A sedate seaside stretch of downtown Santa Monica is about to get busy as a sprawling residential and retail complex and a 6-acre city park are nearing completion along increasingly tony Ocean Avenue. Under development for several years, the two big projects within sight of the ocean are part of a push by officials to enliven the city’s Civic Center district south of the Santa Monica Freeway around City Hall. The area has been pretty much a dead zone for decades compared to the bustling commercial district a stone’s throw to the north around Santa Monica Pier and the prosperous hotel, retail and residential neighborhood to the west and south.
