
By FRANCES SHARPE | Editor-at-Large
More than two years after developer Rick Caruso held his first community meeting at Palisades Charter High School to gather input on his proposed Palisades Village project, the development earned the City Council’s final approval on Tuesday, June 14.
“I want to thank the community for its support,” Caruso told the Palisadian-Post at City Hall after the vote.
“This has been a really unique process where the community has leaned in and challenged us and ultimately helped us make this a better project,” he added.

Rich Schmitt/Staff Photographer
At the Council meeting, Councilmember Mike Bonin praised the developer for the way he approached the revitalization of Pacific Palisades’ downtown area, which had deteriorated over the past decade.
“Caruso came in on a white horse and held a number of community meetings,” Bonin said. “He held meetings in community centers and living rooms to hear what they wanted for this project.”
What they wanted wasn’t what the developer had initially planned.
After closing escrow on the property in late 2013, Caruso told the Post his plan was to simply spruce up the existing buildings on Swarthmore Ave. and Sunset Blvd. with a facelift.
That changed, however, after listening to suggestions at several large community meetings as well as 50-plus local events and receiving more than 1,000 emails and comments on social media.
Based on this input, the developer revised his plans to provide what the community was asking for: a movie theater, a specialty market, a community room, more parking and a green space—all within 116,215 square feet on 3.11 acres of land in the heart of the Palisades.
The developer and his team at Caruso Affiliated revealed the new concept to resounding applause at a meeting at Pali High in December 2014 and continued refining the plans with guidance from residents.
Most recently, the developer announced that he will be adding a third level of underground parking, increasing the total number of stalls from 470 to 560.
“We know there is currently a shortage of parking in the Village and want to do our part as a member of the community,” Caruso said previously.
That willingness to respond to residents’ requests helped the developer earn widespread community support, which is significant considering the Palisades has historically been tough on commercial development projects.
“In all my years working for the neighborhoods on the Westside, I have never seen or heard this level of overwhelming public support for a project,” Bonin said previously.
Among the few who aren’t fully on board is Palisadian Rosalie Huntington. She provided the lone public comment during the City Council meeting on Tuesday, when she made a plea for more mid-century modern architecture in the project.
Caruso added touches of mid-century modern architecture to the project after members of the Pacific Palisades Design Review Board made a similar request.
Construction work on a storm drain relocation is scheduled to begin June 27, according to Caruso, who added that there will be no trace of construction on the Fourth of July holiday.
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