Empty space, meet the kids!
In a massive Westside real estate play, elite K–12 powerhouse Wildwood School — famous for educating the offspring of A-listers like Bruce Willis, Steven Spielberg and Kamala Harris — is packing its bags and making a big-money return to Santa Monica.
The high-profile institution has quietly gobbled up Ocean Park Plaza, a sprawling, two-story, 100,700-square-foot office and medical facility at 2701 Ocean Park Blvd. It plans to convert the commercial footprint into its new upper-school campus.
“We’re really excited to be part of the Ocean Park community,” Wildwood’s Head of School, Matt Levinson, tells The Sun in an exclusive interview. “We have a lot of students, families, faculty, staff, and alumni who have strong connections in Santa Monica.”
The deal marks a dramatic homecoming for Wildwood, which originally got its start on Olympic Blvd. back in the 1970s. When the school expanded outward to Mar Vista and West LA, the space was taken over by New Roads.
“Most importantly, [the purchase] gives Wildwood a permanent school owned home that we can shape for generations of students to come,” Levinson says.
The upper school has operated since 2001 under a long term lease at 11811 West Olympic Blvd. The elementary school will continue to operate at its present campus in Mar Vista.
Wildwood’s multi-million-dollar move is just the latest plot twist in a wild, high-stakes reshuffling of Santa Monica’s private education landscape.
It comes right on the heels of the sudden closure of the 66-year-old Santa Monica Montessori School, whose Colorado Avenue grounds were instantly snapped up by the AI-powered Alpha School.
Special Ed History and Medical Suites
Ocean Park Plaza isn’t new to the education game. Boutique special-education school Pacific Point Academy occupied Suite 150 until it closed in 2019.
The site offers “the natural light, open spaces, the courtyard, the chance for flexible learning, and collaborative spaces, expanded arts and athletics,” Levinson notes.
While the complex is reportedly 73% vacant, several businesses and medical practices are currently open, including: Providence Santa Monica Family Physicians, Regenerative & Hormone Medicine, Resolution Escrow and the dental practice of Dr. Jason Ray, DDS.
Levinson says Wildwood intends to honor their existing lease agreements and is “committed to respecting their privacy” once the students arrive.
The turnover of tenants will be part of a “gradual multi-year planning process on our part,” Levinson says.
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Clover Park upgrade
The real secret weapon behind this location? Green space.
Wildwood’s current Olympic Boulevard upper school lacks dedicated outdoor athletic fields. To make sports work, Wildwood’s own team schedules reveal a logistics nightmare: coaches currently have to trek students out to Stoner Park, Rancho Park, or bus them clear across the Westside just for daily practice.
Sitting directly across 28th Street from Clover Park changes the game entirely. Its 17.7-acre footprint—complete with two baseball diamonds, soccer fields, and tennis courts—could offer Wildwood an immediate, walking-distance option for both athletic practices and physical education classes.
“We obviously want to work closely with the city of Santa Monica to make that happen,” Levinson says. “But we certainly would hope to be able to access Clover Park for our programming… with good partnership with the city.”
What’s next
Levinson officially took over as Head of School on July 1. He previously served two years as Head of School at San Francisco’s University High School, where he oversaw fundraising for –– and construction of –– that school’s $91M campus expansion.
Levinson notes that Wildwood’s board and former Head of School Landis Green had been eyeing expansion opportunities for years.
But don’t expect students at desks anytime soon.
“This is a multi-year process and project from our viewpoint,” he cautions.
Especially since their current commercial lease runs through 2040.
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