Santa Monica : Bike Path Plan Approved

It has been 20 years since the proposal for a beach bike path that would stretch from one end of Santa Monica’s beaches to the other was adopted. Now, the idea may become reality following a unanimous vote by the City Council on Tuesday night approving the Environmental Impact Report for a project to extend the bike path to the city’s northern limits.

The bike path now stretches from the Palos Verdes Peninsula to just north of the Santa Monica Pier.

The original bike path plan, adopted in 1968 by the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors, called for a route that would run along the coast from Point Dume to Torrance. But, because of opposition from beachfront homeowners, construction was halted and the path never reached Santa Monica’s northern limits.

A plan to extend the path, first adopted by the city in 1986, was rejected by the California Coastal Commission, which suggested that the path be moved farther inland. But that alternative route, proposed by the commission in February, 1987, raised council concerns because it would have placed the path within 50 feet of beachfront property lines.

Recent negotiations between city officials and beachfront homeowners, however, led to a compromise plan that places the path between the two proposed routes--closer to the ocean, yet not as far away from property lines as originally designed.

This latest bike path must still be approved by the Coastal Commission and, if denied again, the city will resort to the alternate route proposed by the commission in 1987.