1930 Parks Playgrounds Beaches Los Angeles Region

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PARKS, PLAYGROUNDS

AND BEACHES



I I. HI-: Vic\\ IOl\-arJ thc mOlllltains from thc

p r o p u ~

l .1rb -.1y along Ihe Puentc Hills.



PARKS, PLA YGROUNDS e-, f

AND BEACHES

FOR THE LOS ANGELES REGION

A Report subl' J ' J.itted to the Cit i zens' COl1tlnittee on Park s , Playgrounds,

and Beaches , by ~ f msted Br ot her s and Bar tholo1' J ' J .ew

and Associates, Consultants

,

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA





List of Plates

Members of CitizensPark s) Playgr ound s

Letter of Tr ansmittal

Committee onand Beaches

PART I.

GE NER AL R EPORTPAGE

Cha pter I. General Consid erations and

Summary of ConclusionsPARK SYSTEM FU NCTIONS AND ALLIED FUNC-

\,.TIONS •

R elated educational f unctions

R elated highway f unctions

R elated commer cial enterprises

Proper limit of park -system f unctions and

facilities

PARK SHORTAGE I N THE Los A NGELES R EGIO"I •

The peculiar economic status as a r eason for

the lack of par k s .

The cr isis that confronts t he people

PARK -SYSTEM FACILITIES -- •

Class 1. Local r ecr eation facil ities, including

playground s, r ecr eation park s, and .. s pecialunits - -.

Ef f icient size and range for a r ecr eation unit

,-\d ministration of local f acilities

Class II. R egional r ecreation facilities

Pu bl ic beaches

Desir able f eatur es of r egional beaches

Conflict of pr i,'ate and pu blic be ach rights

R egional athletic f ield s

Lar ge r eser vations in mountains, canyons,

d eser ts and island s

Pleasur eway par k s or par k ways, and re-

lated large park s .

"Pleasur eway par k s" and par k ways d e-

f ined

Pr esent cost of r ecreation travel

COST OF LA ND FOR A PAR K SYSTEM

PARK S AND THE DR AI NAGE PR OBLEM

SUMMAR Y OF CO NCLUSIO NS .

Cha pter II. Conditions Aff ecting the

Need for Par k and R ecr eation Facil-

ities in the Los Angeles R egion. 19

CHARACTER OF THE R EGIO N 19

THE POPULATIO N 19

Low d ensity of population 20

Eff ect of low density on the park problem 20

PAGE

IX EI-ils of the "friction of distance"

Age grou ps .

Income gr ou ps

HOUSI NG

CLIMATE

SCENIC R ESOUR CES

STR EETS AND HIGHWAYS

CAR LI NES AND R AILWAYS

ZONI NG TO CO NTR OL TliE USE OF THE LA ND

SPECULATIVE LAND SUBDIVISIO N

SHOR TAGE I N EXISTI NG PARK ANI) R ECREATIO N

FACILITIES

DISTR IBUTIO N OF SPACES NEEDED FOR LOCAL

SER VICE .-

CO NCLUSIO N

Cha pter III. Administr ative, Legal and Financial Conditions Aff ecting the

Cr eation of an Ad equate Park and

R ecr eation System f or the Los An-geles RegionLocal authorities and co-operati,-e action

R egiona ) a uthorities and continuing policies

Legislation r ecommend ed .

I':STIMATED COST OF THE PR OPOSED PAR K SYSTE:I'I

Factor s that may modif y costs

Possi ble sour ce of f und s

jUSTIFICATJO"l FOR THE PROPOSED EXPENDI-

TUR ES

Ind ustr ial gr owth

The burdcn of s peculati\-e land values

ESTIMATED COST FOR MAI NTENANCE .

Cost of the plan to the average home owner

Ear ly action need ed to o btain r esults

PART II

SPECIFIC RECOMMENDATIO NS

PAGE

Cha pter IV. Recommend ations f or Lo-

cal Recreation Facilities; Playgr ound s)

R ecreation Park s, and S pecial Units 4 -7

The school ground s 4-7

Existing public park s and playgr ound s 4-8

PR OPER SIZE A ND DISTR IBUTIO FOR LOCAL R Ec-f RE ATION UNITS . 2

Local r ecr eation d istr icts and r ecr eation center s 3

Standard s for r ecr eation center s . 4-

The pro blcm o f acguiring the nccessar.'· land s. 4-



PAGE

The example of Palos Verdes 55

Ty pes o f districts in which to acquire land

promptly . 55

SMALL DETACHED LOCAL PAR KS 56

LOCAL PARK S FOR I NDUST)UAL DISTRICTS 56A STUDY OF FOUR TYPICAL NEIGHBOR HOODS 56

ESTIMATE OF TOTAL COSTS BASED O N THE FORE-

GOI NG STUDY 57

Chapter V. Recommendations f or Pub-

lic Beaches . 59Com parison with beaches of other regions 61

Use of beach land s 62

SHOR ES ADAPTED TO PUBLIC USES 6 4 -West f r om Santa Monica 64 -

South f r om Santa Monica 66

SUMMAR Y OF SHOR E FRO NT R ECOMMENDATIO NS 67

Units of the entir e shor e front, classif ied 68

DETAILED R ECOMMENDATIONS BY U NITS 70

ESTIMATE OF COSTS 80

Chapter VI. Recommendations for Re-gional Athletic Fields . 8 I

LIST OF RECOMME NDATIO NS 81

DETAILED R ECOMMENDATIONS BY U NITS 82


Chapter VII. Recommendations for

Large Reser vations in Mountains,

Canyons, Deserts, and Islands . 85

SUMMAR Y OF PROPOSED OUTLYI NG R ESERVA-

TIONS AND PARKWAYS • 89

List of existing and proposed park r eser vations

and par kways in outlying r egions 89DETAILED R ECOMMENDATIONS BY U NITS 89


Chapter VIII. Recommendations for

Pleasureway Parks or Parkways, and

Related Large Parks 95THREE EASTERLY AND WESTER LY CHAI NS 97

The mountain chain 97

The coast chain. 97

The hilltop chain . 97

PAGE

SIX NOR THERLY A ND SOUTHERLY CHAINS 97

The San Gabr iel chain 97

The Rio Hond o-Eaton Wash chain. 97

Arroyo Seco an d Palos Ver des Loop chain 98

Tu junga Valley and Ballona Cr eek chain 98

Newhall, Chatsworth and Topanga Canyon

chain . 98

Dume Canyon chain . 98

SUMMARY OF RECOMMENDATIONS 100

List o f pr oposed parkways and r elated large

park s . 100

DETAILED R ECOMMENDATIO 's BY UNITS 103

ESTI MATE OF COSTS I 37

CONCLUUON 138

I. List of schools in the Los Angeles Re-

gion having more than five acres each

of available playground s pace 14-1

II. List of existing public and quasi-

public open spaces, each of one acre

or more, in the Los Angeles R egion

(~ot including school ground s) 14 - 3

III. Copy of letter on Nigger Slough

and other lands lying below possible

drainage levels 14 -9

IV. Table of comparative powers, duties,

and re'sources of various metropolitan

agencies of California and elsewhere 153

VI. Extracts from 1924 Report of Su-

perintendent of -?ark s of Los Angeles

City 167

Index 171



PLATE P AGE

1. View towaro the mountains fr om the pro posed

par k way along the Puente Hills . Frontis piece

2. Ma p of Los Angeles as it was in 1894- . 2

3. New highway along the ocean front, showing

narrow str ip of pr ivate land s f enced in and

cutting of f all access to the publicly owned

tid eland s 8

Broad, quiet, attractive parkway in Delawar e

Avenue, Buff alo, wher e tr avel is a pleasur e 12

Another parkway in Olmsted Park in Boston 12

Map showing channels and ar eas of inter est to

the flood-control problem 15

Diagr am showing d ensity of po pulation in theLos Angeles R egion in 1922. f ollowing 20

Diagr am showing d ensity of po pulation i~ the

Los Angeles Region in 1928 f ollowing' 20

Diagram showing incr eases and decreases in

d ensity of population in the Los Angeles R e-

gion 1922 to 1928 f ollowi1t g 20

Map showing by dots the distr i bution of

population in the Los Angeles Region in

1928 f ollowing 20

San Fernando Valley, looking toward the city 24-

Signal Hill with its oil wells, showing Long

Beach on the plain to the right . 25

Plan for h ighways in the Los Angeles Region

as pr e pared a f ew year s ago by the R egional

Planning Commission 26

Plan f or highways in the East Si d e as sug-

gested by 'lIe East Sid e Orgariization in con- I

sultation with the R egional Planning Com-

mISSIOn 27

Plan of the Pacif ic Electric R ailway system

showing a r adiating system fr om the heart of

the Region. 28

Map showing ar eas now almost wholly subdi-

vid ed into house lot units 30

Ma p showing existing park ar eas and quasi-

public recr eation ar eas in the Los Angeles

Region f ollowing 30

Diagram showing resid ential ar eas lying be-

yond the range of possible ser vice by exist-

ing park , playground or school r ecr eational

areas f ollowi1tg 34-

Diagram showing economIcs of the West-

chester County park system, New Yor k 39

PLATE PAGE

20. Map of the R egion showing ar eas used for in-

dustries and oil field s and ar eas in agr icultur e 4-1

21. Map of Long Beach showing in black the ex-

isting park ar eas and in outline the water land s

and the air port 4-8

22. Ma p of Santa !'v!onica showing in black the

existing park ar eas and cross-hatched the school

ar eas, and near t h e large park the airpor t 4-9

23. Ma p of Pasad ena showing large park s in the

Ar r oyo Seco near the west bound ar y and

showing smaller park s in other parts of the

city 50

24-. Plan of the De partment of Par k s and R ecr e-ation of Pasadena for d evelopment of play-

ground ser vice . 51

25. Map showing the R egion divided for conven-

ience into classes of use 52

26. Coast highway near Topanga Canyon show-

ing line of cottages cutting off all the view of

the ocean from the highway 59

27. The Harbor from Long Beach showing Long

Beach in the foregr ound, the har bor district

in the center , and the San Pedr o hills in the

distance 60

28. Rugged shor es and high cliff s of Palos Verdes,

attr active to pieasur e tr avel, but not ad a pted

to beach uses 60

29· Public beach at Venice on July 4-th showing

use to ca pacity, too cr owded for comfort . 62

30. Pu blic beach at Atlantic City, New Jer sey,

showing wid e boardwalk and wid e sand y

beach beyond 63

3 I. Possible profile for construction of beach ou

tid eland s. ........: / 64-

32. Yacht har bor suggestion as pr esented by own-

er s of pro per ty . i ust a bove Santa Monic; . . 65

33. Plan f or extensive Pleasur e Harbor opposite

Santa Monica and Venice with a park in the

Del R ey mar shes and a par kway on a chain of

island s around the outsid e of the harbor 66

34-. Sk etch for extensive Pleasure Harbor and

park and park way d evelopment as shown on

Plate 33 . 67



PL ATE PAGE

35, Diagr am showing pu blic and pr i\"ate beach

f r ontage and key to r ecommendations,

f ollowing

36, Mouth of Topanga Canyon showing ar eas that

should be pu blicly owned to care for the vast

crowd s that gather ther e

37, Beach above Santa Monica that would be in-sid e proposed har bor , showing groins built far

"out on the beach to catcli the drifting sand s .

J .38. Beach at mouth of Santa Monica Canyon

'showi"ng' pu blic beach in the center with pri-

\'ate clu b and parking ar ea in the left fo r e-

ground

Shor es of Venice and the Del R ev mar shes

wher e a large park and harbor can ' be d evel-

oped if the land is soon acquir ed

San Gabr icl mountains from mouth of Tu-

j unga Canyon showing stec p, bar r en hillsid es,

off ering little or no r ecr eation s pace a bove thc

valley Roor .

Top of Lie bre Mountain looking down onto

near by r id ges, showing nati~e gr owth not :'ct

ruined by f ir e or cutting; should be developed

as a public r ecr eation par k

Gcncral plan f or large r escr vations in moun-

tains, canyons, deserts and island s, in extension

of the plan for par k s and park ways in thc

main Los Angeles R egion . f ollo~cing

Map of Angeles National For est showing cam p

sites, ar eas i n pr ivate ownershi p, r eser voir s,

and lar ge ar eas bur ned over i n the last tcn

year s . f ollowing

Map of the Los Angeles R egion with the

V I estchester County park s:f stem superposed in r ed f ollowing

Map of the Los Angeles R egion with the Bos-

ton Metropolitan Park system su pcrposed in

r ed f ollowing

Gcneral plan for a complete s:"stem of Park -

war s and lar ge park s for thc Los Angeles

R egion following

Park way fr om Los Angcles to Palos Ver des

now being planned by thc County as the f ir st

r eal par kway in thc Los Angeles R egion

Ty pical sections for park ways showing how

various slopcs may be treated in a way to pr o-

duce inter esting variety and to protect good views and inter esting scencr y

Airplane \'iew of Dume Can:'on and Dume

Point, showing in dash thc Rancho line and

PLATE PAGE

in outline the ar eas includ ing the beach, the

mesa near the shor e, the hill slopes and thc

7° peak 104-

50. Rugged and picturesque cliff along Lowcr To-

panga Can:'on 1°7

72 51. Up per San Fer nand o Valley with rock s 'of

Chatsworth in the d istance 1°952. San Fcr nando R eser voir and surr ounding hills

73 that should be includ cd in a reser vation to bc

mad e attractive 11O

53·

54-·74-

76,,.

56.

86

57·

87

58.

88 59,

60.

92

96 61.

96 62.

