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XOPA Spring Mixer @ Lula Wednesday (5/20): We hope to see you at @ Lula's back patio (2720 Main St.) from 4:00-6-30pm. Everyone is welcome and members can enjoy FREE appetizers along with the GREAT company. See you there!
MAINopoly This Sunday (May 24): This event is one of my personal favorite days on Main St. every year. HIGHLY recommend it! Get ready to PASS GO and taste your way down Main Street at the 11th Annual MAINopoly: A Taste of Main Street — an interactive, Monopoly-inspired food & drink adventure! Throw on your top hats and monocles and explore 20+ of Main Street’s best restaurants, bars, eateries, and shops along a lively 5-block stretch. Use your MAINopoly dollars to redeem delicious tastings, complete your game board, and enter to win amazing prizes. More details and tickets here.
Main St. Hosting Inaugural Entertainment Zone This Sunday!
Whether or not you are attending the MAINopoly event, this Sunday afternoon is your first time ever that you can buy an adult beverage from Main St. businesses and stroll around with it.
Participating businesses include Jameson’s Pub,
Note that activations like this are ONLY planned in connection with events like MAINopoly and will not become an everyday occurrence.
Woman killed by Metro bus on Main St. crawled under it: A woman believed to be homeless was killed Friday afternoon after she was struck by a Metro bus at the intersection of Main Street and Ocean Park Boulevard, Santa Monica police said. Security video from a nearby business helped investigators piece together the sequence of events. According to preliminary findings, the Metro bus was stopped when the woman moved underneath the vehicle. She was struck and sustained fatal injuries when the bus pulled away from the stop. Here is the SMDP story and here is the official city release.
City Council Unanimously Adopts Boulevard Safety Plan, Orders Quick-Build Protections at School Crossing: The City Council on Tuesday unanimously adopted a safety overhaul of Santa Monica Boulevard, directing staff to install temporary physical barriers at a dangerous intersection near McKinley Elementary School before the next school year and to pursue stronger pedestrian crossing technology on the corridor's eastern half. More details here.
SaMo Neighborhood Organizations Coalesce Around Opposition to Turf Fields: Seven Santa Monica neighborhood organizations and the Santa Monica Democratic Club have formally called on the Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District to abandon plans to install artificial turf at local elementary schools, submitting letters of opposition ahead of the school board's upcoming May 19 meeting. More details here.
Santa Monica marks successful first year of SaMo Bridge diversion program: This city post details how “One year after its launch, the city of Santa Monica’s SaMo Bridge diversion program has exceeded initial goals, connecting hundreds of justice-involved individuals to housing, treatment and supportive services.”
City Council Creates Restorative Justice Commission, Overhauls Advisory Bodies: The new Restorative Justice Commission oversees programs addressing historic inequities in the city, the centerpiece of a sweeping overhaul of the city's boards and commissions that also consolidated housing and human services bodies and triggered a heated debate over compensating commissioners from marginalized communities. More details here.
"Circle Bar’s Triumphant Return To Santa Monica": This Toddrickallen blog post details "One of Santa Monica’s most legendary nightlife venues is set to return on Friday, May 22. Circle Bar, the longtime OG Main Street bar and nightclub known for its dimly lit, oval-shaped bar, packed dance floor, and historic past, will reopen under new ownership. At the helm are local restaurateurs Mark and Addie Van Gessel, the duo behind the Venice staple Hinano Cafe and Santa Monica’s Tavern on Main."
The Street Seen: Breakers Beach Club (1725 Ocean Front Walk @ Marine Terrace): The Breakers Beach Club, located on the beachfront between the Santa Monica Pier and Pico Blvd, is built in 1926. The Breakers soon falls into bankruptcy - the first of many. Following the Depression, the Breakers becomes a hotel under a series of owners until it is converted to the Sea Castle Apartments in the early 1970s. The building is severely damaged during the 1994 Northridge Earthquake and demolished in 1996. More details here.
Santa Monica Small Business Resource Fair (Tuesday, 5/26 @ SM Main Library): Join LISC, the LA County Economic Development Corporation, South Bay Small Business Development Center and City of Santa Monica for a business resource event featuring grants, procurement opportunities, and financial readiness workshops to help your business grow. The event is free but registration is required (click here for more details and to register).
