SANTA MONICA : City Celebrates First Stage of Palisades Park Renovation

After six months of work, the first phase of the Palisades Park refurbishment is now complete. The $1.5-million city-funded renovation, which runs from Santa Monica Pier to Arizona Avenue, was inaugurated last week amid the Fourth of July holiday fanfare.

Hundreds were in attendance, including city officials and descendants of the Ocean Avenue landowners who deeded the property 102 years ago. The park’s new installations incorporate late 19th-Century wrought-iron architecture in the bluff’s new benches, drinking fountains and trash containers.

They also include extra park lights, bathroom improvements, shuffleboard courts and a new jogging path. In addition, a new drainage and irrigation system has been constructed to check bluff-side erosion.

“This project signals the city’s interest in keeping our public spaces attractive and is consistent with our environmental stance,” said Susan McCarthy, the city’s director of Community Cultural Services. “Hopefully we’ll have this park around for another 102 years.”