The Olmsted Vision Doubling Public Beaches

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The Olmsted Report called for the doubling of public beach frontage. “Public control of the ocean shore, especially where there are broad and satisfactory beaches, is one of the prime needs of the Region, chiefly for the use of throngs of people coming from inlands. . . . [T]he public holdings should be very materially increased.”

The Olmsted vision has not been implemented. Los Angeles beaches in 2005 are shown in Map 103. Not all beaches have public access, accurate public beach data is not available, and private property owners are trying to cut off public access to public beaches.

Activists today are restoring a part of the vision and the lost beauty of Los Angeles through the urban park movement. Visit the core maps and analyses covering healthy, livable communities for all.

Get the The City Project’s Policy Report Healthy Parks, Schools, and Communities: Mapping Green Access and Equity for the Los Angeles Region.