Shor es of Jak e in Pr os pect Park , Brook lyn 1 I 1

Large area in Tujunga Wash that is su bject to

occasional flooding and is lik el:' to be mad e

hidcous bv costly "d e\"elopments" if not ac-

q uir cd :1S an intercsting and useful pu blic open

s pacc 1 12

San Fernando Mi,sion, a point of inter e;t on

proposed line of par kway If 3

Back Bay tidal mar shcs in Boston con'"erted

into an attractive water side park, such as may

be possi ble for the Del R ey mar shes 1 15

Sketch for a broad , d ignified and attr acti\"c

park way 225 f eet in wid th with thr ec road -

ways planned to extend f rom Los Angeles cit:,

to the sea at Palos Verd cs 1 18

Design for Alondra Park, 3 f 5 acres r eccntl)'

acquir ed bY' the Count\' . 1 1 < )

Design for a parkwa\' thr ough Gard ena Val-

ley and Nigger Slough wi th two bord er road s,

a park dr ive and a channel for drainage 121

San Gabriel River near the Narrows showing

area needed for drainage that has park \"alue

es pccially if the bord er ,"egetation can- bc pre-

sen"ed 124-

Riverway in Boston, once a pestilential d r ain-

age channel bur red eemed und er a joint plan

f or drainage and par k uscs . 125

Gor ge in Monte bello Hills not r et in,"ad ed

by d e\'clopment, wher e a parb~'ay can be lo-

cated . f 26

Plan f or par kway thr ough gor ge in Montc-

bello HiUs as pre par ed by R egional Planning

Commission 127

\Vhiting's Wood s, a shad \' s pot in the north

face of Verdugo Hills that should be includ ed

in a public r esclTation 137

Profile of Nigger Slough Dr ainagc Basin

sho~ving assumed f lood prof ile . 150

Plan of Niggcr Slough Drainage Basin show-

ing ar cas likely to be f lood ed · 150



CITIZENS' COMMI TTEE

ON PARKS, PLAYGROUNDS AND BEACHES

ADAMS, CHAR LES G.

ADAMSON, M. H.

ALLISON, DAVID

A NDER SON, STANLEY

AVER ILL, H. O.

B.~I " FER DI NA ND R.

BAKER S' CLUB

BALCH, A. C.

BALLARD, R . H.

BARK ER, C. H.

BAR K ER, CLAR ENCE ,\.

BARNARD, W.K.

BAR TO N, LOR EN C.

BAUER, HARR Y J.

BELL, ALPHO NZO E.

BE NT, AWn-LVR S.

BISHOP, W. T.

BLANKENHOR N, DAVID

BR AU N, F. W.

BR E NT, W. L.

BR OPlI Y, MURRY R .

.......BR YANT, MR S. E. A.

CALLENDER , HARR Y R .*

CHAMBER S, GEO. D.

- ClIANDLER , JEFFER SON P.

CHRISTOPHER, 1.J .CLAR K , ELI P.

CLI NE, \VALTER B.

COCHR A N, GEO. 1.

COLLI NS, JAMES F.

COLOD NY,1.

CO N NELL, lV1. J .COPP, A NDR EW J., JR.

CR A NDALL,SHA NNO N

DARLI NGTO N, N. D.

DEMILLE, CECI L

DICKI NSO N, GEO. W.

DICKI NSON & GILLESPIE

(F. B. BUR NS, Represmt at ive)

DILLO N, R . J.

DOCK WEILER , 1. B.

DOHE NY, E. 1.

DOHE NY, F.. 1., JR .*

DOR SEY, MR S. SUSAN M.

DUDLEXT, SAMUEL M.

DUDLEY, HOWARD S.

EASTMAN, GEO. 1.

ELSASSER , M.

EVANS, HUGH

FAIRBANK S, DOUGLAS

FITZGER ALD, C. G.

FLEMI NG, MR s. T. J .FORD, MR. & MR s. FLETCHER

,Foy, MISS MARY

FR A:-IK , ALVI N H.

FR A NK EL, CECIL

" FR ICK, l\1R S. MAR GAR ET

J .FR ICK , R OBERT N.

FRY, D. H.

GAGE, JOHN H.

GARLAND, WM. MAY

GETTY, GEO. F.

GETZ, MILTO N

GIANNI NI, A. P.

GOLDWY N, SAMUEL

GR EVE, FRA NK H.

GUESS, F. M.

GORHAM, H. M.

HA NCOCK , G. ALLAN

HARR IS, J:'OR DW.

HAR R ISO N, W. H.

HAY, W. H.

HELLMAN, IR VI NG H.

HELLMA N, MARCO H.

HER VEY, WM. R .

HOLLOWAY, B. R.

HOOK , JR ., WM. S.

HOWAR D, W. F.*

HUESMAN, R ALPH R.

HUT, MYR ON

I NMA N, CHAS. F.

].t \NSS, EDvVIN AND HAROLD

JOANNES, HARRY

1.JOH NSON, F. O.

K AUFMANN, GOR DON B .

K EMP,A. N.

KR ESS, SAMUEL

K UHR TS, G. J.

LAEMMLE, CAR L

LAWYER , JAY

LEIMERT, WALTER H.

LESSER, SOL

LEVY, 1. O.

LIPPI NCOTT, J. B.

LLEWELLY N, R EESE

LLOYD, R ALPH B.

LOEB, JOS. P.

LYiVIAN,E. D.

MCCAIlILL, J. A.

MCCARTHY, E. r \VEltY

MCGARR Y, D. F.

MCNAGHTEN, l\tI.~LCOLM

MAY, WILBUR

l\1EAD, WM.*

MESMER, JOSEPH

METZLER , IRVI NG

l\1EYER, BEN

l\1EYER, ME NDEL

MILBANK , MR s. ISAAC

MILLAR , J. D.

MILLER , JOH N B.

MILLIRO N, C. J.

MO NTGOMERY, FR A NCIS S.

MUDD, HAR VEY S.

MUDD, MR S. SEELEY W.

MUELLER , OSCAR C.

MULLEN, A NDREW*

_ MURPHY, THos. J.

NAFTZ(;ER , MR S. Ro y E.

NAGEL, G. E.

NIELO, FR ED

O'l\1ELVENY, JOH N

O'Tv1ELVE NY, STUAR T

O' NEIL, P. H.

PARKINSON, JOHN

PELLISSIER , F. F.PEPPEROI NE, MR S. LE NA R.

PFAFFI NGER , FRA NK X .

PHILLIPS, LEE A.



PHILP, HARR Y

PICK FORD, MISS MAR Y

PI NK HAM, J. R.

POWELL, F. H.

PRIDHAM, R . W.

QUI NN, MR. AND MR S. CHARLES H.

R ACHAL, C. E.

R AY, MR S. WALTER SELDE N

RIVER S, E. B.

ROBI NSO N, HENRY M.

ROWLEY, E. S .

R UDDOCK , A. B.

R USH, F. N.

SALE, L. D.

SCHENCK, JOS. M.

SEAVER , F . E.

SHER MAN, M. H.

SIEGEL, MYER

STANTO N, LOUIS B.

STER N, HA R OLD M.

STETSON, F. F.

STOR Y, F . Q.

TOBER MAN, C. E.

TREANOR , JOHN

UNDERHILL, E. F.

VANDER LIP, FR ANK A.

VAN NUYS, J. B.

WAR DMA , A.

WARR EN, J. G.

WHOLESALE GROCER S' r lSSN.

WIGHTMA N, E. J.

VVILCOX, FRED M.

WOODS, JAMES

WR EN, CHAS. F.

YOUNG, MR S. MA RY C.

EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE

C I T I ZEN S ' COM M I T TEE 0 N PAR KS, P LAY G R 0 U N D SA N D B E A C H E S

BARNARD, W. K ., Pasadena

BENT, ARTHUR S., Los Angeles

BRENT, W. L., Los Angeles

COCHR AN, GEOR GE I ., Los A1tgeles

COLLINS, JAMES F., Long Beach

DARLI NGTON, N. D., Los Angeles

DUDLEXT, S. M. , S out h Gate

GORHAM, H. M., Pacif ic Palisad es

HELLMAN, IR VI NG H. , Los Angeles

HOLLOWAY, B. R., V an N u ys

LEIMERT, WALTER H., Los Angeles

LESSER , SOL, H ollywood

LIPPI NCOTT, J. B., Los Angeles

LYMAN, E. D., Los Angeles

MILLAR, J. D., Los Angeles

MUELLER , OSCAR C., Beverly H ills

O'MELVE NY, JOH N, Los Angeles

O'NEIL, P. H., Los Angeles

PICK FORD, MAR Y, Beverly H ills

UNDERHILL, E. F., Glend ora

W ARDMAN, A., Whittier

WIGHTMAN, E. J., Long Beach

BE NT, ARTHUR S.

BAR NARD, W. K.

LEIMERT, W. H.

U NDERHILL, E. F.



To the M ,embers oj the

Citizens' Committee on Parks, Playgrounds and Beaches:

The Citizens' Committee on Parks, Playgrounds and Beaches was organized during

1927 at the instance of the Los Angeles Chamber of Commerce. It was charged with

res ponsibility f or the following task s:

(a) To mak e a survey of existing conditions as to publicly owned park s, playground s

and beaches throughout the County;

( b) To pr e pare a report as to needed amplification of these facilities;(c) To submit recommendations as to ways and means of carrying out the for egoing

program.

In fulfillment of these task s the report herewith transmitted has been pr e pared by .

Olmsted Brother s and Bartholomew & Associates, Land scape Architects and City

Planner s, entitled Par ks , Pla yground s and Beaches f or the Los Angeles Region. It has

been pr inted f or distribution to the members of the Citizens' Committee.

The re port contains a survey of the present park s and other ground s giving r ecr ea-

tion service in the part of Los Angeles County chiefly lying south of the mountains and

compr ising a bout 1,500 squar e miles. It compares this ser vice with that of other

American regions of similar size and circumstances. It then describes the unique ch'ar-acteristics of the Los Angeles Region, in- regard to which there can be no profitable

comparison with other regions. Recommendations are made as to needed enlargement

of r ecreation facilities, and asto ways and means of carrying out plans for enlargement.

The report find s the Los Angeles Region far short not only of the minimum

r ecr eation facilities of the average American city, but also of those that are es pecially

need ed here. Its recommend ations for remedying this condition are made in detail;

they ar e supported throughout by analogies from the ex perience of other great cities

in this countr y; and the detailed recommendations are clearly summarized in each

instance. The report contains an array Qf facts, statistics, and maps to illustrate the

r ecommendations; and a much larger accumulation of these, too voluminous to printhere, will be deposited with the Los Angeles Chamber of Commerce in further sup-

port of the policy advocated.



The situation r evealed by the r e port is so d isquieting as to mak e it highly ex ped ient

to impress upon the public as soon as possible the pr esent crisis in the welfar e of Los

Angeles and the surrounding r egion. It shows that the par k q uestion is closely r elated

to the community's health, and that the policy followed in the past is by no means a

safe one f r om now on, since there is a radical difference between the needs of a small

.city and a great one in the matter of park and r ecreation facilities. The r equir ementsof a gr eat city of the motor-vehicle age ar e shown by the r e port to be sharply dis-

tinguished from those of the age in which older cities develo ped, and the distinction

of the Los Angeles Region in this regar d is clear ly br ought out in the r e port.

Your executiv~ -~ommittee believes that the acq uisition of lands s pecified in the

r eport, the general policy it r ecommends, and the form of ad ministr atio~ it pro poses,

are the best o btaina ble s pecifications and recommendations. And the committee is es-

pecially impr essed with the need for pr oceeding immed iately with an end eavor to

arouse the public to the same sense of ur gency that is f elt by the ex perts and this

committee.

The eventual req uirements of the Region will be evid ent to those who seriously

examine the situation, and no pr econce ptions should stand in the way of that examina-

tion. The fact that the Los Angeles Region is committed to other great outlays

should not close our minds against a study of the outlay here proposed . The fact that

it is a lar ge outlay should not discourage action, f or the need is large. Nor is the abso-

lute amount for which the R egion is alr eady bonded the sole test of our ca pacity to

satisf y this need . It is important to consider the q uestion also f rom the stand point of the

relative or per ca pita cost and of the pro ba ble ef fect upon the tax rate.

The dilemma con "r onting us is the lar ge ex penditur e involved in action, on the one

hand, and the heavy penalty of d elay, on the other . The way to r econcile our need s

with our means is to assign the task to a c ompetent bod y, char ged with power and

r es ponsibility. The great progr am of park d evelopment contained in this report can be

carried out in measured steps und er firm and wise management without increasing

taxes beyond IS cents on the $ 100of assessed valuation as a maximum in any year; nor -

mally a lower r ate can be maintained, aver aging a bout 10 cents.' This is eq uivalent to

the cost of o per ating each pleasur e automo bile in the County a ppr oximately eight

miles per month. A city destined to be one of the great cities of the earth is justified in

assuming such a bur den for the well-being of its inha bitants and for its renown thr ough-

out the world .

Your executive committee tak es this o ppor tunity to thank the men who have pr e- pared this r e port for their unwearied devotion to their task, which has been of a

magnitude that f ew can a ppreciate who have not accomplished similar studies. The

services of Mr. Geor ge Gibbs, assistant to the consultants, d eser ve es pecial mention, as



do also the excellent co-operation and assistance rendered by Mr . Hugh Pomeroy,

Executive Secretary of the Citizens' Committee on Parks, Playgrounds and Beaches.

Acknowledgment is hereby made of the important services furnished to the com-

mittee without charge by O'Melveny, Tuller & Myers; Eberle Economic Service;

Price, Waterhouse & Company; Rogers Aircraft, Inc. and others; and the invaluable

aid rendered by the Automobile Club of Southern California; the Park Departments

and Playground Departments and other officials of the County and its various cities.

At an early date a meeting of the Citizens' Committee on Parks, Playgrounds and

Beaches will be called to discuss the program set forth here, and determine what steps

shall be taken toward making it public.

Rqpectfully yours,

EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE,

Citizens' Committee on Parks,

Playgrounds and Beaches.

JOHN TREANOR, Chairman ..



PART ONE

GENERALREPORT



,

THE metr opolitan par t of Los Angeles

County, which may be called "the Los

Angeles R egion," is the site of mor e than forty

prosper ous cities; in addition to the City of

Los Angeles. Her e are over two million people

in an ar ea of fifteen hund red squar e miles. The

R egion is noted for its many natural charms

and its varied human interests. The popula-

tion is incr easing ver y rapidly and changing

somewhat in char acter . As it does so the Re-

gion is losing some of its most valued charms,

f or lack o f a methodical plan for preserving

them. Among the things that make ·it most

attr act,ive are the ver y ones that are the fir st

to suf f er from changes and d eteriorate thr ough

neglect. Es pecially attr active, and es peciallysubject to destruction, are the o pportunities

offered in the R egion f or enjoyment of out-

of-door life.

