| Snow Skiing in Ocean Park??? This SaMo History Museum Facebook post shows some fun pics of Hotchkiss Park covered in snow in 1969. |
| Santa Monica’s AI Enforcement of Illegal Bike Lane Parking: This CBS2 Video Report explains and shows a demo of how the AI cameras work. |
| City Moves to Shutter SaMoShel, build City-controlled housing system: Santa Monica is preparing to decommission SaMoShel, the 60-bed congregate shelter that has served as the city’s only dedicated sheltering resource for more than three decades, as part of a broader overhaul of how the city addresses homelessness. The City Council will consider the plan, called the Housing Focused System of Care, at its July 28 meeting. The proposal would replace SaMoShel’s dormitory-style setup — in which residents sleep in an assigned area of a large room alongside many others — with a network of non-congregate housing that the city, rather than Los Angeles County, would control from intake through permanent placement. More details here. And this SaMoMirror report details concerns some Sunset Park and Pico Neighborhood residents have about the prospect of it moving into their parts of town. |
| Unsheltered homelessness in Santa Monica falls 18.7 percent: This City post states “Taken together, the count identified 718 people experiencing homelessness in Santa Monica — 94 fewer than the 812 counted in 2025, an overall decline of 11.6 percent, and the lowest total recorded since LAHSA began administering Santa Monica’s count in 2024.” This SMDP report also digs into the numbers. |
| City Email on Senate Bill 79 Updates: Here is what the City sent out last week: On July 1, 2026, Senate Bill 79 (SB 79), the Abundant and Affordable Homes Near Transit Act, went into effect across the State, including in Santa Monica. SB 79 establishes minimum guaranteed development standards (density, floor area ratio (FAR), and height) for qualified housing projects located on a site within one-half mile of a qualified transit-oriented development (TOD) stop. SB 79 allows cities to adopt an ordinance that would temporarily delay implementation of SB 79 for qualifying sites until 2030, one year following adoption of the 7th Cycle Housing Element (“Exclusion Ordinance”). On July 14, 2026, the City Council adopted an Exclusion Ordinance that covers qualifying sites located within one-half mile of six SB 79 TOD stops in Santa Monica. However, sites located within one-half mile of the Expo/Bundy Metro E station currently do not meet the criteria for exclusion. On July 28, the City Council will review options for potentially increasing development standards of the sites located within one-half mile of the Expo/Bundy Metro E station to qualify the TOD zone for SB 79 exclusion. The meeting will be held in the City Council Chambers (on the second floor of historic City Hall) at 5:30 p.m. Community members are encouraged to provide comments at the meeting on the potential options presented to Council. For more information, please see the staff report for the proposed options for increased development standards on the July 28, 2026 Council Agenda webpage. |
| Wildwood School buys massive Ocean Park Plaza, plans return to Santa Monica: Empty space, meet the kids! In a massive Westside real estate play, elite K–12 powerhouse Wildwood School — famous for educating the offspring of A-listers like Bruce Willis, Steven Spielberg and Kamala Harris — is packing its bags and making a big-money return to Santa Monica. The high-profile institution has quietly gobbled up Ocean Park Plaza, a sprawling, two-story, 100,700-square-foot office and medical facility at 2701 Ocean Park Blvd. It plans to convert the commercial footprint into its new upper-school campus. More details here. |
| The Street Seen: 215 Pacific St (Christie Court) @ Neilson Way: Christie Court is a dense 24-unit apartment court built in 1924. Although extensively altered and stripped of much of its architectural decoration, it is designated a city landmark in 2004. On appeal in 2005, the City Council voids the landmark. Christie Court is demolished in 2009 and replaced by a condominium project. More details here. |
| L.A. got a World Cup beer surge, not the economic jackpot it expected: World Cup crowds packed L.A. pubs and sports bars, driving a beer boom that lifted sales about 15% statewide and turned places like Ye Olde King’s Head into all-day parties. Yet the broader payoff was mixed: Hotel revenue fell short of some projections, with much of the revenue gains tied to higher room rates rather than fuller bookings. As L.A. gears up for the 2028 Olympics, economists and county leaders urge caution on raising taxes and prices, seeing World Cup watch-party success as a blueprint for maintaining goodwill with tourists. More details in this LA Times report. |
| OPENING: The Tasting Kitchen: The iconic Abbot Kinney tentpole made its highly anticipated return last week under the direction of original chef and owner Casey Lane. The reimagined Venice space preserves its luxe, bohemian soul—including its salvaged signature dining room olive tree—paired with Lane’s market-driven, live-fire culinary approach and a seasonal cocktail program. 1633 Abbot Kinney Blvd. |
| Applications now open for Santa Monica Renter Aid Program: The City has launched a new program providing one-time or short-term financial assistance and housing stabilization services to eligible Santa Monica renter households experiencing a temporary housing crisis. Funded through Measure GS and administered by The People Concern in partnership with the city’s Homelessness Prevention & Intervention Division, Santa Monica Renter Aid is designed to help eligible renters remain safely and stably housed. Applications are due by Aug. 20 and there is an in-person aid session Thursday. Click here to learn more and apply. |
| Councilmember Dan Hall Newsletter: Here is his weekly newsletter, with his thoughts on news in and around the city over the past week, upcoming calendar of events, and much more. |
