This lovely little slip of a park is along Cloverfield Blvd, just south of Santa Monica (Click on the map image to go to the map.)

And it’s not large. But what it lacks in size it makes up for in charm, shady benches and lovely trees.

And that is all there is to say about this wee green space!

I was there on the Sunday of Labor Day weekend and it was pretty empty. Not sure if that was because of the holiday or if because it’s always pretty quiet in this tidy corner of East Santa Monica. With a number of office buildings nearby (The Lantana Building and Tribeca West to name a few) I can imagine this is a nice spot for office dwellers to come to for lunch when they just need some fresh air.

Here’s where to find this green retreat (Click on the image to take you to the google map.):

There is ample parking and very clean, bright, airy bathrooms – two each for ladies and gents.

The sinks are outside and I kinda dig ‘em:

There is a basketball court near the front of the park surrounded on three sides by shady trees. No other courts at this park, just the B-ball.

Beyond the basketball court was a baseball field ringed with a fence and this sign. Unfortunately there was no information on when the field would be completed.

Fortunately, just past the jungle gym, there is still plenty of field left unfenced for frisbee, catch or a rockin’ game of Freeze Tag, if you are so inclined.

At the end of this path, at the west end of the park are the swings. I was tempted to stop and enjoy them, but saved it for next time.

From the swingset end, looking back to Stewart Street.

I’m curious how busy this park actually gets on non holiday weekends. It seems a gorgeous spot to relax and unwind after a busy week. I hope it is well used and loved by it’s neighbors!

There is a sweet gem in that arm called Culver West-Alexander Park and if you are in the neighborhood and looking for a great spot to spend an afternoon, you will love this one.

I remember this park from the very early 90′s as I used to work in the Marina. The big field seen here used to have a baseball diamond and one year I spent many an early morning practicing softball with our company team. (Go Hurlers!) Even without a baseball diamond, you can NOT get bored at this park. I dare you!

There are basketball and tennis courts, BBQ pits and picnic tables, tons of jungle gyms and swings and even a community center. If you are a Westsider, check this spot out, bring the kids and grandparents and a big picnic. You never know what you’ll see here.

How to get there (click on the image to go to the Google Map):

You want sports? We got sports!  One tennis and two paddle tennis courts (this is where my honey and I play a lot.)

Here’s a close up of the mural at the end of the tennis court. It’s like being inside Wii Tennis!

In case you were wondering:

And also:

This happy mural greets  you when you park on Moore street. Handball courts (three) are here on the backside of the tennis court.

Wider shot of Basketball and handball courts with informal running path in front.

Close on the Mural at the Basketball court:

Plenty of stuff for the kids to clamber over and around:

And when it’s time to eat, there are plenty of shady spots to spread out and grill up some yummy picnic food.

There is plenty of parking on Moore Street and also in a small lot near the jungle gym/tennis court side of the park.

Alas, Fido will need to stay on the designated path. But it’s a sweet path!

And if you need to just chill in a grassy, shady spot, there is plenty of that too.

Read more about Richard Alexander, after whom the park was named. (Click picture for bigger version.)

Stop by some time! It’s a gorgeous little park and it’s all yours.

Glen Alla Park in Marina Del Rey is just such a park.

Located at Glencoe Avenue and Alla Road (natch), the park takes up a good city block and is within walking distance to the mall nearby. There is plenty of parking on both Glencoe and Alla. Plenty of photos of the park and the facilities follow the map. (Click the map to go to the actual google map page.) (Apologies that the day I was there it was overcast.)

First and foremost, there are bathrooms. I didn’t go in, but they looked tidy and well ventilated.

Bathrooms

Just across from the bathrooms was the jungle gym playground area. I love that big happy dolphin!

This playground area was surrounded by fencing though. A sign indicated that it would soon be under construction starting in two weeks. Turns out they are going to put in a Shane’s Inspiration, all accessible playground. This is fantastic!

The mission of Shane’s Inspiration is to create Universally Accessible Playgrounds and programs that integrate children of all abilities socially, physically and emotionally, fostering acceptance, friendship and understanding.

Read about all Shane’s Inspiration here.

Click here to find the many many Shane’s Inspration parks around LA.

If you have or you know kids with disabilities but haven’t heard of Shane’s Inspiration parks, why not go find one this weekend?

Back to Glen Alla….There is a wide grassy area with tons of room for frisbee throwing, baseball catching, picnicking, and lawn darts.

There were many dogs and their owners running around, despite the “dogs must be on a leash” signs scattered about. Everyone looked pretty mellow and under control.

Along one side of the park were the courts — Basketball:

And next to that, two tennis courts:

Then there was a stretch of space with picnic tables (under those trees to the right of the tennis courst), but it also looked like it was becoming the staging area for building supplies with two large shipping containers. But then past THAT, were three, count them three, paddle tennis courts! Both the Paddle Tennis and regular tennis courts have brand spanking new nets.

There were a couple of excellent trees for climbing.

But alas, no golf. Just don’t do it!

All in all it is a lovely, well kept park in the Marina, slightly off the beaten path, away from any hustle and bustle. I know if I lived nearby, I’d mosey down there a lot to play tennis and paddle tennis.

Stay tuned for more posts about pocket parks. If you have a small park you love and want to share, please do so in the comments.

Halloween. Celebrated with free carnivals for kids at all Los Angeles City Recreations and Parks Department Playgrounds.

