Bringing Back Our Great Park for Future Generations
Who We Are
The Great Park Coalition is a nonpartisan 501(c)(3) non-profit, uniting diverse organizations and individuals committed to transforming the Santa Monica Airport site back into a Great Park in accordance with the 2014 Measure LC City Charter Amendment.
Board of Directors
The GPC Board of Directors came together in response to the City of Santa Monica’s Airport Conversion community engagement process, which began in Spring 2024.
Our goal is to support that undertaking with outreach in the community and education of community members new to the topics of airport conversion, the Measure LC Charter Amendment, and the legacy opportunity to restore the Great Park. The Board of Directors brings experience in law, tech, journalism, education, civic engagement, sustainability imperatives and climate change responses, support for the arts, fundraising, and volunteerism and members are united in the common goal of helping Santa Monica achieve the Great Park.
The volunteer and professional affiliations of the Board of Directors are listed for identification purposes only and do not imply organizational endorsement.
John Fairweather
Chair, Measure LC Campaign; Board Member, Airport2Park; Founder, Community Against Santa Monica Airport Traffic (CASMAT)
Frank Gruber
Board Member, Airport2Park Foundation; former Santa Monica Planning Commissioner; local blogger, The Healthy City Local; retired business and entertainment attorney
Zina Josephs
Secretary and former President, Friends of Sunset Park; Secretary and former Chair, SMMUSD Visual & Performing Arts District Advisory Committee; former Santa Monica Arts Commissioner; former teacher, LAUSD; former Board member, California Music Educators Association/Southern Section; former Board member, Resources for Infant Educarers (RIE)
Cris Gutierrez
Co-Chair, SaMo Safe Streets Alliance; SaMo Safe Streets Advisor to Youth Leadership Collective; Chair, Santa Monica Community Gardens Advisory Committee; Co-Founder, Climate Action Santa Monica; Community Advisor, Clean Power Alliance
Joseph A. Pertel
Santa Monica Airport Commissioner; Steering Committee, Community for Excellent Public Schools (CEPS); Past President, Elemental Strings; Past Vice-President, Team Santa Monica Aquatics Swim Club; Former Board member, Santa Monica Surf Youth Soccer Club; Past Personnel Commissioner, Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District; Former Member, Executive Committee, Los Angeles County Bar Association, Indigent Juvenile Defender Program; Supervising Staff Attorney, Loyola Law School Project for the Innocent
Ann K. Bowman
Co-Chair, Civic Center Task Force (advocated to realize Historic Belmar Park); former Santa Monica Recreation and Parks Commissioner; former Member, SMMUSD Facilities District Advisory Committee; former Chair for Direct Donation, Santa Monica High School Orchestras Program; former Vice President of Organization, Santa Monica High School PTSA Executive Board; former Co-President, Franklin Elementary School PTA; retired attorney
Patti Braun
Vice President for Organization, Santa Monica-Malibu Council of PTAs; Founding Coordinator SMMUSD’s Weekend Bags to Address Food Insecurity; Past President, Santa Monica-Malibu Council of PTAs; Founding Past President, Santa Monica Arts Parents Association; Past President, Samohi Choir Steering Committee; Past Producer, Samohi Theatre Steering; Founding Producer, JAMS Theatre Company; Past President, Grant Elementary School PTA; Past President, Grant Booster Club; Past President, JAMS PTSA; Past Member of Grant, JAMS and Samohi Site Governance Committees; Member, League of Women Voters of Santa Monica
Advisory Committee Members
The Great Park Coalition Advisory Committee brings together a non-partisan group of experts and leaders from many different disciplines and corners of our Santa Monica community, including recreation and parks, arts and culture, community gardens, sustainability and the environment, higher education, mobility, medicine, science, historic preservation, our K-12 public schools, fundraising, volunteer service, and beyond.
The volunteer and professional affiliations of the Advisory Committee members are listed for identification purposes only and do not imply organizational endorsement.
Erika Bell
Executive Vice President, Santa Monica-Malibu council of PTAs; Executive Vice President, John Adams Middle School PTSA; Board of Directors, Human Relations Council Santa Monica Bay Area; Area Advisor, Thirty-Third District PTA; past President, Grant Elementary School PTA; Member, League of Women Voters of Santa Monica; Steering Committee, Community for Excellent Public Schools (CEPS); Steering Committee, Santa Monica Early Childhood Task Force
Neelah Bell
Varsity Player (positions: middle hitter, outside hitter), Santa Monica High School Women’s Volleyball; Junior Student, Santa Monica High School Project Based Learning Pathway; aspiring fashion designer
Cindy Bendat
Photographer/activist; Advisory Board, Airport2Park; Board of Directors, North of Montana Association; former Board of Directors, Santa Monica Pier Corporation; Artist Member, Los Angeles County Museum of Art; Advisory Board, Center for the Study of Political Graphics; former Committee member, Save Chain Reaction; former union attorney; background in the arts, labor organizing, community outreach, and mediation with a commitment to creating art with social impact; her photographic work highlights cultural diversity and political activism, and includes the community struggle to shut down the Santa Monica Airport and create a park
Marla C. Berns, Ph.D.
