Imagining Santa Monica's Next Great Park
About this Event
Join the SAMO Fund Field Institute, Airport2Park, and the Great Park Coalition for an exploration of one of Los Angeles' most exciting public spaces in the making.
As the former Santa Monica Airport transforms into the future Great Park, we invite you to step into the landscape and ask a simple but powerful question: What should grow here?
Together, we'll walk the future park site, learn how native plants support wildlife, conserve water, create beauty, and build climate resilience, and explore how plant selection shapes the experience of a place for generations to come. Michael Brodsky will be leading our journey through the history, present and future plans for this great park!
Along the way, we'll visit the Airport Avenue Demonstration Gardens, where National Park Service Plant Ecologist and Vegetation Branch Chief, Joey Algiers will introduce participants to native plant communities of the Santa Monica Bay region and discuss why choosing the right plants matters. We'll then continue to the observation deck, where Great Park Coalition member Michael Brodsky will share the history of the site, the vision for the park's future, and the progress being made to bring that vision to life.
Participants will also have an opportunity to sketch, write, and share their ideas for the future landscape, helping imagine what the next great park could become.
Whether you're a gardener, designer, student, environmentalist, or simply curious about the future of this remarkable space, this walk offers a chance to see the landscape through a new lens and become part of the conversation shaping its future.
Agenda
🕑: 08:30 AM - 09:15 AM
Check in
🕑: 09:15 AM - 09:30 AM
Welcome + Introductions
Host: Michael Brodsky
Info: Michael Brodsky will introduce Airport Park and the history of the area we are stepping into today. We will learn about the work the Great Park Coalition has been spearheading ensuring this area becomes a blossoming space for the community and Los Angeles at large.
🕑: 09:30 AM - 09:40 AM
Walk to Demonstration Gardens
🕑: 09:45 AM - 10:15 AM
The Importance of Plant Selection with Joey Algiers
Host: Joey Algiers
Info: As plans move forward for the transformation of the future Great Park, we invite participants to explore a question that will shape the landscape for generations to come: What should grow here?
At the Airport Avenue Demonstration Gardens, National Park Service Plant Ecologist, Joey Algiers, will introduce participants to native plants of the Santa Monica Bay region and discuss the importance of thoughtful plant selection. While plants certainly contribute beauty to a landscape, they also serve a much deeper purpose. The plants we choose determine which birds, butterflies, native bees, and other wildlife can thrive there, how much water the landscape requires, and how resilient it will be in a changing climate.
Through this exploration, we will discover how selecting plants that belong to a specific region helps create parks that are not only beautiful, but alive! Supporting rich ecological communities while connecting people to the natural heritage of the place they call home.
🕑: 10:15 AM - 10:30 AM
Walk back through the park and onto the Observation Deck
🕑: 10:30 AM - 10:50 AM
The Future of the Great Park
Host: Michael Brodsky
Info: At the observation deck, Great Park Coalition member, Michael Brodsky will share more about the history of the Santa Monica Airport site, the community-led movement to transform it into a public park, and the vision for its future. Participants will learn how decades of advocacy have shaped the park's development and explore what is planned for one of the largest new urban parks in Los Angeles.
🕑: 10:50 AM - 11:00 AM
Design the Future Forest
Host: You!
Info: What would you like to see here?
Where is it happening?
Event Location & Nearby Stays:
USD 0.00
