On Sept. 23, LA28 released the triathlon courses for the 2028 Games. They loop through Venice Beach, along the bike path and over the Venice Canals bridges, and they put the first medals of the whole Games on the women's individual race, which finishes facing the Pacific. The course is set. The beachfront around it is still undecided. The pier entrance, the Windward Avenue blocks, a wider bike trail, new lighting and more restrooms are all at the proposal or study stage, and one of them was sent back on Sept. 1 by a single vote.
Several of those decisions come up in the next six weeks. For anyone who walks Ocean Front Walk, rides the Marvin Braude Bike Trail or parks at the pier lot, the next public meeting is tomorrow.
The Race Route Is the One Thing Already Set
LA28 calls the area the Venice Beach Zone. Every triathlon in 2028 will use one Transition area, with the finish line right next to it. The individual Olympic race on July 15–16, 2028 is laid out like this:
- Swim: 1,500 meters, with athletes starting from the beach and going through the Venice surf line. LA28 says this is only the second beach start in Olympic history.
- Bike: 40 kilometers in eight 5-kilometer laps. The route leaves the bike path for Venice streets and finishes past the Venice sign.
- Run: 10 kilometers in four laps on the same path-and-street route, crossing the Venice Canals bridges before the finish.
The mixed relay follows on July 20. The Paralympic triathlon runs Aug. 18–19, 2028, with a swim start from a barge beyond the breakwater. LA28 representatives also told the Venice Neighborhood Council's Oceanfront Walk Committee that the marathon and road cycling races will both start in Venice and finish elsewhere in Los Angeles.
There is a full trial run first. World Triathlon's T50 Triathlon World Tour comes to Venice July 16–18, 2027, and LA28 says it will use the event to check how the courses perform and whether operations are ready. That means the boardwalk gets its first Olympic-scale crowd in about nine months. That date matters for every project below.
The Two Projects Already Done Bring Back Old Venice
Two beachfront projects were finished this summer. Both restore something Venice already had.
The Original Venice Beach Skatepark at 1500 Ocean Front Walk reopened with a free celebration on Aug. 15. The City of Los Angeles described the restored park as having smooth pavement and new street-style benches designed by skaters.
A few blocks inland, a replica of an Abbot Kinney-era gondola is back at Windward Circle after a community-funded restoration. The Venice Historical Society and the Venice Stakeholders Association marked its return on Sept. 13 at Hama Sushi and the Gondola Garden, 213 Windward Circle. The event notice credits Arthur Reese as the creator of the original gondolas.
The gondola is now at the eastern end of the most disputed project on the beachfront.
Windward Avenue Came Down to One Vote
The Windward Avenue Pedestrian Enhancement Project comes from the Neighborhood Council's Parking, Transportation and Infrastructure Committee. The study team was Richard Stanger and David Wolf, and the Phase 1 report is dated May 6, 2026. The plan splits Windward into two blocks. The west block, from Speedway to Pacific Avenue, would become a pedestrian plaza. The east block, from Pacific to Windward Circle, would become a plaza or park plus a consolidated bus hub. Regular traffic lanes would come out of the west block. A short driveway at the northwest corner would stay for a parking business, along with an emergency-vehicle lane at plaza level.
The parking numbers are small but real. The report estimates 19 public spaces lost on the west block and up to five on the east block, and suggests metered diagonal replacement spaces on the Post Office block.
Support for the west block in the committee's survey was lopsided. More than 90% of respondents favored pedestrianizing it, and 80% were strongly in favor. The board vote was much closer. At a special meeting on Sept. 1, a proposed amendment to approve only the west block failed, 4-12-2-1. The board then voted 9-8-1-2 to send the whole proposal back to committee for a town hall. No town hall date had been posted in the committee's listings as of this weekend.
Board approval would not have built anything. It would only start talks with city agencies and the Coastal Commission. Even that first step is now waiting on a meeting with no date, while the 2027 test event is on the calendar.
The Pier Entrance Goes to Committee Tomorrow
At the other end of the boardwalk, Tima Bell has proposed rebuilding the entrance to the Venice Pier. Bell is a lifelong Venetian, an architect, owner of Washington Square Pizza and Secretary of the Neighborhood Council. As Yo! Venice reported, he calls the current layout "forgotten" and pitches the new design as a proper "beginning of Venice, or the People's Pier."
The revised plan, presented in two versions, includes:
- Three staggered arches in a row, with local artists taking part
- Permeable paving and "below rail" lighting on the pier
- A "pedestrian first plaza" where the pier meets the bike path
- Space for mobile push-cart vendors and murals on the sidewalk
- Removal of the current parking booth, with traffic routed into the lot
Bell, who owns Bell Design Group, would cover the costs himself, and he describes it as "activation versus construction." The trade-off he named is the loss of some parking spaces. During public comment, someone suggested perpendicular parking as a fix. Committee chair Fran Solomon planned to work with Bell on a motion for the next meeting. If it passes, it goes to the full Neighborhood Council, and the stated goal is to finish construction before the 2028 Games. That committee meeting is Monday, Oct. 5, from 6 to 9 p.m.
The pier lot already has one project funded. Los Angeles County plans ten solar light poles for the Washington Parking Lot, which has no lighting now. The budget is about $250,000, and construction is expected in mid-2027 and should take about three months. The poles will be 18 feet tall with two solar fixtures each, aimed downward to limit light on the beach and nearby properties. Mid-2027 plus three months could run right into the July test event.
A 30-Day Clock on the Bike Path
The bike path carries much of the Olympic course, and it is the biggest change still on paper. Council File 26-1136, introduced by Councilmembers Traci Park and Heather Hutt, covers widening the Marvin Braude Bike Trail through Venice Beach and adding a separate pedestrian path. The City Council adopted it on Sept. 29.
The motion orders a 30-day assessment of scope, cost and funding. It does not approve construction. Counting from the Sept. 29 adoption, that assessment should arrive around the end of October if the schedule holds. Public comments on the file asked for a protected bike connection on Washington Boulevard between Venice Beach and Marina del Rey. The committee's recommendation does not include one.
Two other boardwalk items are also waiting. Work on the beach pagodas is still pending, with an estimated cost commitment of $100,000. In August, the Oceanfront Walk Committee voted 5-0 on a restroom upkeep motion and recommended a capital plan to restore existing restrooms and add more before 2028.
The Calendar Between Now and the Test Event
Here is the order things are scheduled to happen:
- Oct. 5, 6–9 p.m.: The Oceanfront Walk Committee meets, with the pier monument motion expected on the agenda.
- Around the end of October: The 30-day bike trail assessment under Council File 26-1136 should come back, based on the Sept. 29 adoption.
- Nov. 10: LA28 holds a virtual town hall on Venice Beach planning.
- Nov. 12: LA28 holds an in-person community meeting. No location or registration link had been published as of this weekend.
- Date not set: The Windward Avenue town hall.
- Mid-2027: Construction starts on the pier parking lot lighting.
- July 16–18, 2027: The T50 Triathlon World Tour runs on the Olympic courses.
The skatepark and the gondola are finished. The Windward plazas, the pier arches and a wider bike trail are still in committee or under study, and the first of those meetings is Monday night.
Changes to the pier entrance, Windward Avenue and the bike path will affect how the beachfront blocks function every day, starting with the 2027 test event. The Dutchover Team follows these votes so Venice homeowners know what's changing near them. If you own near the boardwalk and want to know how these projects could affect your property, get a free home valuation and we'll go over it block by block.