But these invaluable assets, now on the

ver ge of disappear ing, can easily be preserved

by concer ted action. They can, indeed, be

gr eatly increased by systematic car e on a scale

large enough to match the rapid growth of

population. ,

C ontinued prosperity will de pend on pro-

viding needed park s, because , with the growth

of a great metropolis her e , the absence o f parkswill 111akeliving cond it ions less and less attrac-

t ive , less and less wholesome , though parks

have been easily dis pensed with under the con-

ditions of t he past . In so f ar, t her e f ore , as the

people f ail t o show the und erstand ing , COU1'-

age , and or ganizing ability necessar y at this

crisis , t he growt h o f the Region will tend to

strangle it self.

The pr esent cha pter deals with general con-

sid er ations which should d eter mine public pol-

icy concerning r ecr eation f acilities in the Los

Angeles R egion. These general consid erations

are based on a stud y of experience in other

cities, a stud y of conditions peculiar to this

Region, and on general principles derived

from both stud ies. The cha pter end s, with a

summar y of conclusions dr awn fr om these

studies, the d etails of which will be set for th

in later chapters. The immed iate pur pose is to

show why more park s and other means of r ec-r eation ar E !now urgentl y , needed i. to suggest

the most effective ways of meeting this need ;

and to point out the evils that will f ollow fur -

ther d elay in adopting and executing a sound

and comprehensive policy.

PARK -SYSTEM FUNCTIO NS AND

ALLIED FU NCTIO NS

Private enterprise on private land off er s,

in ever y city, a limited oppor tunity f or recr ea-

tion; and it is good as far as it goes. But in the

most populous r egions the need for r ecreationis not normally met in such a manner and can-

not be ad equately pr ovid ed for in that way.

The problem must be faced as a public r espon-

sibility.



PLATE 2. Los Angeles as it was in 1894-, f r om United States Geological Slln-e:r , showing a relatively

smallllr ban region at that time.



Gener al C onsid erations ani Summar y of C onclltJions

In a large city or group of cities this respon-

sibility attaches to the functions of a park sys-

tem, and these functions ar e found to be re-

lated to certain other administrative fUIlCtions,

performed by various agencies. In the per -

formance or administration of one group of functions, another group, or several other

gr oups, will be f ound not mer ely to r elate to

it but to overlap iL,Thus the gr oup of park

functions, ministering to the need for r ecr ea-

tion, may be found to overla p the functions of

the schools, the highways, or commercial en-

terprises, which also help to serve the same

need. Whether the park agencies, or these

other s, furnish the o pportunity f or r ecr eation

is solely a matter of ex pediency, pr ovided the

ser vices do not f all between two stools and f all

altogether .Ther e is not and cannot be a shar p bound ary

line between the various responsibilities of

public agencies. Practical ex perience und er

var ying conditions is the only valua ble guid e

as to how f ar a park system ought to ignor e

such bound ar ies. In some small communities,

f ortunately circumstanced, there may be no

need for public parks at all. But in gr eat urban

ar eas bitter ex perience pr oves that, without

adequat e par k s , t he bulk o f t he peo ple are pro-

gressivel y cut o f f f rom many kinds of 1" ecrea-

tion of the utmost im portance to their health,

ha ppiness , and moral welf are. Public agen-

cies, ther efore, must progr essively fill the more

and mor e numer ous gaps left by commercial

and other private agencies.

Relat ed Ed ucat ional F unctions.

Any ed ucational und ertaking f or develo p-

ing physical, mental, or s piritual ca pacities has

also a r ecr eational function, whether its agent

is the school, playground, museum, park, pri-

vate home, or what you will. The recreational

function may be ser ved by any such agency, in

so far as emphasis is laid on the pleasure thataccompanies and d irectly ar ises from the

healthful exercise of such ca pacities.

Thus the schools, taking a br oad view of

their problem, reach beyond the tr ad itional

function of book-teaching and includ e play in

their pr ogram. They provid e f or it b oth in-

door s and out, and even extend the service of

their facilities to parents and other older peo-

ple. Just in pro portion as they d o this will theymeet recreational needs which might otherwise

be met by agencies d evoted s pecifically to park

and r ecreation functions.

Related H ighway Functions.

The prime f unction of the highway system

is to facilitate the movement of peo ple and

goods, irr es pective of the reasons f or their

movement. The pr ime use of the highways is

economic, but in add ition to the economic use

.ther e is an enor mous use for r ecreation, espe-

cially f or the pleasur e of simply ridingthr ough more or less pleasant surr oundings.

Pr o ba bly nowhere else in the world d oes high-

way r ecreation f orm so lar ge an element in the

lives of the peo ple as in Southern Califor nia.

Now, in pro por tion as the highways and

their surr ound ings are adapted to r ecr eational

uses, and r emain so, the need f or other recrea-

tional areas will be reduced . On t he other

hand , in pr oportion as the highway system is

ill adapted to r ecr e;:l1ion, or tends to become so,

the d emadd for s pecif ically recreational ar eas

is increased. Long str etches of congested str eets, thr ough mile after mile of monotonous

urban surr oundings must be offset s~mehow.

The functions of the high~ay department ar e

thus seen to overla p somewhat the f unctions

of other agencies not chiefly interested in high-

ways.

Relat ed CO?J7 mercial E nt er prises.

Another important overlap ping field is that

of recreation f urnished on a commer cial basis,

or by pr ivate clu bs. This plainly overla ps some

of the recreation fur nished by the pu blic park systems, either f ree or f or pay, of kinds in-

tended es pecially for those una ble to secur e

such r ecr eation elsewhere.



Proper Limit of Park-System

Functions and Facilities.

The sensible limit of park-system functions

is not a matter for theorizing or bias, either

for or against their extension. On the con-trary, it is a matter of expediency, that should

be determined by common sense, applied to

local present and prospective circumstances.

Past experience, here in California and else-

where under comparable conditions, is the best

guide as to the proper scope of park functions.

So also as to park facilities. No orie knows

any scientifically correct ratio of facilities to

population, or to land area. It is known, how-

ever, that under such and such circumstances

certain cities have provided themselves with

such and such park facilities; and that they

appear satisfied with them, or have found them

too costly for their value, or worth their cost

but not extensive enough. Such experience is

probably the best available guide for this Re-

glOn.

PARK SHORTAGE IN THE Los ANGELES

REGION

The facts are so complicated that condensed

statistical comparisons, without personal know l-

edge of local conditions, can be very mis-

. leading. But when the situation in the Los

Angeles Region is measured carefully and pa-tiently by the crude but common-sense method

of comparison with experience elsewhere, four

conclusions become unmistakably clear:

I. There is a serious shortage of park sys-

tem facilities in this Region, even for the pres-

ent population.

2. There has been a serious lack of increase

of such facilities in comparison with the rapid

increase of population.

3. These shortages seem quite unreasonable

considering the agreeable climate, the econom-

ic prosperity, and the exceptionally favorablesocial conditions here.

4. They appear not only unreasonable but

positively reprehensible, because of the very

close and direct influence of agreeable living

conditions on the continued health of the peo-

ple and the prosperity of the community.

All this has been realized for years, as in-

dicated in the interesting report of the Los

Angeles Park Superintendent in 1924. (SeeAppendix No. VI.) The bad conditions shown

to exist at that time are more acute today, of

course, owing to the lack of increase in park

facilities pointed out above in paragraph 2.

The nature of existing park shortage and its

alarming character will be considered at length below.

The Peculiar Economic Status as

a Reason for the Lack of Par ks.

The most disconcerting fact about it all is

that the rapid growth of population, which

makes the rapid expansion of park-system fa-

cilities so urgent, also makes its financing pe-

culiarly difficult. The rapid influx creates an

exceptionally insistent need for capital to in-

v~st in thostloo private and public improvements

which are always the first requirements of a

new population, such as buildings, streets,

sewers, and water supply. The annual absorp-

tion of capital in these primar y improvements

is ther efore exceptionally high-high in pro-

portion to present popu~ation, high in propor -

tion to the value ••of existing improvements,

and high in proportion to the current rentalvalue of all real estate.

. In short, the demand for capital investment

in other things than parks is far more urgent

here than in slower-growing communities of

comparable size. This makes it just so much

more difficult here to obtain money for parks.

Furthermore, the rapid growth of popula-

tion leads inevitably to a high speculative capi-

talization of future rental values, in the form

of high present speculative market prices for

land. Of course, this makes the cost of park

land far greater than in slower-growing com-munities of comparable size.

The situation is in many respects like that

of the swiftly expanding pioneer communities





[ 6] PARKS, PLAYGROUNDS AND BEACHES FOR THE Los ANGELES REGION

Most of the local functions above outlined

clearly lie in that borderland belonging to both

recreation and education. This is a fact which

is everywher e finding ex pr ession in the ex-

tending community use of school facilities.But the school authorities generally find them-

selves unable to meet the want when it r elates

more distinctly to adult recreation than to edu-

cation of the young, except in co-operation with

well-financed agencies frankly and squar ely

addressing themselves to r ecr eational r ather

than to specifically educational problems. This

is es pecially true when the d emand is f or am ple

outdoor s pace amid agr eeable and r ef reshing

surroundings. And here arises the question:

How many and how lar ge should the recr ea-

tion center s or units be;

Including Pla ygr ounds, Recreation Par ks,

and S pecial U nit s

The most typical local recreation facilities

are: childr en's playgrounds, in conj unction

with schools or separately; and provision f or

certain kinds of adult recreation. Both of these

must be r eadily accessible if they ar e to be of

daily use. The value of such local facilities in-

creases very rapidly as scattered suburban com-

munities gr ow into a continuous metr o polis of

gr eat extent and considerable density.

,Facilities that should be provided in such

localities var y gr eatly with local conditions,

and should includ e provision for active exer -cise and games, alternating with rest, for all

ages; for example, bask et- ball, tennis, hand -

ball, quoits, swimming, or mere walking and

sitting in pleasant and r efreshing outdoor sur -

r oundings. They may include o pportunities

for both outdoor and indoor meetings, d ances,

concerts, and many other neighborhood activi-

ties of social importance, if these ar e not satis-

factorily provided, for the masses of the peo-

ple, on a commer cial basis or on 'a private club

~ basis. One of the most important purposes of

a park, and yet one of the most difficult to d e-

scr ibe, is that of providing the peculiarly r e-freshing quality which has such a r estful and

beneficent effect on the ner vous system. This

is a subtle and complex thing, which brings,

along with a sense of beauty, a sense of spa-

ciousness, of freedom, and of contrast with

urban conditions.

The importance of the diff erent kinds of

local f acilities varies gr eatly with the time and

place. And the necessar y land area per thou-

sand of population varies far more. In the

change from rural or suburban to urban con-

ditions, the first need to emer ge as seriouslyurgent is public provision for children's play.

With increasing congestion and incr easing met-

r o politan size, the other need s become incr eas-

ingly insistent.

Efficient S ize and Range

f or a Recreat ion Unit.

The effective r adius of service f or a r eCl,"ea-

tion unit varies wid ely with the function of

the unit. It may var y fr om a radius of a quar -

ter of a mile for little children's play, to sev-

er al miles for some s pecialized-ser vices a ppeal-

ing mainly to adults. The efficient size of a

unit depend s chiefly on the number and kinds

of func.tions to be included, and the pros pec-

tive d ensity of p'o pulation within the effective

service-radius. ~ut it is also affected by thedifferentials in cost per acr e of acquiring tr acts

of different sizes.

A single large and diver si f ied unit gives bet -

t er service and involves less overhead cost

than several d et ached smaller units. For meet-

ing the local r ecreation needs in a large metro p-

olis, experience seems to emphasize the prac-

tical ad vantages of neighborhood recr eation

park s of a bout twenty acr es, ser ving mainly the

people in all ar ea of about one square mile, as-

sociated wher e practicable with a school center

but including many functions not normally as-sumed by school boards.

These major local units usually need to be

supplemented by mor e closely s paced and

much smaller playground s f or little child r en



who can not go so far, on or adjoining school

grounds where practicable, but detached where

necessary because of inadeq uate school- grounds

and the impracticability of enlargement.

So far as these two kinds of units fall short

of meeting the reasonable demands of the people, they should be supplemented by certain

other types, such as ornamental squares and

triangles, and local parks of scenic interest, the

value of which is dissociated from the activi-

ties of a well-rounded neighborhood recrea-

tion park.

ildministration of Local Facilities.All such local recreation facilities should be

closely adapted to local conditions and needs.

There are disadvantages in centralizing the ad-

ministration in a single organization which,

since it covers so many units, tends to become

unresponsive to local peculiarities. Such cen-

tralization is likely to hold back progressive

and prosperous neighborhoods by standardiz-

ing at levels which are merely the best that can

be attained by unprogressive or impoverished

neighborhoods. On the other hand, as in the

case of the schools, 'efficiency demands that

management be centralized for districts very

much larger than the territory served by a

single neighborhood unit, as otherwise good

management can be secured only at an exces-

sive overhead cost. Roughly speaking, a good sized administrative unit for local recreation

facilities is that of the ordinary municipality

or school district.

CLASS II: REGIONAL RECREATION

FACILITIES

The second, or primarily regional, class of

recreation facilities involves very different

problems from the local, even though no hard

and fast line can be drawn between the two

classes. Regional facilities include beaches,

mountains, and such other recreation areas as

it is impossible to provide by reduplication in

small units in every part of a metropolis.

,,vhile such facilities may, it is true, be made

availa ble by ]oc<tlenterprise, primarily for the

use of those who live near them, and at local

expense, experience shows that local enterprise

will not alone provide in any adequate way for

the great mass of people in a metropolitan

community. For them there is needed a public

agency specifically charged with this duty, supported by taxation falling upon a correspond-

ingly large area, operating on a large scale, and

consistently pursuing plans which involve very

large expenditures and require many years to

come to fruition.

