Santa Monica, California a Small City with Big Ambition

Sign leading to Santa Monica pier

Santa Monica, California is located sixteen miles from downtown Los Angeles and is situated on the California Coastline abutting Santa Monica Bay. The city has several world famous attractions which include; The Santa Monica Pier, Santa Monica's Muscle Beach, and other parks and beaches. The city's proximity to the shopping in Beverly Hills, the lure of Disneyland, and the glitter of Hollywood also help to make it a premier destination for vacationers as well as those who are interested in relocating permanently.

Santa Monica's world famous Pier, built in 1909 may be one of the most recognizable piers in the entire world. The pier includes Pacific Park which is a full service amusement park complete with rides, games, an aquarium, dining options that range from fine dining to midway favorites, and a carousel which is designated as a National Historic Landmark. Pacific Park has a five story roller coaster, and a ferris wheel that is the only ferris wheel in California that operates over the water. The Ferris wheel is also the only ferris wheel in the world that is solar powered. Solar power feels very possible in the city due to the over 330 days of annual sunshine it receives.

Santa Monica is also home to over twenty-seven parks and two-hundred and forty five acres of beach. The residents take their outdoor recreation very seriously and as a visitor or potential resident you should as well. According to the City of Santa Monica many of the outdoor spaces in the city are also now equipped with free wifi so if you absolutely must be connected to the office at least you can do so from one of the many landscaped parks.

There were an estimated 88,050 residents living in the city according to the most recent census data available. These residents work in the transportation, medical, tourism, and public sector. These people live in homes with a median cost of $999,999 thousand dollars. The median income is $61,423 and for a household that figure is $100,996.

The City of Santa Monica takes renewable energy very seriously and is therefore considered a green city. Seventy-five percent of public works vehicles run on alternative fuels, every public building uses some form of renewable energy. The city has also been able to cut greenhouse emissions by more than ten percent during the last fifteen years. The city also has an aggressive curbside recycling program. These factors make Santa Monica one of the leading cities in the country in the field of sustainable energy.