While there are many more spots worth chronicling at home in New York, we decided to expand our horizons and take a trip west to California to start chipping away at some of the heavyweights over there. The iconic courthouse has been documented in videos as far back as Risk It in ’90 and continues populating our feeds today with NBDs on the stage.

The West LA Courthouse, sometimes known as the Santa Monica Courthouse, has been proving ground for generations of LA-based skaters and up there with the Brooklyn Banks or EMB as a destination spot for visitors.

Up until 2014 it was still illegal to skate until Alec Beck, Aaron Snyder and Nike worked with the local government to convert the space into a permanent skate area and funded renovations like revamping the ledges.

To try to capture as much of the history as possible, we talked with old school filmers (Socrates Leal, Tim Dowling) and a grip of skaters (P-Rod, Stevie Williams, Chris Roberts, Kelly Hart) who all contributed their own memorable tricks to the spot.

Filmed by: Bobby Bils
Edited by: Alexis Castro
Special Thanks: Alec Beck, Socrates Leal & Steve Roth