Construction crew demolish the iconic Santa Monica Chess Park at Ocean Front Walk on Thursday, March 3, 2022. The Santa Monica Recreation and Parks Commission voted to close chess park due to public safety concerns from a long history of criminal activity. Chess Park featured a collection of chess tables including a human-scale board with large pieces. The .29 acres park included 14 large tables with 4 chess boards per table, 10 small tables with 1 chess board per table and one large-scale chess set. A total of 67 chess boards were in the park.