Notable progress in first six months of The Realignment Plan

March 23, 2026 3:59 PM
by City of Santa Monica

The original Realignment Plan was adopted by the City Council in October 2025. In the first six months of the plan, the City has delivered real results through executing plan components.

Achieving Safe Neighborhoods and Clean Streets

Safe neighborhoods:

Achieving full sworn staffing for the Santa Monica Police Department for the first time in nearly 20 years
Contributing to a decrease of 12.5 percent in Part 1 crime compared to the same period last year.
Restructuring SMPD’s Downtown Services Unit to bring eight to 10 officers Downtown daily, including Homeless Liaison Program (HLP) Team officers seven days a week.
Breaking ground on the new Downtown Police Substation at Santa Monica Place Mall, which will serve as the hub for downtown Police Department operations.
Adding additional capacity to the City Attorney’s Criminal Unit so that the unit is now filing on approximately 88 percent of all legally fileable cases.
Expanding the Crime Impact Team and traffic enforcement operations.
Hiring 42 new Fire Department employees, including firefighter recruits, ambulance operators, fire prevention professionals, and administrative staff.
Adding an additional Ambulance Provider Unit to build upon the initial success of the program, which launched in November.

Clean Streets:

Beautifying the 4th/5th Street off-ramp with 300 new California native plants
Clearing brush and debris from the freeway off-ramps, doubling Caltrans’ efforts
Planting 37 new street trees and refreshing 100 tree wells
Pruning 700+ street trees across the city
Regularly power washing downtown parking structures and resurfacing Parking Structure 4 and 5 stairways
Improving sidewalks, streetscape and traffic signals on Broadway
Repairing 7,000 feet of sidewalks in the Downtown
Repairing the fountain in front of City Hall
Upgrading restrooms near the Pier and Muscle Beach with new doors, locks, and hardware

Activating Economic Opportunity and Growth

Reopening the Fairview and Ocean Park branch libraries for in-person services three days a week for the first time since the COVID-19 pandemic.
Improving building Plan Check performance to 92.5 percent on-time first round reviews, an improvement of more than 40 percent.
Approving a Digital Display District at the Promenade and Santa Monica Place to advance the vision of Downtown as a cultural, entertainment, and economic center.
Helping pave the way for more than 15 new businesses and business expansions, including two recently opened, must-visit coffee shops (Couplet Coffee, Intelligentsia Coffee), many must-try experiences (The Cube Virtual Reality, Padel at the newly-evolved Santa Monica Pickleball & Padel, Garden Safaris… in Santa Monica), gyms (Spry Fitness, Equinox), and restaurants (Joy, Chez Luna, Santino’s, Pontu).

Developing Affordable, Livable, and Secure Housing for All

Implementing the first stages of the city’s new Vacant Property Ordinance, which has already seen 14 properties improve enough to move out of the “poor condition” category.

Creating Organizational Capacity

Stabilizing the city’s budget a full year ahead of the original plan: The General Fund is now projected to achieve a budget that does not rely on reserves by the end of fiscal year 2026-27.
Launching the Ambulance Operator Program to strengthen the city’s emergency response and generate revenue.

Building Organizational Health

Creating the One SaMo People’s Academy, a six-week course offering an inside look at city operations, priorities and civic engagement opportunities.
Instilling four core values for the One SaMo workplace culture: Humility, Integrity, Motivation and Care.

For more on the Realignment Plan Update, click here.

Authored By

City of Santa Monica