree plantings are still extant today.

An important place historically associated with Santa Monica is the Municipal Pier and Looff (Newcomb) Pier at the foot of Colorado Avenue, south of Palisades Park. The latest in the succession of pleasure piers and railroad wharves built in Santa Monica Bay, the present wood structure dates from 1921 and 1916 but has been substantially damaged in storms over the years and was subsequently rebuilt. The entrance is marked by a neon sign which forms an arch over a ramp extending from Colorado.

Other landscapes of note are the mature street trees lining many of Santa Monica’s residential streets and the median strips along San Vicente, Fourth Street and Adelaide Place. Street tree planting appears to have been part of City of Santa Monica planning beginning with the first subdivisions. As mentioned above, J. W. Scott financed the planting of eucalyptus trees along Ocean Avenue and Wilshire Boulevard. Early photographs also show palms planted along Wilshire Boulevard in the 1920s. Other early tree plantings include the rows of windbreaks, usually eucalyptus, originally used to shield crops from wind. However, many of the existing street trees were part of the postwar urban redevelopment of Santa Monica. The 1956 City of Santa Monica Master Plan included a five‐year tree planting program that sought to infill trees on those streets that were not planted. The program was continued with the 1962 Public Works Master Plan that mapped existing rows of street trees and made recommendations for a planting schedule to add trees to the few remaining

38 Jones & Stokes, Finding of Effect for the California Incline Bridge, p. 7. 39 Lunsford, “The Ocean and the sunset, the hills and the clouds looking at Santa Monica,” p. 9. 40 Basten, Palisades Park Panorama, pp. 12‐13.

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treeless streets. In addition to the trees, vintage lampposts occur along streets and in parks at several locations throughout Santa Monica and contribute substantially to the ambience of the City.

2.7 Santa Monica City Hall: Building and Landscape
The existing Santa Monica City Hall replaced the first City Hall, a Mission Revival style building formerly located on the corner of Fourth Street and Santa Monica Boulevard. In 1901, Santa Monica voters approved a bond measure of $35,000 to construct the first City Hall and jail. The Fourth and Santa Monica site was purchased by the city for $4,800. Designed by H.X. Goetz, the hall was dedicated on March 19, 1903, and was welcomed warmly by the public. Despite a remodeling project completed in 1912, the first city hall was soon deemed incapable of supporting a growing city staff as Santa Monica continued to expand through the 1920s and 1930s. City officials developed plans to replace the original city hall with a new, larger structure in 1924, but these plans were not approved. In 1938, a citizen’s committee was formed to work on the planning and financing of a new city hall. Working with city officials and the Chamber of Commerce, the committee devised a creative way to fund the project, by sale of the first city hall ($168,000), application for a federal grant, and increase in taxes ($28,000). With a budget of approximately $370,000, the committee began to plan for construction.41
The new city hall was to be built on eight acres of land purchased from the Southern Pacific Railway Company, for an amount of $60,000. The plot was the site of the city’s former freight depot for 60 years,42 which because of its barren appearance, was known as “no man’s land.”43 Review of Sanborn Maps and historic photographs provide information on the topography, condition, and use of the site at the turn of the century. A 1918 Sanborn Map shows the location of proposed Main Street, low land south of Colorado and a steep gulch in the area of the future City Hall site (Figure 5). Patten & Davies Lumber Co. was located at the corner of Colorado Avenue and 4th Streets. An area of “low land” ran along Colorado Avenue and south of Patten & Davies Lumber Co. The future City Hall site was the area of ground between the “low land” and a “steep gulch,” which at the turn of the century was occupied by the Pacific Electric Railway Company’s Freight House, Olson Lumber Company sheds and yard, and a vacant motion picture studio. The Braun Bryant & Austin Asphalt Paving & Cement Contractors was located along the east side of the “steep gulch” near 4th Street. The area south of the future City Hall site was mostly vacant land at the time. The Pacific Planing Mill was located along 4th Street to the northeast. Commercial and residential development was concentrated along Ocean Avenue to the west and Pico Boulevard to the south. A 1920s photograph depicts the vicinity of the future City Hall site at the time (Figure 6). A 1950 Sanborn map shows the dramatic change that occurred in this area during the 1920s‐1940s, with the construction of Main Street Bridge, Olympic Boulevard and the Santa Monica City Hall. The triangle of land between Colorado Avenue and Olympic Boulevard had been occupied by Sears Roebuck & Company, and the Veteran’s Temporary Housing Project was located on the open land across Main Street west of City Hall (Figure 7).

The PWA Moderne‐style Santa Monica City Hall was designed in 1938 by prominent Los Angeles architects, Joseph M. Estep, and Donald B. Parkinson. The construction of the Santa Monica City Hall was begun in 1938 and completed in late 1939 by contractors, Campbell and Kelly, and totaled $168,000.44 The project was

41 Historic Resources Group, Santa Monica City Hall, Historic Structure Report (January 17, 2003). 42 Ibid.
43 “Santa Monica to Dedicate $370,000 City Hall Today,” Los Angeles Times, Nov. 25, 1939, p. 6. 44 12‐27‐1938, original permit for construction of City Hall, Permit No. B444, three stories, concrete exterior walls, and 132 rooms.

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largely funded by the federal government’s New Deal‐era Public Works Administration (PWA) program, with the remaining funds coming from city taxes and the property sale of the original City Hall on Fourth Street and Broadway. The application for the PWA grant was submitted in February, 1937.45 PWA projects commonly incorporated many building and design trades on each project, including masonry, woodwork, tile work and metalwork, sculpture and mural painting, in addition to employing artists and artisans who designed and constructed these decorative arts. Artist Stanton Macdonald‐Wright painted interior murals in the building and the Gladding McBean Company supplied the decorative tile.