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Things to Do This Week
Annual Soundwaves Concert Series - Vicki Ray's Rilke Project: Enjoy a compilation of works by various composers inspired by Rainer Maria Rilke's poetry, and koven: multimedia artist Carole Kim's improvising group with saxophonist M. A. Tisenga, Kazoue Matsumoto on koto, and gamin on Korean reed instruments. Tuesday, May 19, 7:30p.m., 12424 Wilshire Blvd. soundwavesnewmusic.com
Pier Locals’ Night Season Finale: Some nights on the Santa Monica Pier just feel like summer. Thursday, May 21 is one of them, as Locals’ Night returns for its spring season finale from 3:30 to 10 p.m., bringing together live music, storytelling, classic cars, and community celebration across the Pier in one unforgettable evening—free and open to all ages. This special edition also marks the beginning of Pacific Park’s 30th anniversary celebration, with select moments woven into the evening, including a community “thank you” tribute on the Ferris wheel and the debut of Sweet Rose Creamery for guests. Thursday, May 21, 3:30-10p.m. instagram.com/santamonicapier
Rick Crocker 5k Run/Walk Coming Back on 5/21: Lace up and join us for the 6th Annual Rick Crocker 5K Challenge in support of the Santa Monica Police Activities League (PAL). Thursday, May 21, 3:30-10p.m., SaMo Pier More details here.
Thursday May 21 is Bike Anywhere Day: Big Blue Bus is celebrating its growing community of multimodal riders, by offering free rides to bicyclists! On May 21, your ride is FREE when you board Big Blue Bus with a bike or helmet.
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OPA & City Meetings
Arts Commission Meeting (Monday 6:30pm): In-person only in the SMi Training Room (northwest corner of the 2nd floor of the Civic Center Parking Structure - 330 Olympic Drive). More details here.
Commission on Sustainability, Environmental Justice, and the Environment (Monday 7pm): More details here.
Architectural Review Board Meeting (Monday 7pm): More details here.
OPA Connects Meeting (Wednesday 12pm): Here is the Zoom link.
Human Services Commission (Wednesday 3pm): Their goal is to advise City Council on priorities and strategies involving the well-being, equity, and needs of vulnerable, low income, and at-risk residents including youth and families, seniors, and people experiencing homelessness. More details here.
Airport Commission Meeting (Wednesday 7pm): More details & agenda here.
Recreation & Parks Commission Meeting (Thursday 6pm): Click Here for agenda.
Upcoming Calendar of Events
Upcoming OPA Book Club Meetings: Planned dates are June 3 (Remarkably Bright Creatures), July 8 (Trust), Aug 5 (The Night Watchman). Email [email protected] for more info. All meets are at 6pm at the Ocean Park Library (2601 Main St.).
OPA Monthly Meeting: Monday, June 8, 6pm @ Ocean Park Library
Ocean Park Social Club Cookbook Club: A Cookbook Club is when a group of people choose 1 cookbook and each make a different recipe, and then enjoy the meal together. Our first one will Monday, June 1, 6-8pm at the Meditation Center (237 Hill Street). Our first cookbook will be: Nothing Fancy by Alison Roman. If you would like to participate or have questions, email me at [email protected].
Ocean Park Social Club 2nd Annual June Gloom Chili Cookoff: SAVE THE DATE: June 7. Last year, our Chili Cookoff was a raging success with over 15 submissions of delicious cornbread and chili recipes by our neighbors! Come back to reignite the community and the competition. Click here to email Tess if you'd like to volunteer and RSVP here.
Ocean Park Social Club - The Jar Returns to Ocean Park: After a wonderful first event with the national non-profit, The Jar, our friends are back for another dinner & salon on June 24. This next session will be a "Convener" model, where we invite you to bring 2-3 guests with you. This model broadens the community further, allowing us to create a more diverse room of voices. Tickets are $10/person (and includes dinner and dessert!).
RSVP HERE and direct questions to [email protected] and our partner [email protected].
Ocean Park Social Club Summer Picnic Series: Mark your calendars for our bi-weekly summer evening picnics at Hotchkiss Park on the following Thursdays 5:30-7:30pm: July 9, July 23, Aug 6, Aug 20, and Sep 3.
Want to Volunteer for Future OPA-Sponsored Heal The Bay Adopt-A-Beach Clean-Ups? Contact Dave Tann at [email protected]. He is the coordinator for the OPA/Heal The Bay events, always meeting at Tower 26. Dates this summer are 6/28, 7/26, & 8/30.
Police non-emergency Phone #: Call 310-458-8491 or click here for more info.
Santa Monica 311. Submit non-emergency requests to the City.
Santa Monica Alerts. Sign up for emergency text and email alerts.
SaMoNews. Subscribe to the official newsletter of the City of Santa Monica.
Board and Commission Openings. Volunteer to serve the community!
City of Santa Monica Career Opportunities. Get paid to serve the community!
Santa Monica Animal Shelter. Support our municipal Animal Shelter!
Locals Discount Program is Back! OPA has partnered with the SaMo Public Library to launch a Community Discount Program. Local Ocean Park participating businesses include Fitoor and Junior Cookies. Check out the full list here and expect more to come!
