Santa Monica Conservancy Carousel Park Protest

Santa Monica Conservancy is organizing a group photo Friday, June 15 at 11 a.m. as part of the social movement #ThisPlaceMatters.

Photos: Chattel, Inc.

From the Conservancy:

Why Is Carousel Park Threatened?

In 2017 the City of Santa Monica and Caltrans proposed to replace the Santa Monica Pier Bridge on Colorado Avenue. The Conservancy’s comments on the Draft Environmental Impact Report stated that these proposals have unacceptably negative impacts on the nearby historic structures, including the Pier itself, the carousel building (known formally as the Looff Hippodrome, a National Historic Landmark), and the locally-designated landmark properties along the east side of Ocean Front Walk. Learn more about this threat here.

How Can You Help?

The Conservancy has joined with preservation consultants Chattel, Inc. and the Cultural Landscape Foundation to submit a Landmark designation application for the Park. Support Carousel Park by joining our organizations at Carousel Park (at the concrete ramp adjacent to the playground) to take a #ThisPlaceMatters group photo and be a part of a national campaign celebrating places that are important to our communities. Invite your family, friends, colleagues and neighbors to bring awareness to this important piece of Santa Monica history. All are welcome!

Why Does Carousel Park Matter?

In 1983, when winter storms destroyed over one-third of the Pier’s length, the Santa Monica Citizen’s Pier Task Force sponsored a competition to redesign the Pier entrance and connect to Ocean Front Walk. Architectural firm Moore Ruble Yudell and landscape architect Campbell & Campbell won the competition with their creative and artful design of Carousel Park. The award-winning Park was completed in 1986 and has been integral to the renaissance of the Pier as a welcoming landscape with bleacher seating, playground, plaza, and two ramps providing access from Ocean Front Walk to the Pier.