City Council
Report
City Council Meeting: January 27, 2026
Agenda Item: 11.C
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To: Mayor and City Council
From: Rick Valte, Public Works Director, Public Works, Architecture Services Subject: 2025 Parks and Recreation Vision Plan
Recommended Action
Staff recommends that the City Council:
1. Adopt a finding of no possibility of significant effect pursuant to Section 15061(b)(3) of the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) Guidelines; and
2. Receive and approve the 2025 Parks and Recreation Vision Plan.
Summary
The Parks and Recreation Vision Plan (PRVP) is a long-term plan that responds to today’s physical conditions, community needs, values, and opportunities and offers a vision for the evolution of Santa Monica’s system of parks, open space, community facilities, and recreation and arts programs. Parks and Recreation Master Plans are typically 20–25-year visioning documents. The 1997 Parks and Recreation Master Plan (Attachment C), the City’s last adopted Parks and Recreation Master Plan, served as a source for recommended actions to meet the objectives of the Open Space Element, with a vision of “City as Park”—expanding open space opportunities by establishing greener recreation corridors throughout the City and linking open space destinations.
Almost 30 years later, as park acreage continues to be challenged, the 2025 PRVP advances “City as Habitat” as its fundamental vision, establishing the City’s new longrange park planning tool.
The community, as represented by the City Council, will reference the PRVP for the next 25 years when making strategic open space decisions especially in consideration 2 of 20
of park planning projects like the Santa Monica Airport Conversion Project which presents the largest parkland expansion opportunity in the City’s 150-year history. The Parks and Recreation Vision Plan establishes actionable recommendations for facilitating acquisition, expansion, improvement, outreach, and funding strategies for parks and open space, demonstrating Santa Monica’s commitment to sustainability, resiliency, the environment, and wellness of its community.
Discussion
The 1997 Open Space Element (Attachment B) of the City’s General Plan references parks and open spaces as providing “vital opportunities for recreation, relaxation, and contemplation, as well as habitat for plants and animals that are integral parts of our local ecosystem and outlines objectives and policies to create a meaningful and diverse park system, improving its character and quality with a focus on reinforcing the social, environmental, cultural, and recreational role of open space.
Project background
The City’s current Parks and Recreation Master Plan (PRMP) was adopted in 1997. As PRMPs are typically 20- to 30-year visioning documents, the 1997 Plan is due for an update. In 2017 the Community and Cultural Services (CCS) Department recommended the award of a 2-year contract to MIG, Inc. to update the City’s PRMP. On December 12, 2017, City Council approved a contract award of $488,706 to MIG, Inc. and the contract was executed on January 29, 2018 (Attachment A).
Community outreach established 8 strategies that would become the foundation of the 2020 Parks and Recreation Master Plan (Attachment E).
Throughout the draft process between February and November of 2019, staff coordinated with MIG, Inc. and a Recreation and Parks Commission ad hoc committee.
A draft was presented to the ad hoc committee in November 2019 and comments were incorporated. The revised draft was set to be presented to the Recreation and Parks Commission in March 2020. Unfortunately, due to the COVID-19 Pandemic, the 3 of 20
presentation was postponed indefinitely. Furthermore, the Community and Cultural Services Department was restructured, and the project was paused. The 2020 draft had not been presented publicly, and no action was taken with respect to City Council adoption. Additionally, open space needs, post-pandemic, needed to be reassessed.
In April 2024, the PRMP update process resumed with an approved project budget of $450,000, per the Fiscal Year 2024-26 Biennial Capital Improvement Program Budget.
The 2024 process was built upon the foundation of the 2018-2019 process, and the Senior Park Planner engaged a Recreation and Parks Commission ad hoc committee.