The four types of regional recreation facili-

ties needed by the Los Angeles Region are

these:

I. ,Public beaches.

2. Regional athletic fields.

3. Large reservations in mountains, can-

yons, deserts, and islands. .4. Pleasureway parks or parkways, and re-

lated large parks.

Each of these will be considered separately.

PUBLIC BEACHES

Public control of the ocean shore, especially

where there are broad and satisfactory beaches,

is one of the prime needs of the Region, chief-

ly for the. use of throngs of people coming

from inland, but also for those living near by.

Private control of a portion of the ocean

shore is, it is true, a legitim~e and fruitful wayfor enjoying the recreational possibilities of

the shore, and the value people attach to such

property is evidenced by the prices they will

pay. But the great problem is to get from the

beaches the maximum possible recreation val-

ues of all legitimate kinds, both local and re-

gional, whether public or private, in reasonable

proportion one to the other .

Desirable Features of

Regional Beaches.

The two things most to be desired in a re-

gional public beach are:

First, to meet the demand for bathing,

strolling, and sitting down near the shore, and

for occupation <tndamusement associated with



PLATE 3. New highway along the ocean f r ont, showing narrow strip of pr ivate hnd s fenced in and

cutting ofr all access to the publicly owned tid eland s.

the coolness and ref r eshment of the sea

breezes, the sur f, and the view of the ocean,together with convenient and reasona bly

agr eea ble access, park ing s pace for cars, toilet

facilities, bathhouse f acilities, and the like.

This demand is very strong, and bids f air to

increase indefinitely with the increase in popu-

lation, and pr oba bly at a rate f aster than the

po pulation because of the" gr ad ual cutting off

of certain other oppor tunities f or recreation.

The d emand is already ver y large at its peak s,

although extremely fluctuating with weather

conditions and the incid ence of holid ays.

Second , to meet a demand , also great and

incr easing, but consider a bly less fluctuating

with weather conditions, f or motoring along

pleasantly while over looking the ocean, the

sur f, the beach activities, and the pictur esq ue

coastwise views, with opportunity to stop and

take part in beach activities as well.What per centage of the limited availabk

ocean f ronta~ ,of the r egion could most ad -

vantageously be used f or these purposes, as

against other valua ble uses (such as beach

clu bs, exclusive private use, and other non-

r egional uses), only the ex per ience of years to

come can d efinitely prove. But in t he mean-

time the pu blic holdings should be very ma-

ter ially incr eased .

The present difficulty, and a very cr itical

as pect of the situation, is that the demand f or

private uses of the shore is pr omptly eff ective,

and is leading to the investment of millions of

dollars per annum in acquiring property r ights

a bove mean high water and in the installation

of im provements which largely d eter mine the



use of the beaches in perpetuity; while the de-

mand f or public control of beaches has no cor-

responding effective means of making its r eal

str ength f elt now, while the situation still r e-

mains lar gely flexible.

Con flict o f Privat e and

Public Beach Rights.

The public owns all tid eland s and sub-

mer ged land s, and has an unquestionable right

to use that part of all beaches lying below mean

high tide. The law i s clear on this point, as

will be seen by consulting the exhaustive o pin-

ion given in A ppendix No. V. But this use is

largely d e pendent on reasonably frequent and

ad eq uate access to the beach from the landwar d

sid e. It is also d e pendent on the occurrence of

sufficient lengths of uno bstructed public beachabove mean high tid e, f or use when the tide is

up.

All this is coming to be wid ely und erstood ;

but what is not so clear , either to the gener al

public or to those pur chasing lots with what

they suppose to be " private beach" rights, is

that the value of shor e sites is very lar gely d e-

pend ent on the manner in which public con-

trol of all beaches below mean high water may

be exer cised .

The present tendency is towar d a condition

in which pr ivate and public ownershi p will be

r anged against each other on o pposite sid es of

mean high water on an ind efinite line which

cuts the beach in two longitudinally near its

upper edge, d ividing it so that neither f action

can secur e what it wants exce pt by suff er ance

of the other . Each, in that conditon, will be

hostile and aggressive, and a ble to retaliate by

d evelo pments greatly injurious to the values

possessed by the other . This will r esult in low-

er total values of all kind s than the physical

situation is perfectly ca pa ble of rendering.

In the long run the'r epresentatives of the

gener al public will hold the whip-hand unlessthey f orf eit their rights, because, since the

public alr ead y owns the tid eland s, it is only a

question of construction cost (when the d e-

mand becomes gr eat enough) to r eclaim ad d i-

tionalland s from the sea and pr oceed to their

d evelopment for use by the public. But a do-

nothing polic y at t he present time is cer tain t o

result in great er total ex pend itures and in poorer total results t han ' W ould ot her wise be

invol~()ed . Furthermor e, the evil r esults of de-

lay will d amage the private owner s as well as

the public.

Ever yone agrees that o pportunities f or ad e-

quate r egional beach r eser vations are sli pping

away ver y f ast. And ther e is a g ener al and

well-found ed . belief that pr ompt action 011 a

bold financial scale is need ful to seize these

op portunities. That belief is o pposed mainly

by two sor ts of people: those who are moved

by self ish consid erations, and those who are so

f earful of the mistak es and extr avaganceswhich might be committed by any public agen-

cy ca pa ble of acting pr omptly and boldly, that

they would rather risk the loss of the; beaches,

by d elay and d e bate and insistence on unwork -

ably complicated check s and balances and red

ta pe, than grant to any agency the power to

act pr omptly and on a lar ge scale. The pr o per

view to tak e of the question is that, while the

power to get r esults is inse parable f r om the

power to mak e some mistak es, the need f or

r esults far outweighs the r isk involved .

R EGIO NAL ATHLETIC FIELDSJa

The highly important' social need f or

healthful outlets for the ener gies of youths of

"the dangerous age" instead of f or cing them

into pernicious channels, mak es it compar ative-

ly economical and immensely important to

supply a few lar ge athletic field s or "s por ts

parks" ser ving large areas of po pulation.

These youths cannot d istri bute their recr ea-

tion thr oughout the week so unif or mly as the

younger boys and gir ls; and they can go long

distances to get to athletic field s when the oc-

casion ar r ives. But to secure local recr eationground s lar ge enough f or field s ports and the

gathering of lar ge crowds is d ifficult, and few

local districts ~an compass it. ~There they can-



not, it is clearly a regional function to pr ovide

such field s.

The most efficient unit for economical ad-

ministr ation appear s to be one hund r ed acres

or mor e of near ly levelland, large enough to

provid e space f or base ball games, foot ball,

tr ack events, tennis, swimming, and var ious

other games and s ports, with f ield houses,

lockers, and other necessary con veniences.

LARGE R ESER VATIONS IN MOUNTAI NS)

CANYO NS, DESERTS) AND ISLANDS

Fr om a recr eational standpoint the peo ple

of the Los Angeles Region ar e f ortunate in

having com par atively near at hand many hun-

dreds of sq uare miles of country so mountain-

ous, or so ar id and d ifficult to ir r igate, or so

intr acta ble in other ways, that it has r emained

com par atively unsubdued by man. It is not

so intractable, however, but that the pr essure

of po pulation and of land s peculation is con-

stantly encroaching u pon it and impairing itsnatural recreational value f or city peo ple.

The natur al resistance of some of the moun-

tain la(lds to uses d estr uctive of their recrea-

tional value has been r einfor ced by the far -

sighted action of the Fed er al Government in

setting a part large areas as national f or ests f or

protection of water shed vegetation and r elated

public purposes. These ar eas are in the main

permanently o pen to use for public recreation.

The Angeles National For est embraces

about 640,000 acres of such land in the County,

r eaching to within twelve miles of the heart of

Los Angeles. As a matter of bald statistics this

mak es the im pr essive showing of one acre of

mountain r eser vation for each 3;:; peo ple. On

that basis a careless st,tistician might claim

that the people of this Region ar e mor e amply

pr ovid ed with pu blic r ecr eational ar eas than

those of any other metr o polis in the United States. One could mak e an even more striking

statistical showing of a s peciously gr eat per

capita extent of open s paces adjacent to Los

Angeles by r eckoning as such a few miLlion

acr es of the Pacific Ocean, which certainly has

recreational value.

Per manent r eser vation of thousands of acres

of steep, brush-cover ed mountain slopes such

as char acterize the Angeles National Forest

(and most of Griffith Park ) isof unq uestionable

r ecreational value to the Los Angeles people.

It would be so, mer ely for the scenic eff ect of

those mountains as viewed from elsewher e in

the R egion, even if they were ad ministered

exclusively f or pr otection of water shed values

and if the public were f enced off f r om setting

f oot upon them. But it would be utterly mis-

lead ing to reck on them acre for acre as an ade-

q uate su bstitute for areas ad apted to mor e in-

tensive recreational uses.

Lar ge continuous mountain areas, preserved

substantially in a natur al condition, have allimportant scenic value as viewed either fr om

within or without, and in many cases a lar ge

economic value as a par tial sour ce of water

su p ply.

\Vithin the mountains occur occasional par -

cels of nota ble value per acre f or d irect recrea-

tional use but of limited extent. And there,

also, occasional o pportunities exist for d elight-

ful r oad s and tr ails, the value of which de-

pends chiefly on the extent and scenic beG\.uty

of the pr actically untr aver sable mountain

slo pes ar ound them.It costs so much ill the long run to ad a pt

rough mountain land s satisfactorily to or di-

nary intensive private uses that their real net

value as r aw mater ial f or such use is gener ally

f ar less than~eir value f or watershed pr otec-

tion and for pu blic r ecr eation. Unfortunately

in the local s peculative land mark et this f act

is often ignor ed and subdivision sales are mad e

which commit the community to extravagant-

ly wastef ul private and public ex penditur es

for converting a good thing of one kind into a

poor thing of another kind.The simple f act is that the raw land value

of such intr acta ble areas is relatively low, be-

cause it costs a dis pr o por tionately large amount

per acr e in im pr ovements and in the carr ying



charges to get any very large return from the

land. And the most significant fact about many

large intractable areas is that, where recrea-

tional value can be obtained from them with

so small an investment for altering their nat-

ural condition, recreational use will bring alarger return than private urban or suburban

uses.

In such a large area all that is necessary for

recreational use is the improvement of a few

wid ely spaced roads, trails, and gathering

places. These can be exceptionally valuable

per man-hour of use simply because they are

surrounded by protected landscapes, on land

that may remain practically unimproved and

un penetrated by the public at all. .

Considering the numbers of people of the

Los Angeles Region who, under increasing dif -ficulties' seek the kind of recreation to be ob-

tained from trips into these wild districts, and

considering the price per trip that people show

themselves willing to pay for this recreation in

terms of automobile mileage alone, it is clear

that there is a very large and strong demand

for such recreation. The permanent mainte-

nance of an area of this kind which would en-

able an average of, say, 2,000 automobile-loads

of people a week to reach what they want of

this sort of thing, twenty miles nearer home

than they would otherwise have to go for it,would show a saving of 2,000,000 car-miles a

year, which at eight cents a car-mile is $ 160,-000 a year , or interest on $3,000,000. Returns

of such magnitude, obtainable from a small

investment in improvements, would be better

business than to convert an intractable area

to intensive suburban lises at a far greater cost.

If the market value of raw land were based

solely on the ultimate possible returns, and

on a well-informed and honest comparison of

the total cost of impl:ovements both public and

private necessary to adapt it to various uses,

the intractable lands best adapted to large scen-

ic reservations would be more 01' less auto-

matically assigned to that purpose. Unfortu-

nately the decision to commit a given piece of

intractable land irretrievably to subdivision

and intensive development at large cost for

improvements, as against leaving it in sub-

stantially its natural condition for recreation,

is normally based on the judgment of the pro-

moter simply as to whether possible purchas-ers in a speculative market can be persuaded to

take the project off his hands at a satisfactory

profit to him above the costs which he will

have to meet before he is able to get out from

. under, leaving a large amount of costs to be

borne by the purchasers or the public. Until

promoters are required to provide for the full

development <?fthe property, it will be only

in extreme cases that large reservations of in-

tractable lands, intrinsically best suited to pub-

lic rt;:creation, can be reserved for the public

without paying excessive and fictitious pricesfor the raw land.

Because land-market conditions are so un-

favorable, recommendations for additional

public reservations of the type here discussed

must be made much more conservatively than

the physical conditions and the strictly econom-

ic conditions of this Region would warrant.

Yet, because of such conditions, the develop-

ment Of this great metropolis must unneces-

sarily suffer. Its people will have to travel

much farther from their homes to get the en-

joyment of large areasoJ>fwild land than they

would under better planning and public con-trol of such lands. -

PLEASUREWAY PARKS OR PARKWAYS AND

RELATED LARGE PARKS

Under this heading are a series of problems

which are peculiarly associated with great

modern cities. The seriousness of these prob-

lems here no one can possibly realize who ap-

proaches the subject from the point of view of

past conditions, or without a broad and alert

understanding of what is occurring. in other

great urban areas of the world.

The experience of other metropolitan areas

in respect to their park systems points certain

lessons, which are emphasized by analysis of



[ 12] PARKS, PLAYGROUNDS AND BEACHES FOR THE Los ANGELES REGION

conditions and tr end s that ar e s pecially marked

in the Los Angeles R egion and are s pecially

associated with the motor-vehicle age as d is-

tinguished fr om the age in which the old er

metr o politan regions gr ew.

So f ar as we can see, these conditions and

pr o blems ar e her e to stay. Due mainly to im-

proved tr ans portation, es pecially to the wid e

use of the automo bile, the population living in

continuous metro politan urban and suburban

conditions spr ead s over an area much gr eater

than was formerly possible. Due to the auto-

mobile, there exists an enormously increased

r ange of average d aily and holiday tr avel, lim-

ited not by the time and private means avail-

a ble, as in the past, but by the ca pacity and

char acter of the public ways o pen to suchtr avel. By means of automobile tr avel a lar ge

por tion of the population theref or e seek s out-

PLATE 4. Broad, q uiet, attractive par k way in Dela-

war e Avenue, Buf falQ, wher e travel is a pleasur e.

Such ways are almost unk nown in the Los An-

geles R egion.

d oor recreation to an enormous aggr egate

amount, and over long distances both within

the metro politan ar ea and by passing through

it to the country beyond.

