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Santa Monica Closes All Beach Parking Lots



Santa Monica has just shut down all beach parking lots indefinitely. If you saw our Instagram Story today, we were there as they put the locks on the Ocean Park lot. According to the Santa Monica Police officer we spoke to, the beach is not closed, just the parking lots. The parking lots at Venice and Malibu are still open.

This happened at 12:00PM. A few hours later the city released this press notice:

The City of Santa Monica is taking additional measures to protect the health and safety of the Santa Monica community and our neighbors by closing the beach parking lots. This comes after one-and-a-half days of large numbers of beachgoers coming to the coastline amidst the Safer at Home statewide measures to prevent the spread of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19).  These measures are being taken in accordance with State and local health directives that prohibit gatherings and call for social distancing of non-household members.  

All residents and visitors are advised to avoid the beach, beach bike path, and Palisades Park today and in the days to come to protect themselves and others. As a beach city we know the draw to be outside and in nature is more powerful than ever, but to truly have an impact in our region and state, we must all remain at home and six feet from others when out for essential trips only.  

“Today is not the day to go to the beach. We know that it’s difficult to stay at home when the weather is so nice and being close to the beach is one of the primary reasons why we love to call Santa Monica home,” said City Manager Rick Cole. “Yet this is a time when we must take the guidelines from our health officials to heart. We urge our residents to avoid any public spaces where social distancing is a challenge.”

Parking lots at the beach are closed, effective immediately. Residents of Santa Monica who live in the area of the beach and who hold residential parking permits for the relevant lots will be permitted to park, as will essential personnel consistent with the Governor's Stay at Home and the County Department of Public Health's Safer at Home orders.

For more of our coverage of the Coronavirus lockdown, CLICK HERE


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