The goal of this committee was to review the 2019 consultant draft and 2020 staff draft, discuss comments, and meet monthly, through winter 2025, to review staff updates. The 2025 PRVP update project was presented to the following groups to integrate their comments as “Companion Narratives” within the 2025 update. • Recreation and Parks Commission
• Planning Commission
• Arts Commission
• Commission on Sustainability, Environmental Justice, and the Environment • Urban Forest Task Force
• Santa Monica Aquatics Advisory Committee
• Field Sports Advisory Committee
• Community Gardens Advisory Committee
• Friends of Sunset Park
• North of Montana Association
• Ocean Park Association
• Pico Neighborhood Association
• Santa Monica Mid City Neighbors
• Santa Monica Northeast Neighbors
• Wilshire Montana Neighborhood Coalition
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Through the engagement process, Public Works, in collaboration with the Recreation and Arts Department (RAD), worked with PROS Consulting and ETC Institute to conduct a demographically representative survey and general population survey—the Community Recreation and Arts Needs Assessment—in the spring of 2025, to align community recommendations with existing and projected data on levels of service. The representative survey required a minimum of 250 participants and received 418. The general population survey was then released, publicized (SaMo News, City social media outlets, a Community Recreation email blast, and posters) and garnered 203 participants. (Attachment G).
Though high in park need, 96% of respondents visit a park, arts, or recreation facility in a typical year – 15% above the national average. Additionally, 49% of respondents participate in a City program or event in a typical year – 13% above the national average. The survey also demonstrated that community priorities for facilities and amenities align with City needs when current inventory is measured against National Recreation and Parks Association metric recommendations for levels of service.
Walking loops and trails, community parks, large regional parks, neighborhood parks, aquatics facility, pocket parks, and community gardens were top priorities for the community. Arts, culture, city-sponsored events, and beach house events were program and activity priorities. Art in public spaces, theater programs and events, art galleries, fine art and visual art, youth and adult camps and classes, art studios, and performing arts were arts and culture priorities.
The 2025 Parks and Recreation Vision Plan
The 2025 PRVP (Attachment H) is intended to be a planning and long-range visioning document outlining actionable acquisition, expansion, improvement, outreach, and funding recommendations for the future of Santa Monica’s park network. Though the PRVP does not define particular project scopes, the 2025 plan identifies short-, medium-, and long-term planning opportunities, positioning the City to make responsible decisions for the park network that are informed by continued community engagement, facilities and level of service data analysis, fiscal responsibility, and regular status 5 of 20
updates. As a visioning plan, no particular projects are identified, feasibility studies are proposed, and timeframe and costs are estimated with future projects resulting from the PRVP requiring City Council review and approval. The 2025 Plan provides for implementation flexibility under an organizational framework and, as such, does not define types and designs of future interventions, quality of materials and installation, manufacturer and type of equipment selected, field conditions, or market conditions.
The 2016 Los Angeles Countywide Comprehensive Parks and Recreation Needs Assessment (Attachment D) classifies Santa Monica (Study Area #182) as “Moderate” in terms of park need with, at the time, 1.4 park acres per 1,000 residents.
This classification is based on park acre need, distance to parks, and population density. Though classified as moderate, many neighborhoods within Santa Monica are “High” or “Very High” when considering park acre need. Furthermore, the 2022 Los Angeles Countywide Comprehensive Parks and Recreation Needs Assessment Plus (Attachment F) notes several neighborhoods of Santa Monica as “Priority Areas for Increasing Access to Regional Recreation”. Understanding these metrics and classifications is important as numerous grant opportunities rely on this data as part of award criteria, reinforcing project narratives that emphasize citywide need and speak 6 of 20
deliberately to the artistic, cultural, recreational, and environmental benefits a park project will deliver to local and regional communities should a grant be awarded.
