Santa Monica Bans Exercising on Traffic Medians

"The target is increasingly loud, littering and generally intrusive groups of exercisers who gather from dawn until dusk along the Fourth Street median. The ocean view, the air and for some the architectural spectacle have transformed the area into a huge outdoor gym rimmed by multimillion-dollar homes.

In the last six months, park rangers, dispatched by the Santa Monica Police Department in response to complaining neighbors, have stationed themselves on the corner of Fourth Street and Adelaide Drive during much of the day, at the ready to break up any unauthorized kickboxing."

"Naturally, a fair share of exercisers are unhappy with the new enforcement, and at a recent City Council meeting, officials batted the matter around: Would the law withstand legal challenges? What constitutes too 'early' to be awoken by whistles? But there was no resolution."