Construction of the new city hall began in late 1938, continuing on through the summer and autumn of 1939.46 According to newspaper accounts of the time, removal of the Pacific Electric’s freight tracks from the new site for the Santa Monica City Hall delayed the excavation for the foundations of the new building. To speed the process, crews of men from the Pacific Electric worked overtime to raze the freight depot and loading platform from its foundations, and rip up the rails on the spur track. The north end of the new building covered much of the ground formerly occupied by the freight depot.47 Because of the topography of the site, extensive grading and site preparation was necessary, as is documented in historic photographs (Figure 8). Furthermore, the foundation preparations and construction process necessary to complete the reinforced concrete building were substantial. By late November, the building was complete and ready for dedication, with construction and engineering costs totaling approximately $297,000. Grading and landscaping costs were $12,484, less than five percent of the construction budget,48 with the primary effort going into the grading and preparation of the site for construction. It can be assumed from the construction budget and overall costs that there was little remaining funding available for landscaping the site. The building is constructed of reinforced concrete and occupies approximately 40,000 square feet. Historic photographs of City Hall shortly after completion in 1939 show the building fronted by a freshly sodded lawn and relatively austere grounds surrounding the structure (Figures 9 and 10). The existing concrete sidewalks had been installed, the planters at the front entrance were freshly planted, and palm trees were planted northwest of the building. Early furnishings included wood benches along the main entrance walk and along the front of the building; an additional palm was located at the southwest corner of the lawn. The Santa Monica City Hall was dedicated on November 24, 1939, under the democratic principles of “truth, liberty and tolerance,” which are stated in the dedication plaque imbedded in the pavement before the front steps of the building. The building’s completion was hailed as a victory for cooperative action, as well as the result of integrated efforts between residents, officials and the Federal government.

No original site plan or planting plan was found among the architectural plans obtained by PCR from the Parkinson Archives. However, the original building plans do show the concrete planters that flank the front entrance to the building and are still extant (Figure 11). A 1939 post card depicts an idealized view of Santa Monica City Hall at the time of its dedication (Figure 12). Historic photographs made shortly after the building was completed show an open landscape with a freshly sodded grass lawn and symmetrically laid out concrete sidewalks for pedestrian circulation, which is still extant. Prior to the building’s dedication, two tall Mexican Fan Palms were planted in the recessed court along the south elevation (Figure 13), which may have been moved from the Old City Hall. The palm trees, even the sod that once beautified the old city hall

45 “City Hall Dedicated: State and Federal Officials Join in Santa Monica Ceremony,” Los Angeles Times, Nov. 26, 1939, p. B12. 46 Historic Resources Group, Santa Monica City Hall, Historic Structure Report (January 17, 2003). 47 “Excavation for City Hall Delayed,” Evening Outlook, December 5, 1938. 48 Ibid.

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site were moved to the new civic center location.49 A 1939 photograph also depicts a large rectangular planting bed filled with a simple field of daisies at the front entrance to City Hall; the bed of daisies occupied the same location as the existing Rose Garden, and were presumably planted for the building’s dedication (Figure 14). It was reported at the time, “Today the site is being transformed into a park—a garden linking Santa Monica and Ocean Park.”50 Another article reported, “This building, finished only a few weeks ago, houses Santa Monica’s municipal government and marks the fruition of a dream of civic leaders for many years past—that the waste area formerly known as ‘no man’s land’ might be transferred into a beautiful civic center, now rapidly assuming form through clever landscaping.”51 Other early landscape plantings during 1940 included symmetrically laid out decorative foundation plantings (shrubs and hedges) as well as ornamental shrubs, trees and more palm trees (Figures 15, 16 and 17). Their location, scale and texture accentuated the classical symmetry and visual prominence of City Hall’s monumental architecture. In addition, there were decorative foundation plantings around the building in the rear courtyard (east) and around the Jail wing. Three Canary Island Date Palms were planted at the northeast corner of the parking area north of the Jail. Historic photographs also shows that landscape plantings and fencing were originally used to define the northern border of the site, including a curved row of Mexican Fan Palms (extant) and a concrete fence along the sidewalk from the corner of the site to the Main Street Bridge (removed). The two benches were symmetrically placed along the east side of the lateral front sidewalk. Two other benches were symmetrically placed along the main entrance walkway.

Over years as funds became available and the impetus to beautify the grounds of City Hall was felt among civic leaders and the community, various landscape improvements around the building were completed which have resulted in the landscape setting we see today. The first change occurred in 1951, when a rose garden was planted in front of the entrance as a memorial to local men killed in war. Dedicated on Armistice Day, 1951, the rose garden still provides a space for remembrance and reflection.52 Historic photographs show the 1950s appearance of the City Hall landscape (Figures 18‐21). The front façade of City Hall was articulated by two rows of five original Windmill Palms. Well manicured foundation hedges were planted between the Windmill Palms, and flanked the concrete planters at the front entrance. A widely spaced row of six manicured ornamental shrubs lined the lawn on the east side of the lateral front sidewalk at the front of the building. The front entrance was flanked by four Junipers, and the planting boxes also contained manicured low‐profile shrubs or hedges. The two original bench furnishings were still in place, symmetrically placed along the east side of the lateral front sidewalk. Two other original bench furnishings were symmetrically placed along the main entrance walkway, facing the rose garden. Narrow, linear planting beds containing symmetrically organized low‐profile ornamental plantings bordered the north and south lawns along the main entrance walk. Three features similar to bollards or posts appear to have been located temporarily at the west end of the rose garden, but are not clearly distinguishable in the historic photos (Figure 18). An ornamental tree was located at the northwest corner of the building. Three ornamental trees lined the lawn along the south side of the Council parking lot, and an additional ornamental tree was planted along the edge of the lawn north of the Council parking lot. A gracefully curving row of

49 “Ornate City Hall Turned Into Ghostly Ruins at Santa Monica,” Los Angeles Times, Jan. 6, 1939, p. 14. 50 “Santa Monica to Dedicate $370,000 City Hall Today,” Los Angeles Times, Nov. 25, 1939. 51 “S.M. City Government House in Fine Structure, Civic Center Plans Carried to Fruition During Past Years,” Evening Outlook, November 22, 1940, p. 22 top.
52 “CityHall War Memorial Dedication to Highlight Observance of Armistice Day,” Evening Outlook, November 8, 1951, p. 19.

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Mexican Fan Palms lined the brow of the hill overlooking Olympic Boulevard. The steeply‐graded hill was terraced with what appear to be retaining walls and planted with decorative annuals/perennials in a regularized pattern that included a well‐manicured centerpiece with the words “City Hall.” A sidewalk along Olympic Boulevard entered the City Hall site at its northeastern corner, providing access to the rear, east courtyard of the building. The Council parking lot was located at the building’s north court and featured three Canary Island Date Palms. There was an oval traffic circle in the rear east court and additional parking behind the building. The borders of the site were planted with lawns and improved with concrete sidewalks.