One of the goals of the 1997 Parks and Recreation Master Plan was to increase park acreage from 113 acres to a range of 143 to 170 acres. At the time of the PRVP update, the park acreage inventory demonstrates that the City has met that 30-year benchmark, providing approximately 144 park acres with 72% of the population living within one-half mile of a park, 23% above the county average. Almost 10 years later, the 2025 Santa Monica Community Recreation and Arts Needs Assessment confirmed that Santa Monica continues to need an additional 132 park acres to meet the 2016 Countywide Assessment average of 3.3 park acres per 1,000 residents. This county average does not include beach acreage. Though Santa Monica has approximately 202 acres of beach (2.17 acres per 1,000), not all cities within the County of Los Angeles have a beach to provide recreational amenities. Within this assessment, regional destinations such as Griffith Park and Kenneth Hahn State Recreation Area are not counted as park acreage for those cities directly adjacent. Typical planning recommendations target 5.0 park acres per 1,000 residents and Santa Monica would need to target the integration of an additional 292 park acres to meet this recommendation. In 2025, the National Recreation and Parks Association recommended a target of 6-10 park acres per 1,000 residents for cities with a population of 100,000 to 250,000. This recommendation does take beach acreage into account. Based on the 2020 Census, Santa Monica has a population of just over 93,000 and the City website’s “About Us” page highlights Santa Monica’s daytime population as approximately 250,000. The NRPA does note that “park and recreation agencies are as diverse as the communities they serve, what works well for one agency may not be best for all.”
The PRVP recommends that a goal of 5 park acres per 1,000 residents be included within the Plan. This goal looks beyond foreseeable park expansion opportunities and study innovative strategies to secure more parkland to address the needs of a growing population.
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This Plan’s vision – “City as Habitat” – proposes reinforcing the City’s parks, open spaces, and streets as nourishing habitat for people, plants, animals, and programming, amplifying the 1997 Plan’s vision of City as Park. The “City as Habitat” vision was inspired by a commitment to prevent harm to the natural environment and human health, benefit environmental justice, and secure the equitable social and economic well-being of the community. The PRVP identifies eight overarching principles that are validated by five strategies and supported by thirty-two actions.
During the Research and Analysis phase, staff identified strategies in the 2019 Santa Monica Parks and Recreation Needs Assessment that were redundant with the City Council priorities established in 2023. The strategies were therefore distilled and emerged as the five strategies of the PRVP update:
1. Strengthen access to parks, facilities, and the beach
2. Rethink streets with park potential
3. Foster social interaction
4. Optimize existing parks and beach experiences
5. Create new parkland
The strategies establish a framework for making decisions that nurture the further evolution of the city’s parks as settings for sustainability, celebrating the resilience of community through safe, connected, and equitable opportunities for education, recreation, and arts programming that reinforces an individual’s connection to nature.
Further, 2025 City Council Priorities for –“Clean Streets and Safe Neighborhoods”, “Affordable, Livable, and Secure Housing for All”, and “Economic Opportunity and Growth” – have been utilized to help guide actionable recommendations to incrementally implement the vision.
The eight principles of the PRVP represent a network-wide call to action in support of the “City as Habitat” vision. Each principle is characterized by primary actions, supported by actionable recommendations, positioning the City to make informed, datadriven decisions on open space. 8 of 20
1. Nourish existing parks and facilities
2. Expand new parkland and open space
3. Raise new facilities
4. Ideate Santa Monica State Beach
5. Connect open space and the community
6. Gather recreation and arts programming
7. Sustain parks and facilities sustainability and maintenance
8. Support funding and meaningful partnerships
Actions within the PRVP are accompanied by incremental implementation timeframes, long-range planning, and development costs based on industry standard assumptions.
Actions further identify supporting City departments and documents, facilitating a comprehensive approach to collaboration among the community, staff, and consultants when addressing recommendations to realize the “City as Habitat” vision and celebrate Santa Monica as a world-class leader in resiliency and its commitment to prevent harm to the natural environment through reinforcement of citywide goals to achieve water self-sufficiency, zero waste, and carbon neutrality.
Though the actions in the PRVP are linked to implementation timeframes, the Plan proposes three status categories – active, pending, and future – for tracking the status of recommendations within five, four-year reporting cycles. Additionally, as actions note estimated costs associated with actions that support long-range incremental implementation planning and development of network-wide vision principles, the Plan acknowledges both capital and operational costs must be considered as part of responsible fiscal planning. These considerations have been highlighted in the PRVP through a demonstration of the Capital Improvement Program process, signifying how vital project narrative, schedule, and capital and operational budget are to decisionmaking. In advancing the vision, the PRVP establishes six criteria to frame the reporting on status, determining prioritization of actions within the plan. These criteria represent a commitment to community benefit through advancing big ideas, capturing quick wins, 9 of 20
realizing multiple benefits, embracing opportunity, spreading benefits, and identifying support channels.