As a result of the gr eat spr ead of continu-

ously occu pied ter r itor y, this new, po pular ,

PLATE 5. Another park way in Olmsted Park in

Boston where adjacent houses have a pleasant

outlook and where passing tr avel is surr ounded by park cond itions.

and valuable f orm of r ecreation is losing its

value in the a bsence of a means for preser ving

it; and tr aveling on congested road s, thr ough

long, tedious str etches of unr efreshing, monot-

onously urbanized territor y, is proving too

gr eat a waste of time and effort in pro portion

to the mileage of attr active countr y tr aver sed .

The d esirability ther efore of a f ew s pecially

agr eea ble routes of pleasure travel within cit-

ies has long been recognized, and ex periments

in great variet~ have be;:n tried in the older,larger, and wealthier cities of the world. But

most of those 'ex periments were designed to

meet the req uir ements of horse-drawn ve-

hicles, low speed, and a short radius of tr avel.

Ther ef ore, they fall f ar short of meeting the

need s of the automo bile. More recently some

pr ogressive communities have been cr eating

routes d eliber ately d esigned upon a r egional

scale and of a char acter intended to meet the

metropolitan conditions of the automobile age.

Under mod ern conditions, with endless ex-

pedients f or combining the regional pleasuretravel functions with those of ordinar y r esi-

dential and business thoroughfares, e x perience

elsewhere points clear l y to one o f the most

urgent park needs of the Los Angeles Region



General Consid erations andS tt mmary of C onclt t sions'\

-the need for a system of interconnected

pletisur eway parks, r egional in scope.

Such a system should be so distributed that

no home will be more thall a few miles from

some part of it; and should be so designed that,

having reached any part of it, one may drivewithin the system for pleasure, and with

pleasure, for many miles under thoroughly

agr eeable conditions and in pleasant surround-

ings. Fr ee from intexruption of ordinary urban

and suburban conditions, driving there may be

either wholly for the pleasure of such driving

or, more generally, it may be over the pleas-

antest if not· always the shortest route to some

other r ecreational objective.

"Pleasure'Lvay Par ks" and

Park"LOaysDe fined.In ord er to provide for travel amid pleasant

sur r oundings, parkways necessarily should be

gr eatly elongated real par ks. Except that they

include roadways for automobile travel, they

have almost nothing in common with ((boule-

var ds" as that term is generally used in Amer-

ica. Varying in width, and having few cross-

tr af f ic intersections, they sh.ould provide for

traveling long distances by automobile, and

should be well screened from the urban and

subur ban sur roundings through which they

pass. They should be wid e enough and have

trees enough to produce, along with the topo-

graphic conditions, some sense of spaciousness

and seclusion, and a variety of scenic effects.

Especially in the broader park enlargements

that may be secured where land is cheaper or

otherwise more available, much of the land

may be used incidentally for many other park

purposes.

The branches of such a system of pleasure-

way parks may be few, and many miles apart,

but they must be ample and far teaching. In·

the old days only a small percentage of the

people could enjoy park scenery from movingvehicles, and even they would not often travel

many miles through city streets for that pleas-

ure. As to the mass of the people, an isolated

park that gave opportunity to drive or walk a

mile or two in pleasant park scener y by going

only a short distance through the streets satis-

fied them well. Today, almost ever y bod y can,

and frequently d oes without hesitation, get

into a car and go five or ten miles through un-interesting streets to get to what he consider s a

really pleasant route of pleasur~ travel, per -

haps in a park or public forest, but more lik ely

just a region that isn't yet all built up. But the

ma jority, when they get out of town, want to

drive fifty or a hundred miles in pleasant sur-

roundings, coming home by a different route.

All this is more true of the Los Angeles

Region than of any other great metropolis.

The people here can and do get an immense

amount of outdoor r ecreation in just this man-

ner , and voluntarily spend an amount of time

and money in getting it (in car -mile costs, for

example) which gives a rough indication of

what they find it wor th. It is certainly worth

much more to them than the price in car -mile

costs or they would not keep on doing it.

Present Cost of Recreation Travel.

There is no reliable basis for com· puting the

aggregate car-mile costs which are thus volun-

tarily and gladly paid; but if anyone will fig-

ure for himself, on any reasonable car-mile

basis, about how many dol~rs a year his own

family and those of his acquaintances spend

in pursuit of this kind ot recreation, and then

consider that 7 I4,804 pleasure ·c~r s wer e regis~

tered in Los Angeles County up to June 30,1929, he will get some real notion of how

much the people thin~ it is worth to them to

ride long distances in pleasant surroundings.

The proof of the pudding is in the eating.

T he people are voluntar ily spend ing millions

of dollar s every year for such r ecreation under

cond it ions which ar e gr owing more and more

imper fect and unsatisfactor y.

Unless the opportunity is preserved to new-

comers and future generations in a system of

continuous park s and parkways, inter-pene-

tr ating the Region and connecting it with the



countrysid e, the immense valu~ to the people

of this kind of recr eation is absolutely d oomed .

to disa ppear. Ur ban growth will fill in one

after another of the open s paces, and extend

continuously f or score af ter scor e of miles.

To peo ple of tod ay, how gr eat would be the

value of a home only a few miles fr om a park -

way of ample road capacity and agr eea ble

scener y, wher e one might drive through a

chain of similar parkways to distant par ts and

enjoy the open countr y of Southern Califor-

niaL Contrast this with the far inf erior wor th

of a home shut off fr 0m any considerable area

of open land by twenty to fifty miles of pr ac-

tically uninter r upted cities and subur bs.

COST OF LAND FOR APARK SYSTEM

\V'hat would be the cost in land withdr awnfrom private occupancy? In a given r egion

parkways, averaging a quarter mile in width,

if s paced eight miles apart in each dir ection,

would occupy six and a q uarter per cent of the

area. To compensate f or this withdr awal, the

community could be extended an equal amount

into the sur r ounding unoccupied land s. In a

region thirty miles in r adius, an equal ar ea

added ar olll1d the outside, to accommod ate

the peo ple dis placed by the park s, would mak e

a band a little less than a mile in width. Tr avel

to the center of the region would, at the f ar -thest, ther ef ore, be lengthened only thr ee per

cent, and f or such extensions, her e, plenty of

land is available.

vVhat would be the cost in taxes to pay f or

such 'r eservations? It has been estimated that

an incr ease in the annual tax rate of ten or

fifteen cents should suffice to acquir e and d e-

velo p a com plet e park syst em , including park-

wa y reser vations. Land withdr awn f rom pr i-

vate use to f orm such par k s should have less

value than land for other uses because the

park s should be located mainly in those inter-stices of the metro politan district that have

been left vacant pr ecisely because they ar e f or

various reasons least valua ble or least avail-

a ble f or intensive private uses.

PARK S AND THE DRAI NAGE PROBLEM

To the ex per ienced eye, the slopes of the

land show a ppr oximately wher e water must

concentr ate in times of heavy rainf all. No mat-

ter how innocent it may look i n d ry weather,

low land must always be f ar less valuable for

building purposes than other land. But the

lowland s may be just as good as any other f or

pr oviding s paciousness of open scener y f or

parks and parkways; and it ought to be r ela-

tively cheap to acquir e. Because of t he inno-

cent look it has in d ry weather, it is not as

cheap as it ought to be. Between flobd s it look s

pretty good f or building purposes to those who

never saw what stor m water can d o in this

countr y. Unsus pecting purchaser s, victims of

their own ignor ance, will fall into the tr apslaid for them by the sharp pr actice of ruthless

pr omoters, and such lands will be cut u p, sold,

alld occu pied. Unfortunately, the burden of

such a wr ong development does n ot fall on

the pur chaser alone, and scarcely ever on the

vendor, hut most heavily on the community

at lar ge. There is, of course, a remedy, but it

r equires vision and vigor to a p ply it. R emedial

legislation might prevent fur ther mistak es and

corr ect those of the past.

To sum u p this vexatious matter : The com-

munity is conf r onted with four possi blecourses:

First, and best, police regulation can be

adopted to pr event costly impr ovements in

flood ways unless and until ad equate spaces

have been set apart f or handling the maximum

flood s and the flood s have , been confined to

them by permanent channels, r eser voirs, and

reser ved areas f or percolation into the gr ound.

The cost would thus be f airly divid ed between

the community at large and the owner s of

land more or less subject to flood ing. Such a

policy would not only be a d irect financial bene-fit to the community, but would ind irectly pr e-

vent the sharp pr actIce a bove mentioned and

sto p the ill-dir ected s pread of the population.

It would also o pen the way to an economical



purchase of park land s in the very areas where

nothing else is so clear ly practicable.

Second , the community can purchase such

lands for par k and flood-control purposes,

while still vacant, but at s peculative prices, that

are high because based on the cupidity of s pec-ulators unrestr ained by police regulations.

Third, the community can permit the land s

to become built up, and period ically s pend

large sums to re pair recurrent flood damage.

Fourth, af ter long d elay, the community

can, through heavy expenditure, permanently

remove the f lood menace by the purchase and

destr uction of costly improvements.

These ar e, of course, pr imarily flood -con-trol and water -conser vation pro ble m s; but

there ar e many oppor tunities for com bining

with them, at little extra cost, par ks along nat-

THE

Ml'lpShowingGENERAL LOCATION OF

OIANNI';I,S f ; ; ; ! 1 ) WonKS

FLOOD REGUL ATIONto a< ;company r epo rt

or

J.W.REACAN

E~ d Lo s A ng e l l's Co1~y

Flood Cofltroi Dislf 'idJANllllY t, l"~

~.:.-.. :::;;..

PLATE 6. M'ap showing ch annels and ar eas of interest to the f lood-contr ol pro blem th~t 1ll~Y hal'e joint

I'alue for park and park way uses. From 1917 r e por t, with add itiona l ar eas indicated.



ural d rainage lines on land s r elatively chea p,

and extensive enough for recreation pur poses.

Such land would have to be acq uir ed only once,

yet would serve a dou ble pur pose-flood-con-

tr ol use and park use-not conflicting but posi-

tively benef icial to each other . Especially

would this be tr ue of the land acquir ed as a

margin of saf ety; the o pen land sk ir ting the

chief flood -contr ol area which pr ud ence would

includ e in the pur chase.

Where flood control alone is d ealt with in

com puting the size of antici pated flood s, there

is a natural tend ency to curtail the ar ea of land

to be acq uired in this s peculative mar k et. Such

cur tailment is lik ely to reduce the factor of

safety beyond the d anger point. Such a policy

d efeats itself. It com pels lar ge outlays f or

costly construction on nar r ow rights of waywhich would not be necessar y on wid er rights

of way. The combination of par k s with flood-

control necessities is frequently possible, and .

wherever practiced it n ot only will yield a

dou ble return on the investment in land but

also may lead to an am pler and bett e~ solution

o f both pr oblems at a much lower cost o f con-

struction t han either would se para ,tel y pay. Anexample of such a problem is d iscussed in d e-

tail in a letter on Nigger Slough and other

land s. (See A p pendix No. III.)

SUMMAR Y OF CO NCLUSIO NS( As S et For t h in Greater Detail

in Succeeding Chapt ers)

Most of the po pulation, of over two mil-

lions, now lives within a region of a bout 1,500

square miles. Population is incr easing at a

ra pid rate. It is thinly s pr ead over a lar ge part

of the centr al por tion of this ar ea. Ther e is no

great congested distr ict, such as is found in

other lar ge cities. Ther e is no evid ence that

congestion will become a serious pro blem in

the future.

Development of a satisf actor y park systemr eq uir es a suitable agency. The par k and rec-

reation agencies of the cities, the county, the

state, and the nation have d efinite f unctions

to perf orm in this Region, and any such agency

may be somewhat ex panded. But in the Los

Angeles Region ther e is no author ity now ex-

isting that could or should assume the f ull r e-

s ponsibility of acquiring and d evelo ping a

complete regional recreation system. Such

authority should be created, with power to r aise

f und s in or der to acq uir e and d evelo p prop-

erty, fr ee f r om the disturbing influence of f re-

q uent political overturnings, and operating

over a long period und er a continuing policy.

Local r ecreation f acilities are needed

throughout the occupied sections. Local play-

gr ound s and recr eation ground s exist, but they

ar e ineq uitably distributed in the Region.

Much mor e than half the subdivid ed area is

pr actically unsupplied. Only 73 of the 726

schools in the R egion have f ive acr es 01; moreof play s pace. School ar eas, even at best, are

not adeq uate to meet all local req uirements,

but they. have great value which should be co-

or dinated with other r ecr eation features. The

pr esent availa ble r ecreation s pace per capit a

decreases in pro portion as po pulation incr eases.

Ther ef ore, mor e s pace should be acq uired

pr omptly, by the municipalities or by the

schools, or both. To provid e each distr ict in the

subdivided ar ea with r easonable local recrea-

tion f acilities might cost, over an extend ed pe-

r iod, $40,000,000 or more, but would be well

worth the cost.The. pu blic need s and should have a larger

pr o portion of the beaches. Fourteen miles of

beach is now pu blicly owned, six miles is q uasi-

public, and thir ty-two miles is clear ly of suffi-

cient pu blic value to war r aqt immed iate ac-

q uisition. The balance of the ocean f r ontage

within and near the County lines is now used

f or other pur poses or is less urgently needed

by the public. The public holdings ar e in gen-

eral ver y nar row. Much of the ar ea that may

be acquir ed is r elatively nar r ow, lying between

existing highways' or built-u p areas and thesea. To acquire the shor e-f r ont pro per ties and

a small amount of ad jacent land would prob-

a bly cost a bout f ifteen million d ollar s; to mak e



them fairly usable would require not less than

two million more. This d oubtless should be

increased to include a pleasure bay at a cost,

for its share of break waters and improvements,

of another ten million dollars, making in all,

$27,000,000.

To meet the r equirements of gener al r ec-

reation, some regional athletic fields ar e need -

ed. Ten of the large reser vations recommend-

ed as enlargements in the general park system

ar e now fair ly accessible to the po pulous cen-

ters, and should be set apart for this purpose.

