Pico

Pico is a bit of a mixed bag when it comes to Santa Monica. On the one hand, it is one of the most ethnically diverse areas in Santa Monica. It is also the home of Santa Monica High School which is a solid school without a lot of the problems that some other schools suffer. The students here test consistently higher than students in other similar urban schools. Pico is also home to Santa Monica College, a school that is quite popular with southern California students. All of these are good things about Pico.

Unfortunately, Pico is also the gang area of Santa Monica, where five of Santa Monica’s eleven murders from the last three years have taken place. Many blame the city for overlooking the gang and narcotic problems. One of the gangs active in the area and implicated directly in at least one of the recent murders is a gang known as “The Graveyard Crips.” Given the wealth and beauty of the rest of Santa Monica, it is a shame that they can’t seem to break this section of town from its problems.

The main drag is Pico Blvd. that has a very run down look compared to the rest of Santa Monica. There are lots of Seventies style boxy apartments and older ranch homes in this area. One good effect of the dangerous neighborhood, of course, is that it does hold back apartment prices somewhat. Most apartments are below $2,000 in the area.