Advancing the “City as Habitat” vision is incremental. Some actions are relatively simple to move forward, while others are complex and may be contingent on the outcomes of other efforts or initial phases. Implementation depends on the availability of city and outside funding, staff capacity, and taking swift advantage of emerging opportunities. In all instances, it remains vital for the city to continue to prioritize the implementation of sustainable policies and champion ongoing biodiversity and energy resilience opportunities within parks to combat the impacts of climate change. The PRVP provides an opportunity for flexibility in prioritization of feasibility, planning, and spending while maintaining systematic accountability in measuring progress through referencing “City as Habitat” principles, actions, and recommendations and “checking things off the list.” Six criteria are proposed to help prioritize interventions.
1. Advance big ideas: The project or initiative makes one or more steps to implement big future opportunities for Santa Monica.
2. Capture quick wins: The project or initiative can be quickly or easily implemented.
3. Realize multiple benefits: The project or initiative can achieve multiple strategies identified in this Plan, as well as goals, projects, and directions of other adopted City efforts.
4. Embrace opportunity: The project or initiative will take advantage of a limited duration resource, utilize unique and available funding sources, find economies of scale with other projects or is supported by a strong partnership, and reflects current community goals.
5. Spread the Benefits: The project or initiative helps distribute a similar mix of experiences and high-quality features across the City and prioritizes investment in areas with the greatest need.
6. Within available resources and capacity: Funding is identified or secured and/or the project or initiative can be supported by existing City staff capacity.
Recreation and Arts Department staff and supporting City departments have an established capacity.
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The Community Recreation and Arts Needs Assessment reinforced that the Santa Monica community thrives within city parks, emphasizing that parks serve as habitat for connected communities. Viewing decision-making through this lens helps to define a network vision that places nature first. As the city continues to grow, it is vital that parks grow with it, addressing needs and providing open spaces, programming, and events that animate the urban environment, reinforcing Santa Monica as a regional, national, and global destination that celebrates nature as a vital component of its identity.
Nurturing the environment, through responsible park planning, secures a healthy and resilient future for Santa Monica, continuing to position the city at the forefront on sustainability.
The 2025 Plan Appendices
Appendix A - The Implementation Actions Matrix - collects all the principles, actions, and recommendations, referencing estimated timeframes and costs associated with each recommendation. Appendix A reinforces the 2019 comment to address userfriendliness, providing a location for ease of reference in determining prioritizations and reporting.
Appendix B – Existing Amenity and Component Action Matrix – represents interdepartmental collaboration on 5-year, 10-year, and 20-year work plans associated with ongoing maintenance of existing park amenities and components, representing investment in the resiliency of Santa Monica’s park network identity. Departments, with a Recreation and Parks Commission ad hoc, reviewed a comprehensive list of existing amenities and components within the park network and prioritized maintenance strategies based on amenities providing high-volume recreational use, parks providing those amenities, and components that support the function of the amenity.
Estimated costs shed light on the vital need for investment in maintenance. In summarizing The Trust for Public Land’s 2025 Park Score Report for Los Angeles, a park system with a “significant backlog of deferred maintenance and a need for new parks and amenities” results in “the public losing faith in the system, and eventually 11 of 20
public support for investment.” To highlight one example of estimated costs, the fiveyear work plan to address playground maintenance alone is approximately $2.8 million ($560,000 per year), not including staff administration costs, and assumes adequate staffing to address the work within the work plan timeframe. If projects are not addressed, costs are deferred to the following year within a work plan, or to the next work plan, with costs increasing exponentially.