As many more in districts.more remote may be

needed eventually for this purpose. A fair

share of the cost of the ten now most accessible

has been estimated to be about $7,000,000 f or

acquisition and improvements.

In the more r emote tracts embracing themountains, canyons, deserts, and island s, lar ge

reser vations should be acquired and made ac-

cessible. The cost of acquirement is estimated

at less than a million dollars, but the cost f or

improvements, pr imarily f or r oads, eventu-

ally may r each twelve to f ourteen millions, a

large share of which, however, can doubtless

be obtained from existing sources such as road -

construction fund s and labor.

Pleasur eway parks or parkways as her ein

d escribed practically d o not exist in the Los

Angeles Region. Large parks, publicly owned

water lands, and the lik e, to the extent of

about 16,000 acres, lie along f easible routes

for pleasureways of which t hey may ser ve to

form a part; 440 miles of park s and parkways,

with approximately 70,000 acres of land (54,-

000 more than now owned ) ar e need ed to pro-

vide park areas, reser vations, r oadways, border

streets, drainage channels, and the lik e, to

serve the various public needs that can thus be

jointly ser ved . To acquir e the land s at pr esent

prices may cost a hundred million d ollar s; to

improve them may cost forty-five million dol-

lar s more. A part of each cost, however, in-

clud es costs that should be char gea ble (in part

at least) to dr ainage, local str eets; highways,

and other public purposes that will be ser ved.

The above estimates f or a complete park and r ecreation system include a number of pr o-

jects and involve lar ge sums of money; but

the total is not unreasonable; it is not dis pro-

portionate to the character, magnitud e, and

wealth of the Region; and it is not out of scale

with the provision f or recreation being mad e

in other large metropolitan R egions. The rec-

ommended ex penditures should not all be

made at once, but should e xtend over a period

o f possibl y f orty 01" f if ty year s, and thus not

involve a heavy burd en at any time.



Beautiful foothills r oadway near Pasad en a, ty pical California scener y that should be pr esened with its

bor d er plantations and ,-iews into the mountains, as part of pr oposed par k way. (See Chapter V III.)(Phot o by F iss.)

Bcautiful foothills roadwar ncar

Pasadena, typical

California

scenery

that s hould

be

prcsen ed with

its

border

plantations

an d I icws

i nt o t hc m ou nt ai ns part

o f p ro po sc d p ar kw ay . S ee

Chaptcr

V lL

Pltoto Fiss.



THE previous chapter has indicated the

kind s of park and recr eation facilities

needed in the Los Angeles R egion. Another

stud y is now to be pr esented , examining the

conditions which may aff ect the many prob-

lems of meeting the need . The f ir st of these

conditions is, of cour se, the character of theRegion itself, and the fir st of the pr o blems is

thor oughly to und erstand the people for

whom its solution is of such great impor tance.

Incidental to these are studies of what has al-

r ead y been done, what the existing facilities

are, and what is the wealth of the R egion. The

extent of the use of automobiles is considered,

with the volume of tourist travel; movements

of po pulation are car efully estimated, also the

possible ef f ects of zoning and other restric-

tions. Regional or local conditions that now ex-

ist or that can be f airly predicted f or a notdistant future ant considered; and the whole

chapter is an effort to determine just what the

people of the R egion are, what they have, and

what they can d o and should d o in the matter

of parks and r ecreation in order to preserve

and advance the prosperity of the Region.

CHAR ACTER OF THE R EGIO N

The Los Angeles Region is a large one, in-

cluding about one-thir d of the County. The

other two-third s are mountains and deserts.

The Region lies south of the mountains, cov-ering 1,500 sq uare miles of coastal plain, low

hills, and high agricultural development, into

which the po pulation has s pr ead , ver y thinly,

and is still spr ead ing. In this R egion mor e than

f orty cities. and a number of unincor porated

communities form local center s, with se par ate

jurisdictions, and deal with park d evelo pment

with no common or gener al policy, with no

generally accepted uniform standard s, and

with no unity of cOlltr ol. There has been wid evariation among them in park d evelopment.

And, partly because of t he newness of many

of the communities, the need for such f acili-

ties has in some cases been almost wholly un-

realized .

THE POPULATION

\Vith a po pulation of over 2,000,000 in the

Region, but recently gather ed fr om all q uar -

ters of the nation and constantly incr easing,

community life is not yet highly developed

and recognition of local interests is limited .The population of the Region, having grown

f rom a little over 100,000 thirty years ago to

twenty times that number now, bid s f air to

d ou b~e again by 1950.

With the growth of population the urban

area is becoming greater; the large open s paces

of th countryside ar e being pushed farther

and farther from the center and ar e being

made less and less accessible to the peo ple, ex-

cept in those lamentably few cases where land

is acq uir ed to be k e pt~pen for public uses. The

ar ea almost wholly cut into lots now extend s.out ten miles or more fr om the center and cov-

ers nearly 400 square miles, within which f ew

lar ge s paces ar e now availa ble f or par k uses.





PeR50N5 PeR ACRE

CJ 0T05

CJ 5TolD

Q10 TO 25

o25ro50

_ OVE.e50

CITIZENS COMMITTEEOr R4RKS AAYGROUNOJ 8E A

Los ANGELES REG/ON'

POPULATION DENSITY IN 1922



\ ~

PERSONS PER ACRE

Do ro5

05TO 10

1 0 T O 25

25 r 050

_ OV£R50

CITIZENS COMMITTE~ O N P ARJ'5 PLAYGROUNDS ANI) 8fACHf5

LOS A NGE LE S R EGI O N

POPULATION DENSITY

IN /928



~

INCIlEA.1£ IN PoPtlLA7I0N

P£It.1ONS Pe R AcRE

o01'0/0

0 /01'015

.1570 50

Oee/lEAS/! IN POPIlLATION

PERSONS PElt. ACItE

o0 ro 10

/ 0 TO Z5

ZS 11J50

QTIUNS CCWMITT££ VN PA~I(S PiAY(;~NP.s ANP BMfIf ldl.

POPULATION OENSITY OIl/NOES /322 TO /328

FOR. CENTRAL 5ECTION OF Los ANIJELES REGION

XAU /N Mlus

I { 3

/~~.t'"

" ,



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CITIZENS COMMITTEE ON PARKS PLAYGROUNDS AND BEACHES

\ \

MAP SHOWING PGPVLATION'

· THE LOS ANGELES REG~N

\" '"SCALE I N MILES

4 5

OLMSTED BROTHERS AND BARTHOLOMEW ~

CONSULT ANTS



Cond it ions A ff ect ing t he Need/ or Par k and Recreat ion Facilit ies

and maintain lar ge private or club pr o perties,

such yard s pr ovid e f or none of those f orms of

r ecr eation which r equire broad s paces, wheth-

er f or active games and s ports, and other gr e-

gar ious activities, or for land sca pe en joyment.

Also, the s pread of private house lots over avast urban ar ea tend s to remove the open

countr yside to a f ar gr eater distance fr om the

homes of most of the Deo ple than would d ens-

er ty pes of development.

The r elative s par sity and the wid e s pr ead

of urban po pulation is pr esuma bly due in the

main to the combinatioll of two factors: fir st,

a gener al f ondness f or the single family d e-

tached house, peculiar ly d esir able in this favor -

a ble climate and especially attr active to the

lar ge number of elder ly people who come here

to live; and second, the gener al availability of

the automobile during the per iod in which this

Region has been growing to metropolitan size,

making fairly long distances of tr avel in the

common er r and s of ever y-d ay life a matter

of slight importance. This tr end will doubt-

less continue unless check ed by tr affic conges-

tion and by the increasing lengths of tr avel

thr ough completely urbanized ter ritor y.

E vils o f t he

"F rict ion o f Dist ance."

Los Angeles may continue to gr ow as a me-

tr opolis of automo bile user s, living pleasantly

in d etached houses with plenty of room, with

a minor per centage of apar tment dwellers, but

onl y if it provid es motor ways (of which the

pleasur eway park is one ty pe) on a truly mod -

ern scale undreamed of in the past. Otherwise

the "friction of d istance" will gr ad ually pr ess

it back towar d the f amiliar and deplor a ble

metr opolitan conditions o, btaining in older

cities, wher e po pulation and land values ar e

crowded into much smaller ar eas. Alread y in

parts of Los Angeles, Long Beach, Pasad ena,

and other lar ger center s, ther e is a strong drift

toward multiple dwellings which pr o ba bly

will incre;J.sc in the futur e. So f ar as this drift

goes, the need for local park s and r ecreation

gr ound s will be much greater than at present.

Age Groups.

A stud y of the population in Los Angeles

by age gr oups shows a lar ger per centage of

adults her e than in most cities, due pr o bably to

the fact that climate and living conditions at-

tract many adults to settle her e, with a cor -

r es pondingly lower percentage of children

under twenty: 26 per cent her e as against 36

per cent in most other lar ge cities. Long Beach

and Pasad ena sho w a still smaller per centage

of children than Los Angeles, and this would

pro ba bly a pply to some other par ts of the R e-

gion as well.

This pr evalence of adults indicates the need

f or a greater propor tion than in o ther com-

munities of those ty pes of outd oor recreation, both local and r egional, adapted to enjoyment

by adults, as 'contr asted with playgr ound s ex-

clusively for child ren, essential though the lat-

ter ar e.

Income G1·OU PS .

The only satisf actor y d ata on income grou ps

in the Los Angeles Region is found in the rec-

ords of or ganizations which have mad e eco-

nomic sur veys. Data, furnished by the Eber le

Economic Ser vice, based on a house-to-house

sur vey .of Los Angeles City and on r entals and

building permits, show f or a total of 328,685f amilies check ed in the central urban ar ea, the

f ollowing ratios of incomes:

I NCOME GROUPS BY FAMILIES FOR 1927,

AND PER CE NTAGE I N EACH

Class A-Income over $5000 per yeaL 8.37 0

Class B-Income of $2500 to $5000 a yeaL------27.27oClass C-Income of $ 1000 to $2500 a yeaL 55.2 r oClass D-Income und er $1000 a yeaL 9·3 r o

Cor r es ponding r atios f or the entire County ar e

not now available but f r om rand om obser va-

tions it appears pr o bable that a complete r ec-

ord would show somewhat larger pr oportions

of the two lower income gr ou ps.



~

[ 22 ] PARKS) PLAYGROU NDS A ND BEACHES FOR THE Los ANGELES REGIO N

These f acts have a d ecid ed bearing upon

the types of recr eational facilities needed.

People having lar ge incomes (Classes A and

B) ar e able to satisf y leisur e-time d esir es and

to live und er whatever conditions seem most

pleasant and enj oyable. Those of lower . in-comes (Classes C and D) generally live in

small-lot, single-family home d istr icts, and

have more childr en and less leisur e time in

which to go to distant park s and recr eational

areas. These f amilies compr ise 65 per cent of

the po pulation', and they should be given first

consid er ation, not only f or their own good but

for the welfare of the community.

HOUSI NG

Los Angeles is a city of single-family d e-

tached houses, but in certain urban ar eas apart-ments ar e grad ually taking their place. The

tr affic volume on near ly all str eets, the shar p

r ise of land values and consequent incr ease of

taxes and assessments, ar e making lar ge sec-

tions no longer suita ble for ordinary single-

f amily houses. The following ta ble is a sum-

mar y of the results of a house count made in

1925 by the Souther n California Telephone

Company f or the ur ban area, having its outer

limits approximately eight miles fr om the

centr al business district, including portions of

Bever ly Hills, but excluding San Pedr o, Long

Beach and the west coast communities. Theclassification "resid ences" includ es duplexes

and bungalow cour ts, but is pr o ba bly about

one-half single-family r esidences.

TYPES OF HOUSI NG PR OVIDED I N AN EIGHT-MILE

R AIJIUS, WJTH NUMBER AND PER CENTAGES

OF FAMILIES LIVI NG I N EACH TYPE

r ear Resid ences

191 7 ------- --------- I° 1,64-4-1922--- , 57,04- 5

1925 2 34-,8 5 3

Lodging

Y ear H ouseJ

I9 1 7---- ------------ 2,067

'922 -------- ------ 4-,608

1925 ----------- --- 5,580

F lat s

21,069

37,7 22

4-6,999

Lig/rt

H owekeepiug

5,74 -3

7,653

5,24-3

Total

14-2,4-°8

221,753

319,857

Apar t ments

11,885

14-,725

27, 182

Resi-

Y ear delt ce J

Light

A pal' t - Lodging H ouse-

llteltt s I I ouses kee pilt g T otal

1917 7 1.30ro 14-·70% 8·35% 1.4-5ro 4-.20ro 100

1922 70.80 17.00 6.65 2.10 3.4-5 100

1925 73-4-0 14-.70 8.50 1.75 1.65 100

These figures show only slight annual changes

in the pr o portions of peo ple living in the dif -

f erent types of dwellings. The incr ease of

f amilies living in multi ple family dwellings

is offset by the incr eased number of single-

f amily houses in the outskir ts of the city.

Los Angeles City building-permit recor ds

thr ow a somewhat diff erent light upon the

changing character of housing.

.'\CCOMMODATIONS FOR FAMILIES I N Nnv BUILDI NGS I N

Los A NGELES CITY

Per Celt t

Single Double o f S iugle

A part - Dwell- Dwell- T otal Famil)'

r ear lUeltt s F iatJ ings ings F amilies t o T ot al

1919 277 384- 4-, II1 589 5,3 II 77· 51920 561 4-75 8,850 956 10,8 4-2 8 I.5

1921 976 1,888 13,303 3,4-34- 19,601 68. 1

1922 4-,4-58 2, I84- 15>373 6,018 28,033 54-.8

1923 10,803 2,4-4-8 19,509 11,082 4-3,84-2 4-4-·5

1924- 7,652 14-,669 7,54-3 29,894 - 4-9.0

1925 6,095 12,4-82 3,4 -95 22,°72 56.51926 7,4- 5 9 9,999 2,5 59 20,01 7 50.0

1927 9,9 68 8,2 I3 2,4- 3 6 2 0,801 38.5

It will be seen that the per centage of single-

family dwellings to total family accommod a-

tions has been alri10st steadily d ecr easing.

