Artwork in Belmar Park
On August 25, Santa Monica City Council selected a name for Santa Monica's newest open space, Historic Belmar Park, which commemorates the site that was home to a thriving African American community until the 1950s. The park hosts a sports field as well as an outdoor exhibition featuring a monumental sculpture and historical stories about the area, its community members, businesses and places of worship.
The artwork and interpretive panel design by artist April Banks and research by historian Dr. Alison Rose Jefferson was unveiled earlier this summer as part of the Belmar History + Art project.
At its meeting, City Council also supported the future expansion of this project, which will explore and tell the story of Bay Street Beach, a popular destination for African Americans during the Jim Crow era. Bay Street Beach is a 53-acre historic district, and was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 2019.
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