[5] The Eastlake style Palms-Southern Pacific Railroad Depot building was situated approximately 600 yards (550 m) west of the present station, on the south side of the tracks, and remained in active rail service until the closure of the Santa Monica Air Line in 1953.

Used in many motion pictures, the building eventually fell into disrepair and abandonment but was declared a Los Angeles Historic-Cultural Monument in 1963.

(Save Our Station), moved it in February 1976 to the Heritage Square Museum grounds in the Montecito Heights community of the Arroyo Seco.

[7]On April 25, 2013, the Metro board of directors voted in favor of "Palms" as the official name of the station.

Construction incorporated an existing steel bridge from the Air Line era and added a new concrete bridge, both immediately east of the station over the National/Palms intersection, as well as re-using an existing rail tunnel west of the station.