‘Santa Monica is not safe’ sign on Third Street Promenade tells a complex story

Lupe Gonzalez has lived in Santa Monica for more than 30 years and always considered her neighborhood safe. Earlier this year, she got a new job as a store manager at Sand ’n Surf shop on Third Street Promenade and was surprised to witness police officers patrolling the area several times a day, and downtown “ambassadors” greeting visitors and reporting suspicious activities.

The owner of the store where Gonzalez works felt safe enough to let the store’s security guard go.

But when she began closing up the store at night, Gonzalez dreaded her short walks home — passing dark alleys, empty storefronts and encountering people with mental health issues. She considered buying pepper spray to protect herself.

When earlier this month a large sign went up on a vacant storefront on Third Street Promenade reading “Santa Monica is not safe. Crime … depravity … outdoor mental asylum,” she felt conflicted about her beloved neighborhood.

“As a woman, I don’t feel safe here,” Gonzalez said. “I love my city and for me to say that ‘I don’t feel safe’ is a lot — because I want people to still come to Santa Monica without feeling they are not safe.”

Gonzales is not alone in her complex feelings about the beloved and increasingly dense beach town.

Gonzalez said she suspected the increase in people with mental health issues worsened during the pandemic when she noticed more tents and makeshift shelters scattered along sidewalks.

“I’ve never been afraid to walk in my own neighborhood,” she said. “But recently I see many people with mental health issues here.”

Gonzalez wondered whether the proximity of the E Line, which ends near the Third Street Promenade, contributes to the problem. Just recently, the Los Angeles Metropolitan Transportation Authority, or Metro, considered reviewing a policy that requires commuters to get off the last trains at end-of-the-line stations at about 1 a.m., when the lines shut down for the night so the transit cars can be cleaned.

The policy applies to the Metro E Line which ends in Santa Monica, where homeless individuals who often sleep on the line must get off at day’s end.

The Santa Monica Coalition, a group of homeowners, renters, and business owners  posted a sign similar to the one on Third Street Promenade on its website. They are demanding that city leaders “fund law enforcement, create new improved services for the mentally ill and addicted living on our streets.”

City of Santa Monica spokeswoman Constance Farrell said, “it’s sad that a small group of landlords is working against our collective success through signage at the very moment when small businesses are welcoming holiday customers.”

The city, she added, “places the highest value on community safety. Our police department is successfully preventing and addressing crime in our downtown every day through increased patrols and the hiring of nearly 30 new officers this calendar year.”

She noted that the city added new private security resources for the downtown area and parking structures.

“We care deeply about the success of Santa Monica businesses,” Farrell said.

According to data compiled by the nonprofit news organization Crosstown at USC Annenberg, the crime rate has spiked in Santa Monica since the beginning of the year from 528 criminal offenses in January to 683 in September. Crosstown has moved Santa Monica up in crime level ranking, to 123 — still low on its list of the Los Angeles area.

Still, the City of Santa Monica reported in May that its homeless population has declined by 11% from 907 in 2020 to 807 in 2022.

Khambi Hamis, manager at the Peaches & Cream store on the Promenade, said he understood why some residents would post a sign saying the city isn’t safe because “they just want to get some attention and tell the city that they need a little bit more help” with issues like homelessness and mental illness.

“I see a good number of homeless people in Santa Monica being associated with drugs, acting weird and chasing people,” he said, adding that Santa Monica remains a safe city compared to other areas in the region.

“There is crime anywhere in L.A., but Santa Monica is one of the safest places to live,” he said.

Still, he worried that the dramatic sign that went up on an empty storefront could potentially hurt businesses on the Third Street Promenade which, in recent years, has witnessed an exodus of major retail stores including The Gap Inc., Banana Republic, J. Crew, Guess and Barnes & Noble.

“The sign is affecting businesses because it’s telling people ‘Don’t come here and don’t shop here,’” Hamis said.

Gonzalez echoed his concerns.

“I don’t think the situation is worse than in other cities,” she said, “but it can get there, if not much is done.”