The year was 1961.

Photo from the USC Digital Library

Park[ing] Day LA

I like the cause, as encapsulated in the slogan “Parks Not Parking.” However, the practical side of me has a few questions about this:

1.  Is it illegal in Los Angeles to use parking spaces for anything other than parking a vehicle, without special permission?
2.  If yes to #1, do the Park[ing] Day LA participants obtain permission to create their mini parks instead of parking their Minis in these spaces?
3.  If no to #2, will the police enforce the law by tearing down the parks that people set up, and/or issuing citations to people they catch in the act?

If yes to #3, I have mixed feelings about this.  I don’t necessarily think it’s wise or fair to cause the City to expend extra resources during yet another carnival-like event on our public streets.  Specifically, whatever you may think of the L.A.P.D., I don’t see how turning their officers into “junk haulers” for a day, and possibly having to incur overtime pay and extra manpower to do so, if that is indeed what will occur, benefits us.  On the other hand, if the City lets the parks flourish for the day, then, as my friend who told me about Park[ing] Day LA said, this “seems kind of awesome.”  Except, perhaps, for some irritated drivers who may have even more trouble finding parking that day.

What do you think?  Does anyone here have experience with these events from previous years?

Having Griffith Park named a historic cultural landmark has extremely important benefits beyond the designation itself which creates opportunities for additional funding for maintenance and care of the park, and protection and acknowledgement of the special place this park has in Los Angeles’s colorful history. MacArthur Park is already a historic landmark; doesn’t Griffith Park — ALL of Griffith Park — deserve to be?

That said, this application is much bigger than just the designation. The bottom line is that Griffith Park is the front line in the struggle to keep our green space in Los Angeles away from developers and special interest groups. Sadly, Councilmember Tom LaBonge is fighting this application against the wishes of the Griffith Family, his constituents and the vast majority of Angelenos for exactly this reason — if all of Griffith Park becomes a historic cultural landmark, then every special interest project must go through a very public process for approval. No more backroom deals!

The item copied below is a great letter from the GGPNC outlining some of the sneaky ways politicos are trying to derail this application (very important!) and explaining exactly what action steps each of us needs to take to successfully support the Griffith Park application.

I hope everyone can take a few minutes out of their busy days to help support this pivotal application…

…and please share this with message with others.

Sincerely,
Kristin Sabo (parks volunteer, and steward-caretaker of Amir’s Garden)
————————————-
www.AmirsGarden.org

Instructions on how to make your voice heard are behind the jump thanks to the Greater Griffith Park Neighborhood Council.

From: Greater Griffith Park Neighborhood Council

YOUR CHANCE TO BE HEARD ON THE FUTURE OF GRIFFITH PARK

Now is the time for you to express your views to City Hall and to tell your elected and appointed officials that you support the Griffith family’s Application to have all of Griffith Park justly declared a City Historic-Cultural Monument.

Alarmed by proposals over the last few years to commercialize Griffith Park by building hotels, restaurants, tramways and numerous parking structures, Col. Griffith J. Griffith’s heirs submitted a 350 page Application which just barely passed its first vote for continued review at a recent meeting of the Cultural Heritage Commission. Approval of the Application by the Commission and then by the City Council would bring Griffith Park the same status now enjoyed by many other parks and treasured Los Angeles locations. While it would not prevent further development, it would help to ensure that historical aspects of the Park are preserved and that the people of Los Angeles have notice and opportunity to be heard on significant developments.

The Greater Griffith Park Neighborhood Council and over 30 other community organizations have voted to support the Application. Now it is time for each of us to make our individual voices heard. Some City officials and private interests have asserted that the Application be limited to only certain parts of the Park. This would diminish the status of Griffith Park as a whole, and leave parts of the Park unprotected from possibly unwise and unsupervised development (as well as ineligible for historic funding). This despite the facts that expressed concerns about impacting City services appear to be unfounded and that other Los Angeles parks and facilities, including City Hall itself, have thrived after being protected as Historic-Cultural Monuments.

Here is what you need to do NOW.
1. Make your views known by sending letters or e-mails to Councilmember Tom LaBonge and the Cultural Heritage Commission at the addresses below:

Councilmember.LaBonge@lacity.org
Hon. Tom LaBonge, City Hall- room 480, 200 N. Spring St., Los Angeles, CA 90012

CHC [at] lacity [dot] org
Cultural Heritage Commission, City Hall room 620, 200 N. Spring St., Los Angeles, CA 90012

Tell them that “I strongly support the designation of the whole of Griffith Park as an Historic Cultural Monument. I hope that you agree and will support it as well.”

Please customize your letter to increase its impact. Please be good enough to send a copy to us at GGPNC [at] GGPNC [dot] org.

2. Attend the next hearing: The Cultural Heritage Commission will be voting on the matter again at their Thursday, October 2nd meeting. It begins about 10am on the 10th floor of City Hall. It is open to the public and your views are welcomed.

3. Follow the progress of the Application and get more information by going to www.GGPNC.org or by clicking here. Our GGPNC website has additional information including a copy of the Application and the CHC staff report, a list of supporting organizations, and more sample draft letters for you to use. There is even a survey form where you can submit your support.

Please feel free to forward this e-mail to all your contacts and enlist them in the fight to preserve all of Griffith Park.