The south elevation featured two very tall Mexican Fan Palms.

A gift of friendship and appreciation was taking root in the Santa Monica City Hall gardens on November 29, 1955, after a thousand tulip bulbs from the Netherlands were planted there. The tulips, an entirely new strain, were named for the city by the donors, Piet van den Bleenhoven, local importer and Santa Monica resident, and his associates in Holland, the Bergers brothers of Lisne. Van den Bleenhoven explained that it all started at the end of World War II with the liberation of Holland from the Nazis. The Dutch people had a great feeling of appreciation toward America, and one such person was C. M. Bergers, a veteran bulb grower, who visited Santa Monica in 1944. He was so impressed with the climate and beauty of Santa Monica, that he named one of his outstanding novelties after the city. Permission for the naming was given by the City Council and after more years of development the first bulbs finally arrived. The flower was a bright cherry red and sturdier than previous varieties.53
Changes to the City Hall building have resulted in substantial alterations to the site and landscape on the east side (rear) of City Hall. In 1958 a major 27,000 square‐foot addition was attached to the rear of City Hall, between the Jail and the Fire Department wings. The addition was designed by J. Harold Melstrom to function as offices and expanded jail facilities for the Police Department.54 The three‐story brick masonry addition was connected to the north and south wings of the original building, obscuring the original east elevation of the building and demolishing original landscape features behind the building including the traffic oval; however, a 50‐by‐120‐foot courtyard was left between the wings between the original rear elevation and the new addition to the east.55 The Santa Monica Police Department moved into the new $438,00 City Hall Annex on June 3, 1959. The basement of the annex contained a pistol range, and the building contained new jail facilities to relieve the overcrowding which frequently existed at the old jail. The old jail facilities, however, remained in use.56 Additional remodeling of the police buildings occurred in 1966.57
A 1958 photo showing the front façade of City Hall (Figure 22) suggests the landscaping was also refurbished around this time, probably in conjunction with the overall Civic Center improvements. The narrow planting beds along the main entrance walk were taken out and replaced with an evenly‐spaced row of well‐ manicured small ornamental trees. The four original Junipers in the planting boxes flanking the front

53 “Dutch Friendship Tulips Will Beautify City Hall,” Evening Outlook, November 29, 1955, p. 11. 54 “$175,000 City Hall Addition Given Approval, Architect Authorized To Draw Up Plans,” Evening Outlook, April 24, 1957, p. 1. 55 “City Hall Building Plan Aired,” Evening Outlook, Sept. 11, 1957, p. 1‐2. 56 “Santa Monica Police Dept. Move Into New $438,000 City Hall Annex,” Evening Outlook, June 3, 1959, p. 23. 57 07‐23‐1958, Permit No. B24341, Architect: J.A Melstrom, Contractor: Cal‐Western Construction, Inc., addition of police building, three stories, masonry and concrete walls, concrete floor joists. 10‐21‐1966, Permit No. B38590, Architect: Santa Monica Department of Engineering, Contractor: Motz Engineering, remodeling of police buildings, removal and relocation of interior walls, electrical and plumbing work.

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entrance may also have been trimmed back or replaced at this time and two additional coniferous shrubs appearing to be Yews were introduced in the planters.

Esther McCoy lamented the Civic Center development’s impact on the City Hall landscape in 1962, “a small disaster went almost unnoticed at the very door of the Santa Monica council chambers. Gardens and old parking lots were ripped up and a continuous floor of asphalt was poured. This is what we got in place of the garden and old landscaped parking slots: 91 new spaces. In two or three years this will be inadequate. Then what?”58
Grace Heintz provides us with a narrative description of the landscape plantings on the City Hall site in 1976, in which she characterizes the appearance of the building and landscape at the time and provides specific information on the species and locations of the plantings:

Balanced symmetry is the keynote in plantings at the City Hall. Along the street curb in front grows a line of Podocarpus macrophylla var. maki. In the lawn north of the rear parking entrance, near the bridge over the freeway, stands a magnificent clump of Yucca elephantipes. A row of Washintgonia robusta (Mexican Fan Palm) lines the crest of the freeway cut. Farther back in the parking lot north of the building are 3 Canary Island Date Palms (Phoenix canariensis). Three Carobs (Ceratonia siliqua) line the south side of the parking lot. A bunya‐bunya (Araucaria bidwillii) stands at the northwest corner of the building. Along the north wall are Yew pines (Podocarpus macrophylla), with Bird‐of‐Paradise (Strelitzia regiane) and a bank of Natal Plum (Carissa macrocarpa).

The western façade has matching quintets of Windmill Palms (Trachycarpus fortune), and four fine Hollywood Junipers (Juniperus chinensis ‘Kaizuka’) flank the main entrance, matched by an equally happy pair at the street end of the entrance walkway. Along the south face of the building are more Yew pines, compact trees with slender leaves four to five inches long; Bird‐of‐Paradise with conspicuous orange and blue flowers; New Zealand Flax (Phormium tenax), with six‐foot sword‐line leaves; Green Dracena (Cordyline australis); and very tall Mexican Fan Palms. Carobs line the border of the parking lot, between the lot and the street are two elegant clumps of Senegal Date Palm (Phoenix reclinata) and a small Olive tree (Olea europea).59 Photographs in the City’s 1974‐1975 annual report (Figures 23 and 24) are a useful companion to the above description. The large exotic tree at the northwest corner of City Hall is the Bunya‐bunya (Araucaria bidwillii) described by Heintz and is estimated to be around 50 years old but was not part of original 1930s design. The Hollywood Junipers Heintz described at the Main Street end of the entrance walkway are depicted in the 1974‐1975 photographs. Based upon their appearance in the 1974‐1975 photos it is likely the Junipers were planted about 40 years ago and were not a part of the original 1930s design.60 A flag pole was installed in the rose garden prior to 1974‐1975. By this time, the narrow planting beds bordering the

58 Esther McCoy, “Santa Monica’s Inspiration Point—It’s at End of the Line,” Los Angeles Times, Oct. 28, 1962, p. 4. 59 George T. Hastings, Trees of Santa Monica, revised and rewritten by Grace Heintz (Santa Monica: Friends of the Santa Monica Library, 1976), 18.
60 A photograph showing a tree planting at city hall in 1949 on the north side by council parking shows the Bunya‐bunya was not yet planted at the time. The tree is estimated to be about 50 years of age by City staff. Personal communication, Randy Little, Public Landscape Staff to Scott Albright, Planning Staff, City of Santa Monica.