Shirley and Ralph Shapiro Director Emerita of the Fowler Museum at UCLA; former Director of the University Art Museum at UCSB; specialist in the arts of Africa; recipient of the medal of chevalier of the Order of Arts and Letters of the French Republic; conferred the Arts Council of the African Studies Association’s Leadership Award for lifetime achievement; extensive experience in publishing, curating, public speaking, executive administration
Federico Bianchi
Executive Director, ALBION Santa Monica; Assistant Athletics Director, Crossroads School; Boys Varsity Soccer Coach, Crossroads School; former Santa Monica United player; Volunteer, LA Scores
Jonathan Bijur
Executive Director, Rediscover Center; Member, LA County Art Ed Collective Leadership Circle; Member, Santa Monica Alternative Schoolhouse Site Council; former tinkerer-in-residence, Virginia Avenue Park Teen Center; artist at GLOW 2013; former Reference Librarian, Santa Monica Public Library; former board member, Friends of SMPL
Michael Brodsky
Board Member, Airport2Park; Professor Emeritus, Loyola Marymount University; CA State Certified Environmental Educator; Education Staff, Resource Conservation District of Santa Monica Mountains; Santa Monica Spoke, Board of Directors
Robert (“Robb”) Brown
Former President, Grant Elementary Booster Club; former Member, John Adams Middle School Site Council; former Board Member, Santa Monica High School Orchestra Parents Association; past President, Santa Monica High School Band Parents Association; former Little League and AYSO soccer coach; Board member, Friends of Sunset Park; television, film, and stage actor
Julius Reder Carlson, Ph.D.
Associate Professor, Mount St. Mary’s University; Co-Founder, Sounds Like LA music education nonprofit; Artistic Director, The Da Camera Society of Mount St. Mary’s University
Julia Carnahan
Santa Monica Arts Commissioner; creative producer and arts administrator working in Los Angeles and internationally; 1990 & 1993 Los Angeles Festivals; International Festival of Arts & Ideas, New Haven; World Festival of Sacred Music, Los Angeles; UCLA Boethius Initiative; member of the Santa Monica Public Art Committee
Neil Carrey
President, Santa Monica Airport2Park Foundation; Santa Monica Travel & Tourism Board (immediate past Chair); Santa Monica Chamber of Commerce Board; Former Member and Past Chair of the Santa Monica Recreation and Parks Commission; Santa Monica Little League, Bobby Sox Softball and AYSO coach and past President of the Santa Monica National Little League and past Director of the Bobby Sox Softball; past Chair of the Santa Monica-Malibu School District Sports and Physical Education Advisory Committee and Title IX Gender Equity Committee; Treasurer of Athletes to Entrepreneurs; Board member and past President of the Kiwanis Club of Santa Monica; past President of the Santa Monica Bay Junior Rowing Association
Kate Davies
Student at University of California-Berkeley, majoring in molecular environmental science; 2025 Graduate of Santa Monica High School where she served as Co-captain, Team Marine; Member, SMMUSD Sustainability Steering Committee; Speaker and Beach Captain, Heal the Bay; aspiring environmental biologist and United Nations Environment Programme member
Janie Docter
Board Member, Elemental Music; Ambassador and former Board Member, Santa Monica Pickleball Club; Former Executive Board Member, AYSO Region 20; Former Board Member, Santa Monica High School Band Parents Association
Nicole Faries
President, Santa Monica-Malibu Council of PTAs; Steering Committee, Committee for Excellent Public Schools (CEPS); Founding Member, Black/African American Parent Advisory Committee (BAAPAC); Co-Chair, Samohi Grad Night; Former Co-Chair, CEPS; Former President, Samohi PTSA
Emmy Fay
Student at California State University Monterey Bay, majoring in marine biology; 2025 Graduate of Santa Monica High School where she served as Co-captain, Team Marine and member, SMMUSD Sustainability Steering Committee; aspiring marine scientist, artist, and surfer
Lili Flores, Ph.D.
Transdisciplinary artist and scholar, rooted in Native and Indigenous aesthetics, her work weaves traditional ecological knowledge with community-driven design practices across the arts. With a background in anthropology, archaeology, and media arts, she engages collaborative methods to tell plural histories through curating, teaching, and public programming
Karen Ginsberg
Treasurer, Santa Monica Travel & Tourism Board of Directors; Board of Directors, Santa Monica Conservancy; former Director, Community & Cultural Services, City of Santa Monica
Andrew Gledhill
Vice Chair, Santa Monica Urban Forest Task Force; former President, Ocean Park Association; Advisory Board member, Airport 2 Park; marketing and licensing executive
Matthew Goldenberg, D.O.
