Main Street Closing For Traffic, Becoming Pedestrian Plaza

SANTA MONICA, CA — The two blocks of Main Street between Hill and Kinney streets will close to vehicles this weekend, according to the city.

The street will become a pedestrian plaza starting this weekend, hosting outdoor dining and other activities with local businesses for four weekends: July 24 and 25, August 21 and 22, September 18 and 19 and October 16 and 17. The street closure begins Saturday at 4 a.m. and ends Monday at midnight. Businesses will operate during regular hours for both days.

The new project pushes to make Santa Monica more pedestrian-friendly. It's a move to support small businesses and promote Main Street in the wake of the pandemic.

“This is a pilot that builds on the creative ways we’ve adapted our sidewalks and public spaces during the pandemic,” said Santa Monica Mayor Sue Himmelrich. “Now that we can safely gather again, Main Street is a perfect backdrop for a summer block party in support of the small, local businesses that kept us going throughout the last year. I hope to see many familiar faces out on Main Street!”

Main Street will also have free fitness classes, music, a photo booth, arts and crafts, games like giant Jenga and giant Connect Four, and a lounge area.

Main Street will be closed from Hill Street to Kinney Street. Vehicles will be detoured from Main Street to Neilson Way in that area.

Bike and scooter users must dismount within the pedestrian plaza.

During the four weekends, bus stops within the plaza will be closed, with temporary service alternatives provided outside the plaza.

Parking will be available in public lots west of Main Street and after 8 p.m. on the west side of Neilson Way.

‘Sharing an Open Main Street’

The four-weekend transformation was initiated by the Main Street Business Association and Ocean Park Association, who brought the idea to the city. They’re calling it “Sharing an Open Main Street,” hoping to support local businesses and help the community recover from the COVID-19 pandemic.

Since the community canceled its Fourth of July parade this year and the SOULstice event last year, there haven’t been many opportunities to connect with neighbors, said Ocean Park Association Executive Board Member Sean Besser to Patch.

“It's also a community celebration after the tough year and a half we've had,” Besser said. “It gives us an opportunity to get together with our neighbors and our community members in an open safe space to sort of celebrate our neighborhood, while at the same time also giving back to the businesses."

For Main Street, it matters, Besser said.

"I firmly believe that a healthy Main Street is critical for a healthy Ocean Park, and we want to celebrate our businesses and give back to them after just a brutal, brutal, year and a half that they’ve had,” Besser said.

Pilot Project

Sharing an Open Main Street is primarily a pilot project, Besser and the Main Street Business Improvement Association’s Executive Director Hunter Hall told Patch. It will test the viability of a more pedestrian-friendly Santa Monica.

“When you look at really popular cities, really popular areas of cities, they all have the same thing in common, they're pedestrian-friendly,” Hall said. “Whether it's European plazas or streets in New York or whatever, they're all pedestrian-friendly.”

The results of the upcoming weekend will guide how the other three weekends are organized — if the first weekend goes abysmally, there won’t be a second weekend, Besser said.

“We're not going into it with any preconceptions,” he said. “It really is, ‘Let's, let's give this a try and see the reaction.’”

After the last weekend of the pilot, the organizers will look at feedback from residents and businesses to explore making the pedestrian plaza permanent or bringing it back in future weekends.

“What we're hopeful is that the community embraces this and sees this as a huge positive step for Ocean Park, and that the overall feedback is that this is an enjoyable experience and that they want to do it again,” Besser said.

Sharing an Open Main Street builds on the Main Street Al Fresco that started last summer. The Al Fresco project reconfigured Main Street’s parking and curb space, removing the turn lane to create space for sidewalk dining and retail space. While Al Fresco left the street open for cars, Sharing an Open Main Street would close the road to cars for the weekend.

SEE MORE:

• Sam's Bagels Moving From Main Street To Montana Avenue
• Cops Tase, Arrest Stabbing Suspect At Santa Monica Beach
• Bike Shop Burglary Suspects Arrested, Police Say