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main entrance walk had been replanted and the ca. 1958 ornamental trees removed from that location. Five Carob trees lined the lawn at southern edge of the site. The substantial 1958 additions to the east side of City Hall are depicted in Figure 23, along with the parking area expansion to the east in the location of the former lawn. A very large deciduous tree was located behind City Hall at the northeast corner of the addition. Three small ornamental trees lined the north edge of the expanded parking area. A manicured hedge existed at the brow of the hill overlooking the freeway in the location of the former Olympic Boulevard. The hedge followed the curved line created by the original Mexican Fan Palms at the crest of the hill, and the Canary Island Date Palms at the northeast corner of the Council parking area were still extant. There were plantings in the central court (east court) and along the south side of the building, but the types of plantings are not discernable from the photographs. The two tall Mexican Fan Palms along the south elevation and the ten Windmill Palms along the west elevation of City Hall continued to articulate the exterior facades. A row of street trees had been introduced along the west edge of Main Street side walk.

In 1977, another addition to the City Hall building was completed to accommodate police department expansion with a new locker room, sauna, and whirlpool. Concrete ramps were added to the front and rear entrances of the building to provide for disability access. 61 The North and South gardens along the front of City Hall were altered in 1982 with the creation of succulent gardens. Most of the plantings in the gardens along the front of City Hall were removed at the time with the exception of the Windmill palms (Figures 25, 26 and 27).62 The North Garden, situated along the front of the building north of the main entrance, was again replanted in 1992 with plants uniquely suited to Santa Monica’s soil and climate, creating an ideal habitat for indigenous birds, butterflies and other beneficial insects. According to the marker in the garden, it is a California‐friendly garden, requiring little water or fertilizer and only quarterly maintenance.

The rear 1958 and 1977 additions were later removed and a new separate, detached police headquarters building constructed behind City Hall in 2003. Thereafter, the historic appearance of the east elevation of City Hall was largely restored. The new 117,000 square foot Public Safety Building houses the police and fire departments as well as jail facilities. Contemporary in design, it is the first major facility in Santa Monica built with the intent of minimizing its lifecyle impact on the natural environment while providing for the health and comfort of the building’s occupants.63 It is interesting to note that during excavation for the new Public Safety Building, bulldozers hit a giant six‐foot‐square concrete box with a system of pipes running through and around it. Because of visible oil residue, city historians speculated the box may have held crude oil to power the old Southern Pacific Railroad steam engines at the Main Street and Colorado Avenue Depot during the 1920s and was left behind in the 1930s when the canyon was filled with dirt.64

61 9‐13‐1977, Permit No. B50200, Architect: Don M. Ramos, Contractor: Hal Summers, new locker room, sauna and whirlpool for police department, measures 52’2” x 21’9,” one –story, frame and stucco exterior walls, total floor area of 3,552 square feet. 06‐29‐1982, Permit No. 55207, Architect: Niver Engineering, Contractor: Hal Summers, addition to second floor of police department building.
07‐25‐1983, Permit No. 56047, Architect: City of Santa Monica Engineering Division, Contractor, B.P Kent Company Inc., construction of concrete ramp at north wing of the hallway in the main city hall building. 62 Personal communication, Scott Albright, Planning Department, City of Santa Monica. 63 http://www.smgov.net/Departments/OSE/Categories/Green_Building/Public_Safety_Building.aspx (accessed 2/3/2011); http://www.calrecycle.ca.gov/Greenbuilding/CaseStudies/Public/SMPubSafety.htm (accessed 2/3/2011); 64 “Striking oil, No It’s not a new well—construction crews building the new police station have uncovered a piece of Santa Monica history,” Our Times, December 12, 1999, p. 2.

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The southern border of the City Hall site features a recently completed contemporary landscape which appears to be associated with the new Public Safety facility and the recently improved streetscape along Olympic Drive. This contemporary landscape consists of a tall hedge at the south end of City Hall, wide swaths of succulent plantings, and a row of street trees along Olympic Drive.

ADA access improvements and reconfiguration of the entrances on the south elevation of the historic Jail are a part of the current Jail Retrofit project, and a new utility room to support the reuse of the historic Jail as a data center has recently been completed at the southeast corner of City Hall.

2.8 Santa Monica City Hall Landscape: Events and Public Use The dedication of the new Santa Monica City Hall took place on November 25, 1939, amidst great patriotic feeling and community pride in “the fulfillment of a long‐cherished municipal dream.” The total reported cost for the project announced at the dedication ceremony was $370,000. More than 5,000 persons thronged the “newly sodded lawn.” Numerous speakers including national, state and city officials and Southland executives occupied the speaker’s platform at the main entrance. Mayor Edmund S. Gillette declared the new Civic Center would “weld all sections of the city into one community,” and Kenneth Godwin, P.W.A. western director, reviewed the P.W.A. role in financing the project, beginning with the grant application in February, 1937. Dedication rituals were conducted by the Santa Monica Elks Lodge and the Santa Monica Bay Parlor of the Native Sons. The Elks Lodge presented an American Flag, and Sheriff Eugene Biscailuz presented a California Bear Flag on behalf of the Native Sons. The Native Sons also placed a plaque in front of the main entrance, dedicating the city hall “to the principles of truth, Liberty, and tolerance.”65 The Santa Monica Chapters of the Daughters of the American Revolution presented a flag, and the Veterans Service League conducted the flag raising ceremony. Program speakers included U.S. District Attorney Ben Harrison, J.F.T. O’Connor, former United States Comptroller, Leo Carillo, and former Representative John Dockweiler.66 Jimmy Wallington, master of ceremonies, introduced Donald Parkinson and Joseph M. Estep, architects; G. F. Campbell of the Campbell Kelly Co., contractors; Horatio W. Bishop, resident engineer for P.W.A.; Fred Jarbo, City Inspector; Representative Leland M. Ford; Sherriff Eugene Biscailuz; Oscar Hague; Mayor Bowron of Los Angeles; and Postmaster Phillip T. Hill of Santa Monica.67 A five‐day Fete to honor Santa Monica’s 75th birthday was held on July 12‐16, 1950. The opening ceremony took place on the City Hall steps where the Jubilee Queen, after disembarking from her helicopter at City Hall, was greeted by her court of ladies‐in‐waiting and city officials. A variety of public events were held throughout the city including a lifeguard rescue demonstration, the opening concert and coronation, world’s largest square dance, numerous displays and exhibits, street dancing and entertainment, a parade, a great variety of tournaments, a folk dance festival, a muscle beach athletic show, and several theatrical plays and musical concerts.68
Dedication of a Civic Center rose garden in memory of Santa Monica war dead and the traditional street corner taps ceremonies in tribute to the fallen war heroes highlighted Santa Monica’s observance of Armistice Day in November 1951. A feature of the rose garden program, sponsored by the Santa Monica Bay Chapter, Gold Star Mothers, was the public unveiling of a bronze marker in front of City Hall. A number of

