Palos Verdes: Ladera Linda Community Park Groundbreaking To Begin

RANCHO PALOS VERDES, CA — After nearly a decade in the making, the city of Rancho Palos Verdes will break ground on its $18.7 million Ladera Linda Community Park makeover.

The city is moving forward with plans to refurbish the 11-acre Ladera Linda Park and construct a new community center to replace the existing 19,000-square foto 1960s era facility. It is considered one of the most significant recreation projects in the city’s history.

City officials and community leaders will celebrate the start of the construction of the revitalized community center Friday at 3 p.m. at the site overlooking the ocean at 32201 Forrestal Drive. After construction, the park and community location will be enjoyed by generations of residents.

Rancho Palos Verdes Mayor Dave Bradley is excited about the groundbreaking.

“I’m honored to be a small part of the ceremony to mark the start of this beautiful site’s transformation,” Bradley said in a statement.

“We’re at the beginning of the final steps of the journey, and in less than two years, we’ll see the metamorphosis of a condemned former school campus into a modern community park, dedicated to serving the eastern part of our city,” Bradley said.

The location was originally home to an elementary school. The school opened in 1967, and following a decline in student enrollment, the site was repurposed as a park and community center in 1982.

Ladera Linda Community Park is next to the Forrestal Reserve, which is part of the Palos Verdes Nature Preserve. It features a variety of recreational facilities, including soccer fields owned by the Palos Verdes Peninsula Unified School District and used by American Youth Soccer Organization leagues.

As the park's five buildings started to age and have serious disrepair, the city started planning in 2014 to give the park and community center an update. City officials got input from community members, neighboring residents, and local youth and sports groups.

In 2019, a master plan for the park was approved by the City Council 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 glassy,
contemporary 6,790-square-foot community center designed by Culver City-based architecture firm Johnson Favaro, according to the city.

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 flora, fauna, and historic information, according to the city. The site will also include patio areas, one and a half basketball courts, two paddle tennis courts, a children’s playground, tiered outdoor seating, a lawn area, walking paths that will traverse through restored native landscaping, and 54 parking spaces.

The plans come after years of work, said Cory Linder, Director of Recreation and Parks.

“The end result of this long effort will provide residents with a brand-new facility and park that will serve and adapt to our community for generations to come,” Linder said.

The City is paying forthe 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 will close for construction on March 28. The project is expected to be completed in approximately 15 months, city officials said.