Third Street Promenade

Third Street Promenade

A picture taken in the heart of the Promenade
Location	Santa Monica, California, USA
Opening date	1965
Developer	The Hahn Company and The Rouse Company
Management	Downtown Santa Monica, Inc.
Owner	Multiple owners, including Federal Realty Investment Trust, KLM Equities.
Parking	Structured
Website	Third Street Promenade and Downtown Santa Monica

The Third Street Promenade is a pedestrian mall shopping, dining and entertainment complex in the downtown area of Santa Monica, California. It is considered a premier shopping and dining district on the Westside and draws crowds from all over the Greater Los Angeles Area. Due to easy access to Downtown Los Angeles via the Expo Line's terminus station, its proximity to historic Santa Monica Pier and the Pacific Ocean coupled with Los Angeles's mild climate, it is also a popular tourist destination.

History

Third Street has been a center of business in Santa Monica since the town's inception in the late 19th century. The Promenade's roots date back to the 1960s when three blocks of Third Street were converted into a pedestrian mall. Although successful, by the late 1970s, the Santa Monica Mall (as it was then called), was in need of modernization and a redesign. A new enclosed shopping center, Santa Monica Place (1980–2007), designed by Frank Gehry was added at the Promenade's southern end. A citywide bond measure was issued and architectural firm ROMA Design Group was hired to redesign Santa Monica Mall. The renamed Third Street Promenade opened on September 16, 1989. The project was part of a larger redevelopment effort, encompassing several blocks of Downtown Santa Monica. Santa Monica Place has since been renovated into a new open-air shopping and dining venue that re-opened on August 6, 2010.

The Third Street Promenade is home to many major retail brands, from GAP and Urban Outfitters to Adidas and Volcom, as well as unique entertainment and dining options, many al fresco.

Third Street Promenade also hosts the largest and oldest certified organic farmers' market each Wednesday and Saturday on Arizona Ave. between 2nd and 4th streets.

There is ample parking in 10 public parking structures located on Second and Fourth streets, including two structures at Santa Monica Place mall. Visitors can also find parking at the Santa Monica Main Library, located at 601 Santa Monica Blvd. Visitors can also access the Third Street Promenade via public transit. LA Metro and Big Blue Bus have multiple routes into Downtown Santa Monica. There is also the Expo Light Rail Line, which terminates at the corner of Fourth Street and Colorado Avenue, allowing visitors to walk to the Santa Monica Pier, Santa Monica Place and Third Street Promenade.

The City of Santa Monica also operates a bike-share program called Breeze, and there are other private mobility options, including electric scooters and e-bikes.

Street performers and entertainers are a frequent sight on the street. On a typical Saturday night in the summer, singer-songwriters, classical guitar players, magicians, clowns, hip-hop dancers, lounge singers, session drummers, and other artists line up approximately 40 feet (12 m) to 50 feet (15 m) apart from each other all along Third Street.

The Third Street Promenade and Downtown Santa Monica are overseen by Downtown Santa Monica, Inc. (formerly Bayside District Corporation), a private non-profit 501(c)(3) that works with the City of Santa Monica to manage services and operations in Downtown Santa Monica that promote economic stability, growth and community life within Downtown Santa Monica.

Photo gallery

• 
  Trees along Third Street lit up for the Holidays.
• 
  Broadway Theatre on Third Street.
• 
  Businesses on Third Street, between Utah and Oregon (now Santa Monica Blvd.), 1880.

External links

• Third Street Promenade and Downtown Santa Monica
• How Santa Monica's Third Street Became a Promenade - KCET - LA as Subject