65 “New City Hall Dedicated to Principles of Democracy and Americanism in Government,” Evening Outlook, November 25, 1939, p. 2. 66 “City Hall Dedicated: State and Federal Officials Join in Santa Monica Ceremony,” Los Angeles Times, Nov. 26, 1939, p. B12. 67 “Santa Monica to Dedicate $370,000 City Hall Today,” Los Angeles Times, Nov. 25, 1939, p. 6. 68 “Diamond Jubilee Celebration Starts Wednesday, Queen’s Arrival to Open Colorful Observance of City’s 75th Birthday,” Evening Outlook, July 8, 1950, p. 5.

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veterans organizations and civic officials were in attendance. Mayor Russell K. Hart spoke at the dedication, which included songs by mother‐singers and placing of flowers by veterans organizations in memory of the men and women who sacrificed their lives in defense of their country.69 Beginning in 1956, the City Council decreed that Santa Monica’s Christmas Flag should fly below the American and California state flags from the morning after the lighting of the Santa Monica Nativity Scenes until the end of the year. The original flag, a handmade replica of a 14th‐Century flag, was a gift of former resident, Actress Joan Wilcoxon and her husband Henry, who formerly staged Christmas plays at Miles Playhouse and later at the Civic Auditorium during the 1950s. Due to potential hazards to workmen, the flagpole was moved from atop the City Hall to the east lawn in the early 1970s.70 During the latter part of the twentieth century and continuing until the present time, the City Hall landscape has been the cultural and social center of city government. For example, in 1987 the city symbolically renamed the access roads around City Hall in honor of Santa Monica’s three sister cities: Fuji, Japan; Hamm, West Germany; and Mazatlan, Mexico. Large blue and white street signs were installed surrounding City hall, topped with the crests of the cities they honored, and under the city names the sister city connection was noted in smaller print. Mayor Pro Tempore Herb Katz officiated at the unveiling ceremony that was attended by 14 Fuji residents visiting Santa Monica through the auspices of the Chamber of Commerce and the Santa Monica Sister Cities Association.71
The continued social role of the landscape is documented in an article in the Outlook on June 22, 1989, which reported that a Santa Monica feeding program drawing more than 300 homeless people nightly was being transferred to the front lawn of City Hall from Palisades Park. The City’s role was to provide a public space for the program while a volunteer citizens group operated the feeding program.72 Again in 1994, the landscape served a social and political function as the location for a 10‐week sleep‐in on the City Hall lawn in demonstration against Santa Monica’s park closure law of 1993, which closed the city parks at night.73 Again more recently, the City Hall landscape was the location for another political demonstration. Several hundred high school students, university students, church groups and community members from all over Los Angeles county slept outside on the lawns of City Hall on behalf of the invisible children of northern Uganda who are abducted and forced to fight as soldiers.74

69 “City Hall War Memorial Dedication to Highlight Observance of Armistice,” Evening Outlook, November 8, 1951, p. 19. 70 “Christmas Flag to Fly Over SM City Hall,” Dec. 3, 1965, Evening Outlook, p. 25; “Christmas Flag Gets Relocated,” Evening Outlook, Dec. 18, 1972, p. 11
71 “Sister cities get sign of respect, SM renames City Hall access roads,” Evening Outlook, June 19, 1987, p. A3. 72 “SM Food Program Relocated, Meals to be Served on City Hall Lawn,” The Outlook, June 22, 1989, p. B1. 73 “Homeless end long City Hall protest,” The Outlook, August 26, 1993, p. B1. 74 “Camping Out for Invisible Children,” Santa Monica Mirror, May 4, 2006.

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Figure 4. Vicinity of City Hall in 1895 (Sanborn Map, Santa Monica, 1895, Sheet 10) Character Defining Features Analysis   April  2011
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Figure 5. Future City Hall site in 1918, showing former Olson Lumber Co. on future City Hall site with proposed Main Street to west, low land to north, and steep gulch to southeast (Sanborn Map, Santa Monica, 1918, Sheet 17)
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Figure 6. View showing area of “low land” northeast of Colorado Boulevard and Ocean Avenue, with Pacific Electric car traveling west through arroyo; future City Hall site is on high land to south on right side of photo, and Patten & Davies Lumber Co. appears to north in background (Santa Monica Public Library Image Archives)
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Figure 7. City Hall site in 1950, showing Olympic Boulevard and Sears Roebuck Co. to north, Private Street to south, and Veteran’s Temporary Housing Project to west. (Sanborn Map, Santa Monica, 1950, Sheet 17)
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Figure 8. City Hall under construction, November 16, 1939 (Santa Monica Public Library Image Archives) Character Defining Features Analysis   April  2011
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Figure 9. City Hall, 1939, view to northeast, showing new concrete sidewalks, freshly planted concrete planters flanking the front entrance, and palm trees at north border of site (Santa Monica Public Library Image Archives)
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Figure 10. City Hall, 1939, showing freshly sodded front lawn and concrete sidewalks; planters at front entrance are still empty; two palm trees appear northwest of the building; furnishings include wood benches along the main entrance walk and along the front of the building; an additional palm was located at the southwest corner of the lawn
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Figure 11. First Floor Plan, Santa Monica City Hall, August 4, 1939 (Donald B. Parkinson and J. M. Estep Associated Architects)
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Figure 12. Post Card, 1939, depicting New City Hall, Santa Monica, California (Santa Monica Public Library Image Archives)
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Figure 13. New City Hall, November 23, 1939, prior to dedication (Los Angeles Public Library) April 2011   Character Defining Features Analysis
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Figure 14. City Hall Entrance, 1939, showing daisies in planting bed at front entrance, concrete planters flanking front entrance (still unplanted), and brick steps to entrance (Santa Monica Public Library Image Archives)
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Figure 15. City Hall, 1940, showing palms planted along south elevation and at southeast corner of building, decorative foundation plantings in the rear courtyard, and palm tree was planted at northeast corner of the parking area north of the Jail (City of Santa Monica).