Appendix C – Community Recreation and Arts Assessment – defines Santa Monica’s level of service with respect to park amenities and population served. The survey notes a required increase in particular amenities to meet the National Recreation and Park Association’s metrics on amenities provided. For example, in 2025, Santa Monica needs one additional rectangular field and nine dedicated pickleball courts (not striped on a tennis court). Adequate amenities and green space equate to increased health and fitness, supporting connected communities and investment in nature as a habitat and source for ecological well-being.
Appendix D – Potential Funding Sources and Strategies – provides descriptions of various outlets for funding park investment whether capital or operational funding.
Strategies seek to advance vision goals, as well as the citywide budget framework priorities.
Appendix E – Siting Criteria for Select Amenities – describes key considerations for implementing select amenities, positioning network expansion for long-term success.
Acreage and square footage, availability of utilities, access, and security are examples of information provided within Appendix E.
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Appendix F – Open Space History – provides readers with the opportunity to learn more about the city’s parks and open spaces, helping to increase awareness of opportunities to connect with nature and promote park advocacy.
Appendix G – Airport to Park Conversion Report – was identified as a deliverable within the original PRVP scope in 2018. In advancement of the Airport Conversion Project, this report was released to the public in spring 2024. As the Airport Conversion Project represents Santa Monica’s largest opportunity for expansion of parkland, integrating this report within the PRVP was vital.
Appendix H – Related Plan and Program Documents – links readers to a comprehensive glossary of citywide plans and program documents that support the incremental implementation of actions within the PRVP. As actions within Chapter 3 note supporting documents, providing this user-friendly resource reinforces that advancing the PRVP requires understanding that this Plan is part of a collection of 13 of 20
initiatives that serve in the advancement of the city’s commitment to preventing harm to the natural environment and securing the well-being of the community.
Companion Narratives
The Airport Conversion Project, running in parallel with the PRVP update, provided additional insight into community sentiment around parks. This gave way to the integration of “Companion Narratives”, which amplify advocacy for particular amenities, facilities, and enhanced outreach strategies; describing parallel projects; showcasing divisions and task forces that support our parks; defining funding mechanisms; and creating awareness of growth that will inevitably impact the carrying capacity of Santa Monica’s parks.
Summer 2025 Outreach
The PRVP project website went live on July 22, 2025, sharing the PRVP draft update with the public in both English and Spanish translation. Social media posts followed. 14 of 20
The first public outreach of the draft plan was conducted on August 21, 2025, at the Recreation and Parks Commission meeting. Subsequent outreach opportunities were posted on the project website, and the summaries below represent comments shared by the community.
Recreation and Parks Commission – August 21, 2025
The commission was encouraged that the PRVP outlined a plan to address park acreage and amenity needs without relying solely on the 192 acres of Santa Monica Airport. Much discussion took place around the right metric of park acreage per 1,000 residents, as this is a standard point of reference when considering county and national parks and recreation assessments. The commission noted that it was necessary to be reasonable when putting forward a metric recommendation that does not rely solely on the Santa Monica Airport, joint-use agreements, and development agreements, and considers how the recommendation addresses Santa Monica State Beach. It was also 15 of 20
noted that, as schools expand, open spaces in schoolyards constrict—demonstrating a responsibility for the city to provide open spaces to recreate.
Understanding that the county average is 3.3 park acres per 1,000 residents (not including beach acreage), planning practice recommend 5 park acres per 1,000 residents, and that the National Recreation and Park Association recommends 6-10 park acres per 1,000 residents (for a population range of 100,000 to 250,000 and includes beach acreage), the commission passed a motion (4 to 1) to recommend targeting 5 park acres per 1,000 residents, not including the beach acreage. Santa Monica Airport, freeway capping, and vertical green open spaces were suggested as opportunities to reach this target.
Community Garden Advisory Committee – September 2, 2025 The Committee unanimously passed a motion recommending five park acres per 1,000 residents. A second motion was also unanimously passed proposing no new artificial turf be integrated in the city and calls for removal of existing artificial turf, citing integration of artificial turf impacts the PRVP vision as well as the Sustainable Rights Ordinance.