CLIMATE

It is need less here to pr aise the Los Angeles

climate or to note the r educed cost of heating

houses. Any r eal enjoyment of climate is out -

d oor enjo yment. Without facilities for out-door recr eation, climatic ad vantages might just

as well be written d own to a mere diff erential in

heating bi1Js. As an asset, the Los Angeles cIi-



Condit ions Aff ecting the N eed f or Par i?' and Recr eat ion F acilities [23 ]

mate is worth f ar mor e than that; but it will

be f rittered away just as sur ely as outdoor

means f or enjoying it are not conser ved.

Enjoyment of climate is in this region inter -

woven with all other f orms of outd oor r ecrea-

tion and ser ves to heighten the pleasur e theygive. But the most cons picuous eff ect of cli-

mate and scenery is to incr ease very gr eatly

the use of the automo bile f or r ecreation. On

holid ays and in leisur e hour s throughout the

entire year thousand s of motor vehicles ar e

car r ying young and old over the highways on

pleasur e trips. For increasingly fr equent pe-

riod s the primar y highways ar e congested to

a d egr ee which mak es the so-called pleasur e

trip anything but pleasur a ble, exce pt to those

who can enjoy any conditions so long as they

sit in an automobile.

Obstacles to enjoyment of the climate d e-

ser ve s pecial consid er ation with r efer ence to

the tourist population. The widely-ad vertised

attractions of climate and scenery bring thou-

sand s to the Los Angeles R egion ever y year .

They find the climate fully equal to expecta-

tions but the facilities by which the out-of -

doors may be enjoyed often pr ove a sur prise

and disap pointment. The pr essur e of gr owing

masses u pon the now availa ble beaches, can-

yons, forests, and countr y r oad s is lesseningtheir attractiveness and pr oducing unfavor a ble

r eactions in newcomers. The beaches, which ar e

pictur ed in the magazines to attr act the eastern

visitor s, are suffering fr om the ra pid encroach-

ment of private use; the wild canyons ar e f ast

being subjected to subdivision and cheek - by-

j owl ca bin construction; the for ests suff er an-

l1Ually f rom devastating fir es; the r oad sid es

are more and mor e d isfigured by signboar d s,

shack s, garages, filling stations, destr uction of

trees, and multiplication of poles and wires.

So that driving f or pleasur e is often an ex-

hausting and hazard ous or deal r ather than a

r ecreation.

SCENIC R ESOUR CES

A large number of those who have come to

this section of California have been attracted

to it by its scenic q ualities. They have r ead that

((no other part of the wor ld off ers such a di-ver sity of scenery and climate in such a small

area." These qualities contribute distinctly to

the agreeable living conditions which induce

visitor s to become permanent r esid ents. The

natural beauties of the Los Angeles Region

must, ther ef or e, be consider ed among its pri-

mar y assets, drawing new population and pro-

moting contentment and satisf action among

those who choose to live her e.

But scenic resources ar e d wind ling. The

beaches ar e being fenced off and withdr awn

from general use with alarming rapidity. The

oppor tunities now existing for the enjoyment

of views out over the sea f rom the highways

along the shor e and from privately owned

o pen s paces ar e being r a pidly lost. A practically

continuous row of buildings, walls and plant-

ing between motor ists and the seacoast o f Los

Angeles County is in pros pect. Ther e ar e now

only six miles of highway along the entire

coast of Los Angeles County wher e views of

the sea cannot be so cut off at the will of pr i-

vate land owner s. Ther e are no lar ge park s or

permanent public o pen spaces along the coast,

such as the waterfront parts o f Chicago, BelleIsle of Detr oit, or Stanley Par k, Vancouver .

The few small sq uares, shor e park s, and nar-

row beaches now existing ar e wholly out of

scale with the present po pulation and ar e de-

plora bly inadequate f or the future.

The mountains, which ar e dominant scenic

assets, are slowly losing value because of the

intensive urban g-r owth. On the one hand such

growth is steadily cutting off views of the

mountains, views that can be eff ectively ob-

tained only acr oss o pen foregr ound s sufficient

in scale to complete and unif y the landsca pecom position. The constant pr ocess of building

upon o pen areas, the confinement of highways

between r ows of dweLlings, stor es, ad ver tising



PLATE I I. San Fer nand o Valley, looking toward the city, showing possi ble location for scenic routes

along the hills and showing the washes wher e subdivision is s pr ead ing but has not yet a bsor bed all

the ar eas needed f or park s and parkways. (Photo by Spence.)

structur es and other near - by o bstructions is

gr adually eliminating- enjoyment of the in-

spiring mountain scener y from the plains. This

is a great loss which can be stopped only by

r eser vation of occasional public o pelt for e-

gr ound s. It is immaterial whether these be

small local parks or parts of r egional pleasur e-

ways.

Within the mountain ar eas certain char ac-ter istics of the mountains most enjoyed by in-

timate contact are being depr eciated by misuse.

Only cer tain canyons nnd rid ges nr e read ily

accessi ble and easily usa ble, but these in some

cases have been so occupied by motor road s,

ca bin construction, and commercial uses as to

seem no longer distinctly mountain countr y, but

mer ely r e productions of some of the poorer

neighborhoods of the city.

The hills and sightly eminences in and

around Los Angeles have never been properly

work ed into the ex panding structure of thecity in order to preser ve their landscape value

or save for public en ioyment the magnificent

views f r om their summits. Land - platting and



PL ATE 12. Signal Hill with its oil wells showing Long Beach on the plain to the r ight; along the ridge

among the oil wells a park way is need ed . (Phot o by S pence.)

r oad-building on steep hillsid es generally r e-

sult in scars and gashes which nature has great

difficulty in healing. Ther e ar e almost no con-

tinuous well-planned scenic drives in the hills

behind Hollywood or Glendale or those on

the east side. The drives and outlook points

in Elysian Park ar e merely suggestive of the

tr eatment that this gr eat metropolis might

reasonably be ex pected to give to many such

elevated areas.

The value to tourists and r esidents alik e of scenic routes' perm.anent l y protected against

obstructive building on I he sid e towar d t he

view in such situations as high on the Bald win

Hills, the Montebello and Puente Hills and

just a bove the base of the mountains, would

be enormous. Many thousands of visitors come

to this R egion expecting to find superb pano-

ramas of the great city, the or ange gr oves, the

mountains and the sea fr om these high places,

but month by month the o ppor tunities to mak e

them permanently available are slipping away.

Even yet, however , many o pportunities re-

main to car ry out pr o jects similar to such f a-

mous and po pular drives as the sk yline boule-var d s of Oakland and San Fr ancisco, Mission

Rid ge R oad and Look out Mountain Highway

in Chattanooga, the 25 -mile scenic r oute on



PLATE 13. Phn fOl: highways in the Los Angeles Region as pr e par ed a few year s ago by the R egional

Planning Commission, showing a complete network of ma jor highways.

the hills behind Duluth, Terwilliger Boule-

vard and the Columbia Highway at Portland,

Oregon, and the hillside parkways at Seattle.

Native trees were never numerous in the

Los Angeles Region, and every grove is pre-

cious. The introduction of an adequate water

supply has banished desert conditions, and the

planting of orchards and ornamental trees hasof course enriched the view. Few concerted

efforts, however, are made to save existing

tr ees when in the path of subdivisions. They

are being destroyed by the spread of the city.

In widening the highways, mature tr ees ar e

cut down, thus removing the one effective re-

lief to the monotony of commercial build ings.

Many miles of once pleasant, tr ee- bordered

rural roads are annually added to the alreaq y

tremendous total of unsightly commercialized

streets. Is this good businessr It is through in-creasing lengths of such treeless streets that

both citizens and visitor s will be forced to

travel in sear ch of p]easu~e-un]ess the evil



~' _ _ EAST SIDEORG A1'4iZ ATIOMIMc.--

---EHetN!:EI>\I'OGOeAo\,R'T •••••~T·------,.~• . . . . .-.. -~-

PLATE 14.. PLlI1 f or highway s in the East S ide as suggested by the Fa'st S ide Or g:lI1ization 111coh sul-

tation with the R egional P la nn ing Commission.

results of pr esent highway constr uction aresomehow counter acted and futur e im prove-

ments consid er the good of the whole com-

munity.

STREETS AND HIGHWAYS

The str eets and highways ar e developed

primarily f or other than r ecr eational end s, but

they play, or ought. to play, an important par t



PLATE 15. Plan of the Pacif ic Electric R ailway system showing a rad iating system from the hear t of the R egion. •

in recr eation. Whether people find their out-

door r ecreation mainly in park s or elsewhere,

all pleasur e tr avel originating in and retur ning

to pr ivate houses must use the highways, pos-

si bly f or many miles; and much of the joy of

the d ay's outing will d e pend upon their condi-

tion. Yet all scr eens and opportunities f or

screens to f or m pleasant avenues, and also to

pr otect ad jacent pr o per ty fr om the disturbing

influence of traffic, have been lost in ht.lI1dred s

of miles of such highways. Such avenues as

Magnolia Avenue at Riverside, Euclid Ave-

nue in Ontario, and the parkways and " boule-

var d s" of other cities ar e wholly lacking in

the Los Angeles R egion.

CAR LI NES AND R AILWAYS

In early d ays the street car was a much used

pleasure conveyance and ter minal par k s were

popular, but with the extensive use of the auto-

mobile the volume of str eet-car tr avel f or

pleasur e has not k ept pace with the gr owth of



Cond it ions J lff ect ing t he N eed j01' Park and Recreat ion F acilities

the city; the terminal park has become less

pr of ita ble and str eet-car extensions into new

areas have been limited. It is doubtful, in view

of the wide use of the automobile f or tr ans-

pOt-tation and pleasur e, whether any consider -

a ble extensions will be mad e in street-car f acili-

ties as other new r ecr eation o b jectives ar e de-

veloped.

The most ad vantageous r ecr eational f eatur e

of the pr esent tr ansit plan is the extensive ser v-

ice rendered the beaches and beach communi-

ties. There are now opportunities to appr oach

by r ail almost ever y str etch of usa ble ocean

fr ontage fr om Santa Monica southward to

Palos Verdes; lines extend to San Pedr o, Wil-

mington and Long Beach and f or miles along

the coast f arther south.

To the mountains ther e is ver y little street-car service and lik ely to be little in the f utur e,

as the total ca pacity of r esor ts ther e is neces-

sarily limited and not lik ely to encour age cost-

ly railway building.

Steam r ailroad s, other than as controlling

factor s in the location of industries and sta-

tions and as barrier s between residential neigh-

borhood s, d o not materially aff ect the r ecrea-

tion pr oblem.

ZONI NG TO CO NTROL THE USE

OFTHELA NDL6s Angeles and other cities in the Region

have ad o pted some regulations to control the

use of the land , maintain stand ar ds in each

section, prevent impr o per uses of the land ,

and k ee p the sizes of buildings in scale with

conditions surr ound ing them. One-third of

the municipalities have zoned f or use, about

one-f our th f or height and area, and a f ew f or

sid e and r ear yard s. But ther e is no regulation

of po pulation d ensities, and most places zoned

per mit multiple dwellings almost ever ywher e

and offer little Dr otection to the small home

owner . Hence there is little indication of

wher e private r esid ences are likely to continue

in large number s.

Wher e apartment-house construction is per-

mitted pr actically all over a city, as is the case

here, two evil consequences may r esult: fir st,

the d anger of the intr usion of a partments al-

most anywher e discourages the building of

single-f amily houses, even though the frac-tion of the total ar ea actually occu pied by

apartments will r emain comparatively small.

Second, a partments will be scatter ed and illog-

ically bunched, and while their occupants will

have far gr eater need for local par k f acilities

than other people, it will have been im pos-

sible to provid e f or them adequately in ad -

vance of building o per ations.

Zoning f or business fr ontage in most of the

Los Angeles Region is f ar f rom reasona ble.

The s peculative urge has almost ever ywhere

led to permission of business on f ar mor ef rontage than can ever be used, with r esultant

injur y to pr o per ty fr onting on many str eets

that might otherwise form pleasant r esid en-

tial neighborhood s. In a stud y of pr o perty uses

in twenty-three cities, by the Regional Plan of

New Yor k, the findings wer e as follows. No-

tice the business fr ontage:

Per cent age in

Resid mtial

Cit ies

Percent age i1l

hulwtl'ial

Cit ies

R esidences ------------- --- --------54 -.0 to 6 2. 0Business 1 .4 - to 2. 8

I nd ustr y - .. --------------- 3 to 5

Str eets (f airly constant). 25 to 25

Park s (ver y wid e var iance) 2 to J 7.5

3 4 - to 4 -8

5 to IO

2 I to 26

25 to 2 5

2 to 17.5

SPECULATIVE LAND SUBDIVISION

Subdivision has been car ried so f ar here that

acr eage par cels d esir able f or park purposes,

because near in and of scenic interest, ar e r ar e-

ly o btaina ble. And even when f ound they are

often held at such high prices, set by lot sales

in the vicinity, that it is difficult to pr ove thatat such prices they will show satisf actory r e-

turns to the public as park s and r ecreation

ground s.



c!~ltNS CO"1 f'o1ITHE ON P AR KS PL AY GROUNDS AND B E AC HES

L OS M!GELES REGION

ARE AS CHIEFLY SUBDIVIDED

INTO HOUSE LOTS

PI. ATE 16. Ma p showing areas now almost wholly su bdivided into house Jot units. ( Base ma p b y cour tes y of Aut omobile Club o f S outltet ' ?t C ali f or llia.)



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OLMSTED BROTH[R5 ~ B ART~OLEMEW < I < A~~OCIATES

CONSUL TANT,s



Cond it ions A ff ect ing t he Need f or Par k and Recreat ion F acilit ies . [ 3 I ]

Ther e are few places in the wor ld wher e

land subdivision has been so constant and wid e-

spr ead as here. The ha bita ble ar eas of the Re-

gion are very r a pid ly changing fr om pastures,

orchard s, f arms, small f arm Jots, and br ush

land into streets and building lots. This tak es place with only slight and very inf requent r e-

gard f or the ultimate need f or public open

s paces by the incr easing number s who will oc-

cupy the subdivisions.