Figure 16. City Hall, ca. 1940, plantings at northwest corner of building (City of Santa Monica).

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Figure 17. Historic appearance of Santa Monica City Hall, ca. 1940‐1941, after landscaping had been completed (Santa Monica Public Library Image Archives)

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Figure 18. Santa Monica City Hall, February 6, 1956 (Fairchild Aerial Surveys) April 2011   Character Defining Features Analysis
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Figure 19. Santa Monica City Hall prior to 1958 alterations (Courtesy City of Santa Monica) Character Defining Features Analysis   April  2011
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Figure 20. City Hall during the 1950s (Courtesy City of Santa Monica) April 2011   Character Defining Features Analysis
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Figure 21. City Hall during the 1950s (Santa Monica Public Library Image Archives) Character Defining Features Analysis   April  2011
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Figure 22. City Hall, 1958, showing Rose Garden, front entrance and landscaping at the time (Santa Monica Public Library)
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Figure 23. Aerial View, City Hall in 1975 (Annual Report for the Fiscal Year 1974‐1975) Character Defining Features Analysis   April  2011
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Figure 24. City Hall in 1975, view to north (Annual Report for the Fiscal Year 1974‐1975) April 2011   Character Defining Features Analysis
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Figure 25. City Hall entrance, ca. 1982, before the installation of the succulent garden (Los Angeles Public Library)
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Figure 26. City Hall entrance, 1983 (Los Angeles Public Library) April 2011   Character Defining Features Analysis
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Figure 27. City Hall showing succulent gardens, view to south (Santa Monica Public Library) Character Defining Features Analysis   April  2011
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3.0  CHARACTER DEFINING FEATURES ANALYSIS
The existing landscape setting associated with the City Hall site is associated with several important historical themes developed above, including the history of the communities of Santa Monica and Ocean Park; Transportation Improvements in Santa Monica; the City Beautiful Movement; Moderne Architecture; the work of notable architects Parkinson and Estep; Landscape Architecture; development of public Parks, Places and Spaces in Santa Monica; the design and construction history of Santa Monica City Hall: Building and Landscape; and the cultural and social history of Santa Monica City Hall Landscape: Events and Public Use. The landscape has two primary periods of significance, 1939‐1940 for architecture and design, and 1938‐1957 for cultural, social and political history and historic personages associated with the site. If we apply the National Register guidelines, the period of significance for architecture and design is 1939‐1940, and for history, 1939‐1961, due to the 50‐year threshold. The integrity of the pedestrian circulation system and layout is high. However, the integrity of the historic landscape has been impacted by alterations to the City Hall building and landscape beginning in 1958, as discussed above; therefore, the period of significance must be restricted to 1938‐1957. Under the National Register, later landscape improvements may attain significance under Criterion A for their association with history or events and may be evaluated for significance as contributing features once they reach the 50‐year threshold.

Existing Description
The City Hall building dominates the broad, relatively symmetrical and formal landscape which visually supports the structure’s monumentality and prominence on the site. The building exterior is an example of the 1930s PWA Moderne style of architecture, which emphasized balanced massing, smooth lines, symmetrical fenestration, faceted corners, and the use of understated decorative elements. The architectural composition of City Hall consists of a three‐story central pavilion flanked by two‐and‐a‐half story symmetrical wings. The building’s distinctive architectural features include the stepped and faceted mass, stylized vertical fluting, horizontal streamline detailing, a variety of decorative ornamental features and tile work. The foot print, scale, form, balanced massing, classical proportions and concrete masonry construction of the building are the primary architectural and design characteristics that have a direct relationship with the landscape setting. The projecting central pavilion, the L‐shaped wings to the north and south with recessed courts, a rear U‐shaped courtyard to the east, and the faceted treatment of the building’s corners, all directly influence the figure/ground relationship of the architecture with the surrounding landscape. Likewise, the site layout, design, and proportions of the various landscape components relates directly to the building’s footprint, scale, massing, design composition, and distinctive monumental architecture.

The City Hall is oriented facing west toward Main Street and is situated in the center of a generally flat site which consists of approximately 6.24 acres (Figures 3 and 28). The existing setting for Santa Monica City Hall is defined by its open character and symmetrical organization which presently appears much as it did during the historic period (1938‐1957). The landscape setting is distinguished by an expansive front lawn that encompasses the majority of the western front of the site. The symmetrical layout of the sidewalks, planters and planting beds reinforces the architectural design of the PWA Moderne City Hall, and the original Palm tree plantings still enliven the west and south facades of the building and define the northern border of the site.

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Original concrete sidewalks provide for pedestrian circulation across the City Hall site and around the building. The centrally located entrance walk provides pedestrian access to the main entrance of City Hall from Main Street. The entrance walk consists of two similar east‐to‐west sidewalks consisting of three rows of concrete squares each, with squares measuring approximately four feet square. The entrance walk intersects at its east and west ends with two sidewalks that cross the site from north to south, along Main Street on the west and the front of City Hall on the east. The entrance walk is bordered by original eight‐inch brick pavers laid in two rows flush with the surface of the side walk. The brick border runs along the outer edge of the entrance walk, curving outward at the west end of the walk; at the east end of the entrance walk the brick border continues across the sidewalk fronting City Hall and along the edge of the concrete planters at the front of the building to the brick entrance steps. A similar brick treatment borders the Planting Bed at Main Entrance. Additional sidewalks traverse the outer north and south edges of the front lawn, continue along the north and south elevations of City Hall, curving around the corners of the building and the recessed courts at the sides and at the back of the building. It appears the original sidewalks have been retained to a large extent. Where damage or deterioration has occurred or alterations were necessary, especially behind the building, the concrete squares have been largely replaced in kind. The integrity of the pedestrian circulation and layout is high.

