Massive Playa Vista Development Stopped

Surfrider Foundation’s South Bay Chapter, and their partners Ballona Wetlands Land Trust and the City of Santa Monica signed a settlement agreement that sends the controversial Phase 2 of the development back to the drawing board. The settlement terms establish that the Environmental Impact Report inadequately informed the public of the foreseeable harm to the local environment from the project. Consequently the City Council’s decision to grant development permits and entitlements have been reversed. This decision opens an opportunity for public acquisition of the property to fulfill the long held dream of restoring this relatively small, but critically important part of Southern California’s network of coastal wetlands. The Chapter has advocated using the space for “treatment wetlands” since the project’s inception.