DWP occupied the Palisades Recreation Center after the Palisades Fire. That utility company is moving out so that park programing can continue.
The temporary library building (in blue) would be at the edge of the north lawn at the Palisades Recreation Center.
By CHAZ PLAGER
Palisades residents gathered on Zoom to discuss the future of the Palisades’ beloved public park on June 24 at a meeting of the Palisades Park Advisory Board.
Andy Starrels, PAB Chair, has been part of PAB for nearly 20 years, said “The park is our community’s heart, it’s our essence, and it’s important to all of us that we give back to it,”
The meeting opened with some of the Palisades residents’ most burning question: went are sports coming back to the park?
Mike Tomas, who has the tennis concession said, “People keep asking– When is tennis gonna be back? When can we play tennis in our beautiful park again?”
Alex Hemmat, coach for many sports, including basketball said, “people keep asking me– when is basketball gonna be back?”
RAP (Recreation and Parks) General Manager Jimmy Kim, DWP Representative Dave Hanson, and Jacqueline Hamilton (who could not be at the call, but her words were read aloud) gave a Park Facilities Update.
The DWP has moved out of the Palisades Rec Center, and the outdoor basketball court and removed its equipment from the lower tennis courts to a site near Topanga. The DWP has not restored power to the containers on the baseball field after wide-scale destruction of the electrics, to the chagrin of the baseball coaches on the call.
Dave Hanson, DWP Representative, empathized with the community, “My heart goes out to each and every one of you affected by this disaster… We are committed to getting the park running again as quickly and efficiently as possible.”
The debris removal at the park, including the large gym, the maintenance building and the tennis store, is moving faster than scheduled thanks to the Army Corps.
A temporary Palisades Library was discussed and John Szabo, head of the LA Public Library, spoke about those plans. A temporary library will be put at the corner of Toyopa and Alma Real Drive and has the advantages of: access to green space for children and adults enrolled in programming, preserving parking, cost-efficient and not needing to move or close during the library rebuild (also destroyed in the fire).
“We at the LA Public Library are very eager to begin providing services again to the Palisades library, both for the temporary library now and in the future,” Szabo said. “We expect to be able to provide children’s programming, a small browsing collection, holds and pickup, the ability to order books to be delivered and borrowed, printing and scanning services, Wi-Fi services, study spaces, public spaces, a space for the Friends of the Palisades Library bookstore, and even some public computers. We’ve also been considering adding a Community Meeting Room after many requests from residents.”
This is an example of a temporary library that could be placed in the Palisades.
The board outlined their current expected timeline for rebuilding the park:
JUNE 2025:
Reinstating bocce, tennis and baseball programs are underway. The playground and bocce courts are expected to open mid-to-late July. Around this time, they also expect to open the Small Gym for use for basketball and pickleball.
JULY 2025:
New playground to open.
AUGUST 2025:
The temporary library is expected to open.
SEPTEMBER 2025:
The baseball and tennis programs are expected to start again.
OCTOBER 2025:
The Palisades Park Rebuild is currently undergoing a Development Agreement, being created jointly with the RAP (City Department of Recreation and Parks), the City Attorney, Philanthropic Groups (Steadfast L.A. and L.A. Strong Sports), CD 11 Council Office, and the Mayor’s Office. The Board is expected to approve the new design for the park by October. Philanthropic Groups will finalize the bid and make an award by November.
The current park does not have ADA-compliant restrooms, and this board has been working on obtaining them for nearly a decade.
PAB was told that a new, separate space for ADA-compliant restrooms is planned for the new park as well. In the meantime, a temporary ADA-compliant restroom solution is being installed.
Prior to the fire, Palisades had received $800,000 in Quimby Funds to be used for new bathrooms, and board members wanted to know what would happen to that money that was specifically to be used for the Palisades, if it was not used for restrooms.
Kim said that if they were not used on the ADA restrooms, the money would be reallocated to “other Palisades projects.” PAB Member Richard McGeagh said the restrooms should be built to coincide with the reopening of the bocce courts.
JANUARY 2026:
Tentatively expected groundbreaking for building the new Rec Center.
PUBLIC COMMENT:
PAB Member David Card was concerned about the large Australian tree he planted with others that happens to coincide with the planned location of the temporary library, as he does not want it to be destroyed during construction. “We will take care to ensure it won’t be,” the RAP General Manager said.
Resident Rachel Jonas was very confused as to why the new playground has taken a firetruck and first responder theme, instead of the community’s proposed designs.
Starrels said that the current theme was decided through “community input,” but if residents were generally dissatisfied with the design, there is “room for discussion.”
Resident Alex Hemmat, asked about the status of receiving donations from organizations like LA Strong. “We still are,” said Starrels. “We definitely still need money.” Proceeds from the Venice 4th of July 5K Run will go towards funds to rebuild the park.
The next regular meeting of the Palisades Park Advisory Board will be in July, likely after the 15th, and “hopefully” in person in the small gym.
“The turnout at these meetings these past few weeks has been astounding,” Starrels said. “I hope that all of you and more will turn up to our coming meetings in July and August.”
(Note from Plager: I know my mother will, because she hasn’t gotten her pickleball fix just yet.)