Mixed-use development starts to rise at 234 Pico Blvd. in Santa Monica

This post was written by Steven Sharp and published on Mar 10, 2026 on la.urbanize.city

Housing and retail on the former site of Pico Bowl

At the former site of Pico Bowl in Santa Monica, a red tower crane is now up, as construction goes vertical for a new mixed-use development Cypress Equity Investments.

Located at 234 Pico Boulevard, the project will consist of a new four- and five-story building featuring 186 studio, one-, and two-bedroom apartments above approximately 11,000 square feet of ground-level retail space. Plans also call for a 346-car garage.

CEI entitled the site using density bonus incentives to permit a taller building than would otherwise be allowed by zoning rules. In exchange, 19 of the apartments are to be set aside as deed-restricted affordable housing.

KFA Architecture designed the project approved by Santa Monica officials in 2023.

Renderings show that the new construction is intended to integrate the Googie “BOWL” sign that was once displayed outside of Pico Bowl. The signage is to be reinstalled on the property after construction of the apartment complex.

Cypress Equity Investments, based in neighboring Brentwood, has developed hundreds of apartments at sites across Santa Monica over the past five years, and has plans for several additional developments totaling more than 1,000 new homes.