RANCHO PALOS VERDES — After nearly a decade of planning and community engagement, the City of Rancho Palos Verdes broke ground on an $18.7 million makeover of Ladera Linda Community Park, one of the most significant recreation projects in the city’s history.
City officials and community leaders gathered March 25 at the 11-acre site overlooking the ocean at 32201 Forrestal Drive to celebrate the start of construction on a revitalized community center and park.
Originally home to an elementary school that opened in 1967, following a decline in student enrollment, the site was repurposed as a park and community center in 1982. Ladera Linda Community Park is located next to the Forrestal Reserve, which is part of the Palos Verdes Nature Preserve, and features a variety of recreational facilities. With the park’s five aging buildings in serious disrepair, the city began a planning process in 2014 to revitalize the park and community center, involving input from a variety of stakeholders.
A master plan for the park was approved by the city council in 2019 and the project was granted entitlements in 2021. Financing and construction agreements were approved in March 2022. The existing nearly 19,000 square feet of buildings will be demolished to make way for a contemporary community center designed by Culver City-based architecture firm Johnson Favaro. The community center will include a dividable multi-purpose room, classrooms, a staff office, a warming kitchen, and a meeting room that will also serve as a “discovery room” displaying exhibits of local native plants and history. The site will also include patio areas, basketball courts, paddle tennis courts, a children’s playground, tiered outdoor seating, a lawn area, walking paths and 54 parking spaces.
The city is paying for the project through a combination of American Rescue Plan Act funds, Quimby funds, loan financing, and capital infrastructure project reserve funds, with a framework established to replenish the reserves.
Ladera Linda Community Park was closed for construction March 28. The project is expected to be completed in about 15 months.