Two concrete planters flank the main entrance to City Hall. The planters are original to the building and appear on the historic building plans and photographs. The concrete planter south of the entrance has been altered for a concrete ADA ramp. The integrity of the north planter is intact.

The main front entrance as well as the original secondary entrances on the side and rear elevations of the building are largely intact. The front entrance consists of concrete steps and a concrete landing with decorative brick edging. The secondary entrances have concrete steps and landings. The existing pipe railings at the entrances are not depicted in the historic photographs and appear to be later additions, and they are compatible with the architectural character of City Hall. The original Main Entrance and the majority of the original secondary entrances are largely intact, except for the addition of ADA ramps at the front and rear of the building.

Among the first plantings on the site were palm trees, which are still extant. Two Mexican Fan Palms were planted along the south elevation of the building in November 1939, and in a curved row at the northern border of the property. Windmill Palms were planted in 1939‐1940 along the foundation at the west front of the building. Canary Island Date Palms were planted at the northeast corner of the Council parking area.

Foundation plantings were first installed in 1939 after the building was completed. Initial plantings occurred in November and December for the City Hall dedication, and additional plantings were installed during the following year, as indicated in the historic photographs. Over the years as the plantings matured and tastes changed, the plantings and gardens were replaced. Comparison of the historic photographs with the existing conditions shows that most of the original plantings are no longer extant, with the exception of the original palms; however, the planting beds remain in their original locations and are contributing features.

The 1939 rectangular planting bed in the entrance walk is an original landscape feature of the City Hall site, as documented in the historic photographs. There is an original four‐inch concrete curb around the rectangular garden bed. The bed is surrounded by a rectangular grass border. There is an original six‐inch concrete curb around the grass border. Original eight‐inch brick pavers laid in two rows and flush with the Character Defining Features Analysis   April  2011
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surface of the side walk form a border around the outer edges of the concrete curb, bordering the entrance walk. The garden contains a relocated metal flagpole set in a concrete base. A row of regularly placed noncontributing concrete‐block stepping stones in the rose bed provide access from the grass border to the relocated flag pole. Noncontributing lighting fixtures in the planting bed light the flagpole at night.

There are two symmetrical planting beds that flank the main entrance walk at its outer north and south edges. They are long rectangular beds which retain original 1939 six‐inch concrete curbing along the edges of the entrance walk. However, the other edges of the planting beds are bordered with non‐original L‐ shaped concrete edging blocks. The planting beds contain symmetrically planted junipers which are non‐ contributing later additions. The other plantings are later replacements and are also noncontributing.

Ornamental tree plantings occurred during the 1940s along the sidewalks bordering the front lawn, however relatively few of these trees are still remaining today. Two Carob trees still exist in their original locations at the north entrance to the front lawn from the parking lot; one of the two trees appears to be an original planting while the other appears to be a later replacement. A large Bunya‐Bunya tree planted during the late 1950s or 1960s is located in the North Garden, at the northwest corner of the City Hall building; it was described by Grace Heintz in 1976 and was mature at that time. Other tree plantings appear to have occurred more recently along the border of the lawn surrounding the parking lot and are non‐contributing.

The main entrance features a large rose garden flanked by symmetrical entrance walks. Known as the Veterans Rose Garden (1951), this is a contributing landscape feature important for its historical associations with site and not as a design element. It contains 52 rose bushes regularly spaced in four rows with 13 bushes in each row. Two markers are located in the rose bed, symmetrically placed at each end of the rose garden: (1) the concrete marker at the east end of the rose bed has a bronze plaque upon which is inscribed the following words, “This Rose Garden is dedicated in loving memory of those men of our community who have given their lives in the service of our country. November 11, 1951. The Gold Star Mothers. The City of Santa Monica;” (2) the concrete marker at the west end of the rose bed has a concrete plaque upon which is inscribed these words, “Erected by the Sons of the Revolution in the State of California in memory of distinguished member Eugene Warren Biscailuz 1883‐1969 A Peace Officer for Los Angeles County For Half a Century Memorial Day 1970.” The second marker is a non‐contributing addition to the rose garden, reflecting the garden’s continued function as a community memorial in the 1970s.

Character Defining Features
The result of the landscape analysis is illustrated on Figure 28, which identifies existing contributing historic landscape features dating from between 1938‐1939 when the initial landscaping effort was completed for the City Hall dedication ceremony, and continuing through 1940 when most of the original improvements to the City Hall landscape were completed. Figure 28 also includes contributing landscape improvements made during the 1940s‐1950s, prior to the 1958 alteration of City Hall, which marks the end of the period of significance for the historic landscape. The fully developed historic appearance of the landscape is depicted on historic Figures 18 and 19, prior to the 1958 additions to City Hall. Since 1958, there have been two changes to the landscape which have attained significance and are contributing features. The first is the Bunya‐Bunya tree planted at the northwest corner of City Hall during the late 1950s or 1960s, described by Grace Heintz in her 1976 description of the gardens. The second is the flagpole, an original architectural feature which was relocated to the Veterans Rose Garden from the roof of City Hall during the 1970s.

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The front façade of City Hall is presently articulated by seven of ten original Windmill Palms (two are missing from the north garden and one from the south) planted there in 1939 [Map Key No. 1]. The original concrete planters flanking the front entrance of City Hall are extant, and they contain mature Junipers that appear to have been replanted there about 1958 (Figure 22) [Map Key No. 2]. The dedication marker for City Hall is located in the concrete pavement at the front of the building [Map Key No. 3].

The rectangular planting bed (1939) depicted in the historic photographs (Figure 14) is extant in the center of the main entrance walkway [Map Key No. 4]. To the north and south, original concrete curbs (1939) bordering the lawn remain extant [Map Key No. 5].

The original concrete sidewalks (1939) remain in the western portion of the site, in the north and south courts, and against the building on the interior of the rear east court [Map Key No. 6]. Original concrete steps provide a transition from the sidewalks to the building entrances [Map Key No. 7]. The original lawn areas laid out in 1939 remain extant in the western, northwestern, and southeastern portions of the site [Map Key No. 8]. The Council Parking lot located to the north of City Hall retains its original configuration at the building’s north court [Map Key No. 9]; however, the entrance driveway has been widened and the remainder of the original vehicular parking area and circulation formerly behind the building to the east has been substantially altered.

