“Santa Monica” is the Spanish name for “Saint Monica,” and it is a beachside city in western Los Angeles County in the United States of America.

It is bounded on five sides by different areas of the city of Los Angeles: Pacific Palisades to the north, Brentwood to the northeast, West Los Angeles to the east, Mar Vista to the southeast, and Venice to the south. It is located in Santa Monica Bay.

Santa Monica has a population of 89,736 people according to the 2010 United States Census. A popular resort town during the early twentieth century, because of its pleasant temperature and proximity to Los Angeles, Santa Monica attracted celebrities such as Marion Davies who built exquisite beachfront houses along Pacific Coast Highway (PCH).

Since the late 1980s, the city has witnessed a resurgence, thanks to the renovation of its downtown center, major job development, and a boost in tourist arrivals. Pacific Park, located on the Santa Monica Pier, and Palisades Park, located on a hill overlooking the Pacific Ocean, are also popular tourist destinations.

As in other coastal beach areas, coastal erosion is becoming more severe as a result of coastal infrastructure and increased human activity. This problem will further worsen as sea-level rise continues to grow. With a long history of establishing environmental and sustainability policies, Santa Monica has recently focused on achieving community-wide carbon-neutrality by 2050 or sooner.

Many well-known companies have their headquarters in Santa Monica, including Beachbody, Fatburger, Hulu, Illumination, Otter Media, Lionsgate Films, and Miramax, among others. Atlantic Aviation is located near the Santa Monica International Airport. The campus of Santa Monica College is home to KCRW, a member station of the National Public Radio network. This facility is located just outside the eastern city limits of Vancouver.

Many video game development studios have their headquarters in Santa Monica, making it a key hub for the industry in the area.

The city of Santa Monica has recently risen to prominence as the epicenter of the Los Angeles region known as Silicon Beach, and it now serves as the headquarters for hundreds of venture capital-backed startup enterprises.

Douglas Aircraft (now a part of Boeing), GeoCities (which had its headquarters on the third floor of 1918 Main Street in Santa Monica in December 1996), Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, and MySpace are all examples of companies that have operated in Santa Monica in the past (now headquartered in Beverly Hills).

Originally posted at Once Over Restoration.