Graduate of Roosevelt Elementary School, Lincoln Middle School, and Santa Monica High School (Class of 2002); Father of two daughters in SMMUSD schools; Co-Chair, North of Montana Association (NOMA); Board Member, Santa Monica Protective Association (SMPA); Volunteer Referee, Santa Monica AYSO Region 20; physician
Ping Ho, MA, MPH
Founder/Director, Arts & Healing Initiative (the power of the arts enhanced by mental health practices made accessible to all); award-winning author of The Innovative Parent: Raising Connected, Happy, Successful Kids Through Art; founding administrator, UCLA Cousins Center for Psychoneuroimmunology; Steering Committee Member, UCLA Integrative Medicine Collaborative; creator, UCLA-research-based curriculum: Beat the Odds®: Social and Emotional Skill Building Delivered in a Framework of Drumming and Certificate Program in Social Emotional Arts (SEA)
Barbara Inatsugu
Current President of the League of Women Voters of Santa Monica and League Liaison to the Santa Monica-Malibu PTA Council; past President of the League of Women Voters of California; past President of the John Adams Middle School PTSA; former member of the 33rd District PTA Board of Directors and member of the Sacramento Safari organizing committee; past member of the Legislation Committee of the California State PTA and past member of the California State PTA Board of Managers; former District Leader Volunteer for the Humane Society of the United States; former member of the Board of Directors of the California First Amendment Coalition; Administrative Secretary to the SMMUSD Board of Education working in the Superintendent’s Office during the 1990’s; past chair of the Santa Monica-Malibu School District Personnel Commission
Susan Jain, Ph.D.
Santa Monica Arts Commissioner; Westside Co-Lead, UC Master Gardener Program (LA County); Board Member, Sounds Like LA; former Executive Director, UCLA Confucius Institute; Former Co-President, Santa Monica High School Orchestra Parents Association
Dylan Jericiau
Co-captain, Team Marine, Santa Monica High School; Member, SMMUSD Sustainability Steering Committee; Senior Student, Santa Monica High School; ceramic artist
Steven Johnson
Board Chair/President, Santa Monica Rugby Club; President, Congregational Council, St. Paul’s Lutheran Church of Santa Monica; Chair, Recreation & Parks Commission – City of Santa Monica; Senior product development executive with expertise in marketing, content platforms, ad tech, video, search, sales and finance
Benjamin Kay
Adjunct Associate Professor, Santa Monica College Life Science Department; Life and Environmental Sciences Instructor, Santa Monica High School; Member & Former Chair, Clean Beaches Committee, City of Santa Monica; Member, SMMUSD Sustainability Steering Committee; Former Member, SMC Environmental Affairs Committee; Advisory Board Member, Climate Action Santa Monica; Co-Founder & Faculty Advisor of Team Marine, SaMoHi; Science Advisor, Surfrider Foundation Los Angeles; soccer player, surfer, angler, and activist
Dean Kubani
Chair, Santa Monica Commission on Sustainability, Environmental Justice and the Environment; Adjunct Professor, Loyola Marymount University Department of Environmental Science; Principal, Kubani & Associates, LLC; Former Chief Sustainability Officer, City of Santa Monica; Former Assistant Director of Public Works, City of Santa Monica
Cathy Larson
Board Member, Airport 2 Park; Board Member and Airport Committee Chair, Friends of Sunset Park; Committee Chairperson, League of Women Voters of Santa Monica; Member, American Federation of Musicians, Local 47; Member, Music Teachers Association of California-Santa Monica Bay Branch
Bruce Malarky
Lieutenant Colonel (Ret.) and former flight instructor, U.S. Army; Former Los Alamitos Army Airfield Commander/Airfield Manager with experience in Transportation Planning and Environmental Engineering; Former Santa Monica Airport Commissioner; active cyclist and soccer player
Melinda Mehringer, J.D.
Board Member, Santa Monica AYSO Region 20, Director of Women’s Coaching Initiative, and 10-year volunteer coach; Faculty, UCLA School of Law; 20+ years professional experience as Senior/C-suite executive at Fortune 500/public companies
Karen Melick
Chair and Founding Member, Santa Monica Aquatics Advisory Committee; Masters swimmer; retired IT manager
Rashmi Mullur, M.D.