Field Sports Advisory Committee – September 3, 2025
Public comment called for natural grass to be integrated in the city’s fields and parks, instead of artificial turf, citing injuries associated with artificial turf, sanitation concerns, inconsistencies of scientific data related to the impact of artificial turf on the environment, and the cost of replacing artificial turf. A community member recommended utilizing the “precautionary principle” when considering the debate between artificial turf and natural grass. The committee passed a motion recommending five park acres per 1,000 residents and proposed studying the number of fields the city needs to meet current and near-term level of service against the number of fields needed to accommodate regional tournaments, harnessing the revenue-generating potential of active recreation. As part of that study, the committee proposed continuing to analyze the maintenance requirements of natural grass and artificial turf to gain a data-driven understanding of how the choice impacts the city’s ability to provide program.
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Disabilities Commission – September 10, 2025
The Disabilities Commission provided comment recommending that park acreage per 1,000 resident goals include accessibility within the goal description. Commissioners recommended continued collaboration with the Commission and the ADA Coordinator to help define those priorities, study the ability to highlight accessibility priorities earlier within the Actions chapter, and establish concrete recommendations that might be implemented within park and open space projects moving forward. No motions were put forward.
Urban Forest Task Force – September 10, 2025
Members of the Urban Forest Task Force had no comments after the presentation and passed three separate motions. The task force passed the first motion recommending five park acres per 1,000 residents. The second motion was passed recommending a preference for natural grass, instead of artificial turf, in all parks and amenities. The third motion passed supporting the PRVP, extending appreciation for reference to the Urban Forest Master Plan within the document and for referencing parks as an opportunity to help achieve goals outlined in the Urban Forest Master Plan.
Commission on Sustainability, Environmental Justice, and the Environment – September 15, 2025
Public comment recommended 5.0 park acres per 1,000 residents, advocated for natural grass over artificial turf, and proposed studying the opportunity to introduce educational opportunities, such as internships and apprenticeships, as a component of the actions outlined in the PRVP. Commissioners recommended expanding partnerships that promote micro-forests within the city, increasing biodiversity awareness, and protecting dune restoration projects when considering large events at the beach. Additionally, commissioners expressed interest in PRVP recommendations to study the expansion of community gardens, the feasibility of park streets, and ability to establish a dedicated park maintenance fund, through the city or philanthropic channels. The Commission passed a single motion recommending 5.0 park acres per 1,000 residents; recommending continued study on natural grass and artificial turf, with 17 of 20
preference for the most sustainable, healthiest, climate-friendly, low-waste, fiscally responsible, and playable solution; and, supporting the PRVP to be presented to City Council.
Planning Commission – September 17, 2025
The Planning Commission highlighted that the PRVP champions expansion by proposing the study of numerous creative strategies, acknowledging that as the city grows, opportunities to acquire and expand land for parks will not be as abundant.
Some creative strategies discussed included the study of traffic patterns, finding opportunities to calm traffic and reclaim portions of streets for green space, and depaving to create more green spaces—championing permeability. Regarding the “City as Habitat” vision, commissioners discussed viewing all open spaces as opportunities for habitat; investigating opportunities to reduce grass areas to introduce more native plantings; and integrating the community’s preference in the debate on natural grass versus artificial turf. Regarding establishing a park acreage goal, commissioners discussed prioritizing high need areas within the city; defining not only an acreage goal but a distance-to-parks goal; continuing to balance the trade-offs of city growth, park need, and the realistic opportunities to meet an established goal; existing and proposed landmark parks and the process; restoring neighborhood connections when studying freeway capping; balancing how the city self-funds its parks and the opportunities for philanthropic partnerships to acquire, expand, and improve parkland; and making it easier for the community to want to program current parks. No motions were passed.
