City officials broke ground Thursday on what will be a playground at MacArthur Park, which they say will offer a space for children and families to gather, play and connect with one another.
Councilwoman Eunisses Hernandez, who represents the First District, which includes MacArthur Park in the Pico-Union area, joined the Department of Recreation and Parks to celebrate the event. According to officials, the playground will be built on the southwest corner of the park, near the intersection of Seventh Street and Park View, in an area that is currently underutilized.
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"Our neighborhoods deserve to be deeply invested in with resources and services that support thriving communities," Hernandez said in a statement. "This playground will create yet another opportunity to activate the beautiful green space at MacArthur Park for children and families in the neighborhood. I am grateful for our partners at the city, especially our Recreation and Parks Department, who are bringing this project to life."
The park will offer a number of amenities, such as swings, slides, a three-dimensional net climber structure, resilient rubber surfacing, benches and more. The park is divided in two by Wilshire Boulevard, and while the northern half has an amphitheater, bandshell, soccer fields and a recreation center, the souther portion primarily consists of the lake, and does not contain the same amenities.
City officials said the park is expected to open to the public by the summer of 2024.
"Excitement is in the air as the construction of a new playground at MacArthur Park is underway," said Anita Meacham, Recreation and Parks Superintendent. "Today as we witness the transformation unfold, we are not just building a new playground, we are creating a destination where countless stores, and cherished memories will resonate in the hearts of this community and generations to come."
According to Hernandez's office, the Westlake and Pico-Union neighborhoods are "park-poor" and contain only half an acre of open space per 1,000 residents, compared to the city average of 8.9 acres per 1,000 residents.
The groundbreaking comes after Hernandez's recent announcement of funding for a new project that aims to reconnect MacArthur Park by converting 1.7 acres of roadway into a high-quality park space that supports pedestrian and transit infrastructure in one of L.A.'s most densely populated neighborhoods.
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