Physician, educator, and advocate for inclusive, healing community spaces; UCLA endocrinologist and professor focused on chronic disease management, disability advocacy, and holistic approaches to health and wellness; through professional work in Integrative Medicine and lived experiences, Dr. Mullur is dedicated to advancing a vision of urban development that honors resilience, inclusion, and the transformative power of nature and shares in the Great Park Coalition mission to build a space that welcomes and uplifts all members of the Santa Monica community
Michael Robert Myers
Producing Artistic Director, Ruskin Group Theatre; Associate Director, Ruskin School of Acting; Former Chair, Santa Monica Arts Commission
James Oliver
Soil Ecology and Bioremediation Researcher; Community Science Educator; Co-founder, Centre for Applied Ecological Remediation; former Resident Mycologist at Metabolic Studio
Lanikai (Kiki) Parker
President, Co-Founder, Asian Culture Club; Co-Captain, Team Marine, Santa Monica High School; Senior Student, Santa Monica High School; Gold-Award Girl Scout; Community activist and service member; artist and aspiring marine biologist
David Pettit
Senior Attorney, Center for Biological Diversity; former Senior Attorney, Natural Resources Defense Council; member, Santa Monica Commission on Sustainability, Environmental Justice, and the Environment
Bob Ramirez
Architectural Designer and Construction Director, Ramirez Design Inc; President, Gabrielino/Tongva Springs Foundation; Santa Monica Arts Commissioner
Sylvie Rokab
Founder, Love Thy Nature (inspiring people to commune with Nature, others, and themselves to ignite healing, wisdom, and purpose); certified mindfulness teacher, forest bathing guide, ecodharma advisor, and Emmy-nominated filmmaker encouraging simple yet powerful practices to help people heal and rediscover joy, belonging, and wonder through sacred reciprocity with nature; narrated by Liam Neeson, her award-winning film LOVE THY NATURE sparked a nature-connecting movement with over 300 global events
Cynthia Rose
Dedicated community leader, environmental & multimodal advocate focused on collaborations to establish policy and infrastructure that create safer streets, environmentally-sustainable healthy communities, economic and environmental resilience, & community well-being; Director, Santa Monica Spoke; Co-Chair, SM Safe Streets Alliance; Collaborator, Climate Action Santa Monica; Board Chair, CalBike and Bike LA; Steering Committee Member, SM Human Relations Council, SM Transit Management Organization, and SM Forward; Member, Santa Monica Community Gardens Advisory Committee; Certified League Cycling Instructor for programs including Kidical Mass, Safe Routes to School, Active Aging, Local Safety & Encouragement/Education Programs, Vision Zero, Zero Emission Delivery Zone Pilot; Former Commissioner, METRO Westside Service Council; Board Member, Sustainable Streets; Member, Shared Mobility Community Advisory Committee; living a nearly car-free lifestyle, Cynthia loves gardening, bicycle adventures, and connecting to nature
Jerry Rubin
Community activist; Member, Urban Forest Task Force
Mike Salazar
Board Member, Airport2Park; former Board Member, Ocean Park Association; architect
Gavin Scott
Advisory Committee, Airport2Park; former Board Member, Friends of Sunset Park; author; filmmaker; former BBC broadcaster
Jasan Sherman
12+ years Board member and 3-year Former President, Santa Monica Little League; 25+ years experienced realtor specializing in Santa Monica and West Los Angeles; 18+ year member of the Santa Monica/Palisades Masonic Lodge 307; born and raised in Pacific Palisades and Santa Monica
Thomas Sullivan
President/CEO, Cayton Children’s Museum; former Executive Director, Westchester Children’s Museum (Rye, NY); former Director of STEM Learning – PreK-5th, Waterside School (Stamford, CT); former Director of Education & Programs, DuPage Children’s Museum (Naperville, IL); M.S.Ed in Museum Education from Bank Street College, NYC
Dr. Jeff Sung
Board-certified Emergency Medicine physician (20+ years); board-certified in Hospice & Palliative Medicine; M.S. in Palliative Care; Providence Saint John’s Health Center, Palliative & Supportive Care (current); formerly Providence Holy Cross; clinical interests: palliative care in oncology and progressive neurologic disease; integration of palliative medicine across the illness continuum and within the emergency department; surfer, hiker, soccer player; enjoys time outdoors with his two children
Clare Thomas
President, Friends of Sunset Park; retired physician
Elizabeth Van Denburgh
Managing Principal of Van Denburgh Consulting Group, focused on utility and customer-centric process advising; an MBA and CPA with extensive experience counseling in the service sector, including utilities, entertainment, insurance, health care, energy, engineering, not-for-profit, and government entities; former Committee Chair and Member, UC San Diego Foundation; former Member and Chair, City of Santa Monica Audit Subcommittee; Chair, Wilshire Montana Neighborhood Coalition
Paola Vezzulli, Assoc. AIA
WRLC Regenerative Farm’s Co-founder, Strategy Lead and Volunteer Committee Chair; Leader in Strategic Planning and Thinking; Project Director and Educator in Architecture, Landscape and Urban Planning; Affordable and Permanent Supportive Housing specialist; mentor and visionary Sustainability advocate