Airport Commission – September 24, 2025
The Airport Commission acknowledged that the City’s push to increase housing comes with a need to increase parks to provide open space for those residents. It was noted that as population grows, without additional park acreage, the City’s average of 1.55 park acres per 1,000 residents will decrease, potentially shifting our 2016 need classification from ‘moderate’ to ‘high’. Public comment recommended targeting 5.0 park acres per 1,000 residents, and the commission’s subsequent motion noted this to be a reasonable goal when considering opportunities to cap segments of Interstate 10. 18 of 20
Questions related to cost of the PRVP recommendations were addressed by acknowledging that costs included within Appendix A of the PRVP are estimates, and the goal of the vision plan is to establish proactive acreage and amenity feasibility studies to help the city to make informed planning decisions that would further define the goals, objectives, scope, and estimates of project implementation. The Commission passed a single motion, with 4 ayes and 1 abstention, recommending 5.0 park acres, excluding beach acreage, per 1,000 residents and supporting the PRVP to be presented to City Council.
Arts Commission – October 20, 2025
Members of the Arts Commission requested additional clarification on the considerations associated with park acres per 1,000 residents, what transitioning portions of streets into informal park spaces might look like, and how the Beach and Pier might contribute to a comprehensive approach to arts programming, citywide.
Commissioners appreciated that previous PRVP recommendations made by the Arts Commission were integrated into the draft and supported a motion to draft a letter to City Council supporting the PRVP and recommending the maximum amount of green space.
Santa Monica Aquatics Advisory Committee (SMAAC) – October 21, 2025 SMAAC members continue to champion the need for a city-owned aquatics facility, referencing the need was part of the 1997 Parks and Recreation Master Plan. Members asked for clarification on how the city’s level of service correlates with recommendations provided by the National Recreation and Parks Association, citing Santa Monica, as a regional destination beach city, should consider local and regional needs when planning aquatics facilities and related recreation, health, and water safety programming.
Members also discussed a park acreage goal recommendation for the lifespan of the PRVP, understanding beach acreage is not included in the average put forth by the County Assessment. SMAAC passed a unanimous motion supporting 5 park acres per 1,000 residents, excluding beach acreage. The motion also included support of the PRVP for presentation to City Council.
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Staff recommended edits based on Summer 2025 outreach are included in 2025 Parks and Recreation Vision Plan Staff Recommended Edits (Attachment K).
Environmental Review
The Parks and Recreation Plan is exempt from the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) pursuant to Section 15061(b)(3) (Common Sense Exemption) of the CEQA Guidelines which states that CEQA does not apply “where it can be seen with certainty that there is no possibility that the activity in question may have a significant effect on the environment.” The plan is a planning tool and long-range visioning document, and, at this stage, does not define or commit the City to particular projects or project scopes.
Therefore, the plan would not result in a significant effect on the environment and, as such, is exempt from CEQA.
Past Council Actions
Meeting Date Description
12/12/2017
(Attachment I)
City Council award of contract to MIG, Inc. for the Parks and Recreation Master Plan
06/25/2024
(Attachment J)
Adopted FY 2024-26 Biennial CIP Budget Parks and
Recreation Master Plan Project #C0897
Financial Impacts and Budget Actions
There is no immediate financial impact or budget action necessary as a result of recommended actions in this report. Staff will return to Council if any specific fiscal and budget actions are required in the future.
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Prepared By: Tony Lopez, Senior Park Planner
Approved Forwarded to Council
Attachments:
A. MIG PSA Executed
B. Open Space Element (Web Link)
C. 1997 Parks and Recreation Master Plan
D. 2016 Los Angeles Countywide Comprehensive Parks and Recreation Needs Assessment (Web Link)
E. Santa Monica Parks and Recreation Needs Assessment Report 2019 (Web Link) F. Los Angeles Countywide Comprehensive Parks and Recreation Needs Assessment Plus (Web Link)
G. 2025 Community Recreation and Arts Needs Assessment - Community Interest and Opinion Survey (Web Link)
H. 2025 Parks and Recreation Vision Plan (Web Link)
I. December 12, 2017 Staff Report (Web Link)
J. June 25, 2024 Staff Report (Web Link)
K. 2025 Parks and Recreation Vision Plan Staff Recommended Edits L. ADD-TO_Letter Commission on Sustainability_ 1_21_2026 M. Written Comments
N. PowerPoint Presentation