The three Canary Island Date Palms planted in 1939 in the Council Parking area remain extant [Map Key No. 10]. Likewise, the gracefully curving row of five original Mexican Fan Palms still lines the brow of the hill overlooking the Santa Monica Freeway (previously Olympic Boulevard) [Map Key No. 11]; and two original Mexican Fan Palms are still located along the south elevation of the building [Map Key No. 11]. The steeply‐ graded hill to the north is still extant and remnants of the original terracing and retaining walls appear to be underneath the overgrowth [Map Key No. 12]; a new non‐contributing retaining wall/barrier has been constructed along the edge of the freeway and the northeast corner of the site has been reconfigured for the 4th Street Bridge and new Public Safety Building. One of three Carob trees that lined the lawn during the 1940s along the south side of the Council parking lot appears extant [Map Key 13].

Narrow, linear planting beds, ca. 1940s, containing relatively symmetrical non‐original low‐profile ornamental plantings border the north and south lawns along the original main entrance walk [Map Key 14].

The original planting beds at the foundations of City Hall still remain along the front of the building and in the side and rear courts [Map Key No. 15], although the majority of the existing plantings are later alterations after 1958. For example, the existing plantings in the north court, including the Giant Bird of Paradise, Junipers and Queen Palms, and the Queen Palms in corner of the rear east court were planted most likely during the 1970s and are non‐contributing. The foundation plantings along the south elevation and in the front north and south gardens are more non‐contributing recent alterations.

The relocated flagpole presently situated in the Veterans Rose Garden was moved from its original location on top of City Hall during the 1970s [Map Key No. 16].75 As such, it is a contributing feature associated with the City Hall building where it was originally located. The flagpole continued its original function after its

75 Due to potential hazards to workmen, the flagpole was moved from atop the City Hall to the east lawn in the early 1970s. “Christmas Flag Gets Relocated,” Evening Outlook, Dec. 18, 1972, p. 11.

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relocation to its present location. Therefore, the flagpole is an original contributing feature of City Hall that has retained its significance because it continued its original use after its relocation and remains associated with the City Hall property. The Veterans Rose Garden located in the 1939 planting bed in front of City Hall was dedicated in 1951 and contains a bronze marker commemorating the dedication [Map Key No. 17].

The curved hedgerow presently located on the brow of the hill in line with the Mexican Fan Palms appears to be in the same location as a hedge shown on Figure 18 [Map Key No. 18]. The Bunya‐Bunya tree located at the northwest corner of City Hall in the north garden was depicted in the 1975 aerial view (Figure 23) and described by Grace Heintz in 1976. Mature at the time, it was most likely planted sometime during the 1960s, after the 1958 improvements to City Hall [Map Key No. 19].

The original oval traffic circle in the rear east court was demolished in 1958 when the police department additions to City Hall were constructed. However, several segments of the pedestrian walkway and the entrance steps to the building, in rear east court still remain near the east elevation and were not demolished for the 1958 additions. The historic appearance of the building was restored sometime after the removal of the rear additions in 2003, probably around 2006 and the oval traffic circle was partially reconstructed at that time [Map Key No. 20], retaining the original segments of the pedestrian walkway and the entrance steps. Originally a key landscape feature, the courtyard oval retains some of its original elements and although it was partially demolished, it was later partially reconstructed in a manner that conveys the original design intent; therefore, this is a character‐defining feature.

FIGURE
Source: PCR Services Corporation, 2011.
0 70 140 Feet
Character Defining Features Analysis, Landscape and Grounds, Santa Monica City Hall, Santa Monica, California
Landscaping
X
Project Boundary
Main Street
4th Street
Olympic Drive
10 1
3 2
2 1
1 Map Key
1) 7 of 10 original Windmill Palms (1939)
2)Concrete Planters (1939) containing replacement Junipers (c. 1950s) 3) Dedication marker (1939)
4) Rectangular planting bed (1939)
5) Concrete curbs for linear planting beds (1939)
6) Sidewalks (1939)
7) Entrance steps (1939)
8) Lawn areas (1939)
9) Council Parking Lot (1939)
10) Canary Island Date Palms in parking lot (1939)
11) Mexican Fan Palms (1939)
12) Original terracing and retaining walls
13) Carob tree (1940s) and one replanted Carob tree
14) Linear planting beds (1940s)
15) Original planting beds (1939)
16) Flagpole (1939; relocated 1970s)
17) Veterans Rose Garden and dedication marker (1951)
18) Curved hedgerow at brow of hill (1950s)
19) Bunya-Bunya tree (c. 1950s-60s)
20) Oval traffic circle (partially reconstructed 2003)
15 15
15 1
1 1
1 1
6 7
8 8
9 11
11 11
11 11
10 10
13 13
11 11
14 14
15 15
17 19
16 4
18 5
5 12
6 6
6 6
6 6
6 6
10 8 20
7 7
7 7
11 28
6 6
6 8
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Figure 29. General view from northwest corner of site toward main entrance, view to southeast Figure 30. General view from southwest corner of site toward main entrance, view to northeast April 2011   Character Defining Features Analysis
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Figure 31. General view of main entrance, view to southeast Figure 32. Veterans Rose Garden (1951) in original Planting Bed (1939), view to east Character Defining Features Analysis   April  2011
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Figure 33. Planting Bed along north side of Main Entrance Walk, view to east Figure 34. Planting Bed along south side of Main Entrance Walk, view to east April 2011   Character Defining Features Analysis
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Figure 35. Intersection of Main Entrance Walk with sidewalk along Main Street, view to north Figure 36. Entrance to City Hall, view to southeast
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Figure 37. Foundation plantings along south elevation, view to east F April 2011   Character Defining Features Analysis
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Figure 38. Foundation plantings along west elevation, view to south Figure 39. Foundation plantings along west elevation, view to north Character Defining Features Analysis   April  2011
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Figure 40. Curved row of mature palms at northern border of site, view to northwest Figure 41. Mature palms and one tree at northeast corner of parking area, view to northeast April 2011   Character Defining Features Analysis
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Figure 42. Remaining tree plantings at north entrance to lawn from parking lot, view to north Figure 43. Mature exotic tree in North Garden, view to south Character Defining Features Analysis   April  2011
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Figure 44. Ornamental tree plantings near parking area, view to northwest

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APPENDIX A  ‐ LANDMARK DESIGNATION FOR SANTA MONICA CITY HALL