The Venice Canals: How LA Paved Over Its Own Venice, Italy
The wild story of how Abbot Kinney built 16 miles of canals in 1905, how cars killed most of them, and what the six surviving canals mean for buyers today.
In 1905, tobacco millionaire Abbot Kinney looked at a decaying coastal swamp near Los Angeles and saw Venice. Not just any Venice — he saw the Venice of Italy. Canals, gondolas, Italian architecture, European elegance. He thought: Why shouldn't Los Angeles have this?
What followed was one of California's most audacious and ultimately tragic real estate developments. Kinney spent $3.5 million (equivalent to roughly $100 million today) to construct a literal replica of Venice across 160 acres of salt marshes. He built 16 miles of canals. He imported oil derricks from Signal Hill and repurposed them as "European towers." He brought in gondoliers from Venice, Italy, and paid them to pole boats through the canals while wearing period costumes.
For about 20 years, it worked. Venice became a genuine destination. Tourists came. Rich people built mansions. The Pike Amusement Park opened in 1905 with roller coasters and attractions. At its peak, Venice was California's premier beach town — a place where you could actually walk on the beach without getting covered in oil, unlike Long Beach.
Then the cars came.
The Roads Changed Everything (1925-1929)
By the mid-1920s, Los Angeles was transforming into an automobile city. The answer to every urban problem was suddenly "build a car road." Parking was becoming a crisis. Pedestrians were dying in accidents. Venice, with its winding canals and charming pedestrian-focused design, was seen not as a romantic destination but as an inconvenient obstacle to development.
The city of Los Angeles (Venice was annexed in 1926) decided that maximizing car traffic was more important than preserving Venice's canals. In 1929, they ordered the paving over of 10 miles of canals. Culverts were built. The water that once flowed through those canals was redirected underground. The romantic gondola rides stopped. The gondoliers went home. The amusement park closed in 1931 when the Great Depression hit.
Only six canals survived. The water in those six was diverted to storm drains. The remaining canals became stagnant, full of algae and debris. For decades, they were seen as eyesores rather than assets.
The Six Canals That Survived (And the Housing Market That Followed)
The surviving canals are Dell, Carroll, Linnie, Howland, Sherman, and Eastern. They sit one block from the Venice Boardwalk chaos, yet somehow exist in a completely different world. The streets are tree-lined and quiet. No cars are allowed on the canal-facing sides. Ducks and geese live in the water. On a Tuesday morning, you can stand on Carroll Canal Bridge and hear nothing but birds.
For most of the 20th century, the canals were considered the worst part of Venice to live in. The water quality was poor. The properties were cheaper. In 1990, you could buy a 1,000 sqft bungalow on the canals for around $200K. Today, the same bungalow sells for $1.8M to $2.2M depending on which canal and which side of the street.
The renaissance began in the late 1990s when a few things happened simultaneously: (1) Young tech professionals started moving to Venice, (2) The boardwalk became increasingly expensive and crowded, (3) The water quality in the canals improved due to upgraded stormwater management, and (4) Buyers realized that $1.5M could buy you a quiet, tree-lined neighborhood that felt like a completely different world, even though you were literally 2 blocks from the crazy boardwalk.
Today, Venice Canals is one of LA's most exclusive neighborhoods. The smallest lots start at $1.5M. If you want a renovated 3-bedroom on the water, you're looking at $2.5M to $3M+. The median price per square foot is actually higher than the rest of Venice because of the premium paid for waterfront quiet.
What This Means If You're Thinking About Buying in Venice
The canals exist in a totally different market from the rest of Venice. Same zip code, completely different buyer profile. If you're looking at Venice Boardwalk properties, you're getting the energy, the foot traffic, the tourists, the restaurants, the surf. Median prices: $1.8M-$2.0M.
If you're looking at the Venice Canals, you're getting peace, quiet, water views, and the kind of property that traditionally appreciates better during corrections because the neighborhood is stable and exclusive. Median prices: $2.1M-$2.3M.
Both are worth their prices. They're just completely different purchases. And knowing the history helps you understand why.
Homes For Sale in Venice
View allLive from MLS · Updated every 3 hours
$1,765,000
804 Boccaccio Ave
2 bd · 3 ba
$1,995,000
697 Washington Blvd
3 bd · 3 ba
$2,995,000
682 Oxford Ave
4 bd · 3 ba
$1,995,000
1257 Preston Way
3 bd · 2 ba
$8,995,000
1346 Abbot Kinney Blvd
4 bd · 5 ba
$1,395,000
1630 Penmar Ave
2 bd · 1 ba
$6,700,000
1212 Abbot Kinney Blvd
3 bd · 4 ba
$2,748,000
49 Brooks Ave
2 bd · 3 ba
Recently Sold in Venice
What homes have actually sold for - Source: CLAW MLS
$3,230,000
3001 Grand Canal
4 bd · 3 ba
$1,290,000
4215 Glencoe Ave
2 bd · 2 ba
$2,350,000
215 Windward Ave
3 bd · 2 ba
$2,600,000
2800 Grayson Ave
3 bd · 3 ba
$1,195,000
4050 Via Dolce
3 bd · 2 ba
$3,265,000
3128 Stanford Ave
4 bd · 4 ba
$1,840,000
3025 Carter Ave
3 bd · 2 ba
$1,175,000
505 Venice Way
2 bd · 1 ba
Tony O'Brien
Estate Agent, The Sher Group · DRE #02200838
Tony built the LOCALLA website to give buyers and sellers a more transparent way to search and transact on the Westside. He specializes in Venice, Santa Monica, Pacific Palisades, and the broader LA Westside market.
MLS data sourced from CLAW via LOCALLA. The Sher Group DRE #02022464.
Listing data provided by the Combined L.A./Westside MLS (CLAW). All data is deemed reliable but is not guaranteed and should be independently verified. Tony O'Brien DRE #02200838. The Sher Group DRE #02022464.