Annenberg Community Beach House

The Annenberg Community Beach House property has served as a vibrant cultural and artistic hub in Santa Monica for nearly a century. It was built in 1929 by media mogul William Randolph Hearst for actress Marion Davies, and the property was sold and converted into the Oceanside hotel and Sand & Sea Club in the 1940s. The 110-room mansion was demolished in 1956, and the beach club continued to operate under a concession agreement with the State of California, which purchased the property in 1959.

When the beach club suffered damage in the 1994 Northridge earthquake, the City of Santa Monica sought to repurpose the property as a public beach facility, but officials had trouble securing funding. In stepped the Annenberg Foundation chairman/president/CEO Wallis Annenberg, who supported the transformation of the property into a sustainable, accessible, public recreational center with a beachside pool. The facility offers classes, community events, and group activities including volleyball, yoga, and paddle-boarding, and it hosts countless conferences, weddings, parties, and social events throughout the year. The Annenberg Community Beach House has been recognized with a Gold LEED rating from the U.S. Green Building Council and is continually making improvements to increase environmental efficiency.