With its 100th birthday looming on the distant horizon, Santa Monica College is developing a new master plan to guide the future of its main campus at 1900 Pico Boulevard.

Spanning nearly 44 acres along the south side of Pico Boulevard,  the campus was established in 1929, and today serves a total of 32,000 students at multiple locations across the Westside. The main campus currently features just over 1 million square feet of building area, as well as athletic fields and parking facilities. Ongoing projects at the main campus include the construction of the school's Art Replacement Building - located just west of the main property along Pico Boulevard - and the new Math and Science Building.

Demolition planSanta Monica College

The proposed master plan update would involve the demolition of roughly 360,000 square feet of new buildings, which would be replaced with 256,000 square feet of new construction - a slight downsizing relative to current conditions. Proposed buildings include:

  • the 76,000-square-foot Pico 1 Building (replacing offerings currently provided in Drescher Hall and the Business Building);
  • the nearly 100,000-square-foot Pico 2 Building (replacing offerings currently provided in Drescher Hall and the Business Building);
  • a 12,000-square-foot police headquarters;
  • a 42,000-square-foot student union;
  • a 26,000-square-foot maintenance and operations building; and
  • two smaller buildings on Pearl street consisting of 9,000 square feet of space.

In addition to new construction, plans call for renovations to the school's Physical and Life Science Complex, as well as its Library and Media Center.

Proposed conceptual planSanta Monica College

Outside of new buildings, the master plan also calls for the construction of approximately 90,000 square feet of new or renovated open space areas, helping to better tie the campus together. This includes landscaping and a plaza at the exterior of the new student union, a secondary welcome lawn next to the art complex building, and a new amphitheater.

Pending approvals and completion of environmental review, implementation of the master plan is projected to occur over a 10-year period between 2025 and 2035.

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