In the L o s Angeles market, those who fir st

buy lots from su bdivid er s are largely intent

on speculative r esale-to any bod y for any use.

They are easily persuaded that almost any lot

may turn out to be valua ble for business use;

they d o not realize that only a ver y small per -

centage of lots ever will be so used; and per-

haps they d o not care; they ar e intent uponr esale, nothing else. They d o not a ppreciate

the value of resid ential neighbor hood s per -

manently satisfactor y to live in because of

having ad equate local recreation ground s.

They may be penny-wise and pound -foolish.

Until the lot- buying public can be more gen-

erally educated to purchase d iscriminately, in-

stead of on the basis of undiff erentiated lot-

ter y tick ets, subdivid ers cannot be ex pected to

go very f ar in voluntar ily setting a part local

par k s and r ecreation gr ound s. Can they be

mad e to realize that in the long run such park s

will mak e the remaining lots more valuable

than the whole tract would be without them?

If people persist in buying lots that have

not been provided with accessible parks and

other ultimately necessary local public utilities,

at almost the same pr ice they will pay for lots

that have those ad vantages, they or their suc-

cessor s will simply have to pay the heavy price

for such shortsightedness.

SHORTAGE I N EXISTING PARK

A ND RECREATIO N FACILITIESIn the Los Angeles Region the existing

park s and recreation f acilities ar e ver y limited

in extent and ver y irr egular ly distr ibuted . The

total acr eage is not only below the standard s of

other cities, but below any r easona ble mini-

mum, either on an acr eage or a po pulation

basis. Comparison on the basis of population is

here illogical because po pulation is increasing

so ra pidly and because such large sections stillhave an abnormal percentage of vacant lots.

Comparison, as in the table below, on an acre-

age basis is more logical, as the total acr eage

will remain constant.

Ther e is no satisf actor y summar y of statis-

tical comparisons in r egar d to p ark s and r e-

lated facilities in Amer ican cities, whether in

relation to po pulation or to area, and statistics

are liable to serious misinterpretation without

a per sonal knowled ge of local cond itions. The

statistics used in the f ollowing ta ble, whether

or iginally made by the U. S. Census or other

compilers, wer e mainly o btained f rom incor -

por ated cities, though in some cases f rom s pe-

cial park districts, school districts, or counties.

They show that the boundar ies of administra-

tive units r elate in the most ar bitr ar y and di-

ver se ways to the distribution of ur ban terri-

tor y and po pulation. They frequently over lap

each other so that the officials of anyone of

them may control and re por t on r ecreation

areas within the jurisd iction of one or mor e

other administrative bodies. S,ome of them own

and o perate recreation f acilities outsid e their

own boundar ies. And ther e is much diversity

in the ty pes of recreation facilities classified

under the same head ing by dif f erent politicalunits.

The most near ly complete and compar a ble

data ar e those f or the parks and recr eation

ground s of incorpor ated cities. Fr om the fig-

ures f or 1925-1926 of the Playgr ound and

Recreation Association of America a ta ble has

been made showing f or Los Angeles and ten

other cities (arranged by population) the ex-isting par k acr eages, exclusive of school

ground s, and compar ing them with the total

acr eages of the cities, as follows:



[ 32] PARKS) PLAYGROUNDS AND BEACHES FOR THE Los ANGELES REGION

TABLE SnOWING EXTENT OF PARKS IN ELEVEN CITJEs*

Population Number o f Parks by S i zes Per Cent

tn Under Over Total o f Park

Thousands Five 1000 Park Acreage Area t o

City ( 19 20 ) Acres 5-25 25- 100 100-1000 Acres Acreage of City Cit y Area

Chicago _ _ ---~---- _ . _ ----- 27°2 18 36 10 9 ° 4,487 131,190 3.4 1Philadel phi a _ _ _ _ _ __ _ __ __ _ __ 182 4 4 10 7 4 2 7,802 80,017 9·75Detroit _ _ _ 994 37 10 4 6 3,733 76,245 4.96St. Louis _ ___ _ _ __ _ _ _ ____ _ _ _ _ _ _ 773 58 16 7 6 1 2,881 39,405 7.07Boston __ _ ___ ------------------- 748 74 9 8 8 ° 2,637 3°,598 8.61

Los AngeleL ___ 576 42 16 4 2 1 4,906 262,893 1.87San Francisco __ ___ ____ _ _ ___ _

5°7 20 31 7 4 1 2,536 81,280 3.12

Minneapolis __ _ ------------- 381 78 ' 28 13 13 ° 4,738 34, 105 '3.88Kan sas City __ _ _ _ _ ___ __ _ _ _ ___ _ 324 25 37 18 3 1 3,238 38,400 8.42Sea ttl e ___ ___ ____ _ _ __ _ _ _ _ __ ___ _ __

315 36 67 8 6 ° 2,145 45,760 4·7°P ortla n d _ _ ~ _ ____ __ ___ .__ ____ _ _ _ 258 25 41 8 6 ° 2,182 42,240 5.18

;l-Exc1usive, as i n the other s ta tistics, of school playgrounds, and exclusive of the National Forests.

Minneapolis has the most properties, the

largest percentage of park acreage, the best

distribution of areas, and the best develop-

ment and maintenance. The data for Minne-

apolis, for Los Angeles City and for Los An-

geles Region are in detail as follows:

CO MPARISO N O F PARK S I N MlN NE APOLIS A ND Los A NG ELE S

Number o f Par ks b yS izes

Under

5 Acres

MI N NEAPOLIS: Num beL . ___ _ __ _ _ _ _ _ _ 78

Aggregate acr eage -_ _ _ 63

Los ANGELES CITY:

Num ber 42Aggregate acreage 4 -8

L o s A NGE LES REGIO N:

N umb eL. -----.--------- 95Aggregate acreage 247

16216

19

93 4-

Within the Los Angeles :R~gion a wide vari-

ation is found in the percentages of park areas.

In Pasadena, r elatively large areas are now

publicly owned . In Palos Verdes, 25 per cent

of the entire resider itial district (800 acres out

of 3200) is set aside for park and recreational

uses. On the other hand, in many other dis-

tricts the percentage of public open space isextremel y low.

The total park area in the Los Angeles Re-

gion is 9,668 acres, or about IS square miles.

Over

1000

100-1000 Acres

Total

Park

Acreage

Acreage

of City

or Region

Populat ion

in 1920

That is to say, in a'region of 960,000 acres, or

1500 square miles, there are only IS square

miles of park lands. This is only about one per

cent of the total area. Compare this with the

fact that there are now in the same region 42

areas in golf clubs and country clubs privately

owned outside the park areas, and containing6,179 acres, or about two-thirds as much as

the total public park lands.

The following table shows what has been



done and is now being done in four lar ge met-

ropolitan regions. Los Angeles has a r elatively

lar ge ar ea in munici pal parks, but it includ es

a number of mountainous ar eas having lim-

ited recr eational value. In Metropolitan,

. County and State par k s, Los Angeles is far

behind other cities-in fact, has hard ly mad e

a beginning.

M etro- Adjacent

M unicipal politan N ati01t a! Po pulation

METROPOLITAN M unici pal W ater -shed C ount y and F orest mzd Acreage o f o f the

R EGIO N Parks Pr o perties St at e Park s Park AI ' eas the Region Region

CHICAGO:

Cook County only, 1928 5,800 32,000 597,000 3,760,000Chicago R egion, I 928--------. 12,000 38,900 5,000,000 4-,800,000Chicago R egion of ficial rec-

ommend ations and esti-

mates for 1950-

(Minimum) ------------------- 21,000 64-,000 5,000,000 8,000,000(Maximum) _ _ ___ _ _____ ____ _ ____ 74-,000 -------------- --------------

BOSTON:

Metropolitan District, 1928.- 7,054- 712 11,14-2 262,4-00 1,84-0,912

NEW YORK:

New York R egion, 1927 ___ _ _ 13,736 56,999 76,266 655,874- 3,537,24-9 10,34-0,000

Los A NGELES:

Los Angeles R egion, 1928--- _ 9,161 6,523 507 64-0,000 960,000 2,000,000

DISTRIBUTION OF SPACES

NEEDED FOR LOCAL SERVICE

In ord er to indicate the extent to which ex-

isting pu blic o pen s paces may ser ve local rec-

reational and par k need s in the Los Angeles

R egion, a diagr am has been made (Plate No.

18) showing all public recreational ar eas:

parks, playground s, school gr ounds, and

other s, together with the surrounding district

f or which they can logically be ex pected to

pr ovide local ser vice. The d iagram was dr awn

on the assumption that local service should ex-

tend over a distr ict twenty times the size of

the unit (the par k area being 5 per cent of

total ar ea) but not more than half a mile d is-

tant fr om the u nit. * On this d iagram all such

districts, and all large areas not r equir ing r ec-reation f acilities (industr ial ar eas, hillto ps,

steep slopes, college grounds, and private rec-

reation grounds) have been left in white;

within the region now almost wholly cut up

into building lots all other ar eas have been

shown in black ; outside the intensively sub-

divid ed ( black ) ar eas all lands not served by

existing par k s and not withdrawn from resi-

d ence uses have been shown cr oss-hatched.

This diagr am shows a lack of o pen s paces for

local ser vice in a lar ge percentage of the Re-

gIOn.

Par k ways or pleasureway park s in any ad e-

q uate r ecr eational sense, as they ar e known f or

example in New York, Boston, Chicago,

Cleveland, Detroit, Minneapolis, and Kansas

-'Five per cent of the total ar ea wou ld be a low stand ard f or a

r egion of gr eat population d ensities. (The island of Manhattan

has 12.4 0/ 0 of its total ar ea in par k s and , wit h a po pulation d ensity

approximating 200 per acr e, is ver y inadequately supplied. The

Bor ough of the Br onx has 16.8% of its 26,524 acres in park s.)

But 50 / 0 seems r easona ble f or the lower pr evailing d ensities of the

Los An geles R egion. The half -mile limit of eff ective service r a·

d ius for local r ecr eation f acilities is based on o bser vations and

attendance counts in m any eastern c ities, but possi bly the radius

should be extend ed here because of the much mor e extensive use

of automo bile tr ans portation.



City, are almost wholly lacking here. This lack

cannot be due to a smaller need because of the

peculiarities of the Region. The people of Los

Angeles County have not less but more need

and desire for outdoor enjoyment by automo-

bile. Yet compare the almost complete lack here with the mileages in the following list:

New York CitY-79 milesBoston 20 miles

Chicago ------------84-miles

Cleveland --------4-3miles

Detroi t I5 miles

Minnea polis ----55 miles

Kansas CitY -90 milesLos Angeles _

_ _ _ _ _ _ __ N 0 true parkways

Some of the mileage reported in this table does not come up to the

standards for a true parkway as considered in t his report.

CONCLUSION

It is realized that in a review of Los An-

geles park needs, too much emphasis must not

be put upon comparisons with other cities. The

problem here must be solved almost entirely

on the basis of local or at least California ex-

perience. In the last analysis the people of this

Region must determine their own recreation

needs and meet them in the same manner as

they are working out the problems of water

supply, flood protection, harbor improvement,

transportation and other matters having sig-

nificance beyond the boundaries of any single

city.The people of the Los Angeles Reg-ion have

essentially the same normal desire to play and

they derive the same benefits from exercise in

the open as people elsewhere; youth here finds

fully as keen enjoyment and healthful devel-

opment in games and sports as youth in other

cities; the climate constantly beckons out-

doors, far more than elsewhere. Study has un-

earthed no factor which indicates that the peo-

ple of this Region will be permanently satis-

fied with lower standards than those of other

great communities, and many that point to-ward the expediency of higher standards. The

big question is whether the people are socially

and politically so slow, in comparison with the

amazing rapidity of urban growth here, that

they will dumbly let the procession go by and

pay a heavy penalty in later years for their

slowness and timidity today.





ADMI NISTR ATIVE, LEGAL AND FI NANCIAL CO NDITIO NS

AFFECTI NG THE CR EATIO N OF AN ADEQUATE PARK AND

RECREATIO N SYSTEM FOR THE LOS ANGELES REGIO N

A N ad equate park and recreation system

nshould recognize two d istinct ty pes of

functions in ord er to meet need s that are pr i-

mar ily local and those that are r egional. This

diff erence of need and conseq uently of func-tion pr ofoundly aff ects the selection of sites,

the design, and the legal, f inancial and admin-

istr ative problems of control and maintenance.

But there is no such shar p distinction between

the kinds of par k s that may serve such need s.

Many park areas, pr imar ily intend ed f or the

one purpose, may serve the other, or may serve

both, and thus mak e f or efficiency and f or econ-

omy. Ind eed, many a local recreation area such

as a pu blic city beach, created and operated by

a single city primarily f or its own peo ple, is

now eff ectively ser ving as a r egional ar ead r awing people from all parts of the r egion in

even greater numbers than ar e other areas in-

tend ed strictly f or regional use.

A multitude of agencies, with r esponsibili-

ties and power s overla p ping in complicated

ways, have in ever y metr o polis d evelo ped seri-

ous d ef iciencies in practice and have left im-

por tant need s uncar ed f or . This is es pecially

true of recreation, which is slighted far mor e

than other branches of ad ministration. As new

need s have tardily been r ecognized , they have

been im per f ectly d ealt with either by ex pand-

ing the sco pe of existing departments or bycr eating subsidiar y bur eaus. This has been es-

peciall y true of pr o blems transcending j uris-dictional boundar ies.

Local Authorit ies and

Co-operative Act ion.

Operating throughout every metro politan

region, and d ealing with some of the prob-

lems here consid er ed , ar e the school boards,

which naturally deal with f acilities that ser ve

the people near at hand. At the same time and

in the same area a number of other agencies,

more or less inde pendent, work u pon recr ea-

tion problems, some f rom a local point of view,

others f rom a regional one. Among these some

now act in co-o per ation with one another, and

to this voluntar y co-o per ation and interchange

of views have been largely d ue such even mod-

erately well-balanced and satisf actory results

as have been o btained. .Existing methods have work ed out best in

th'ose matter s of local r ecreation wher e results

have appr oximated standard s which the local

people d emand and ar e willing to pay for. It

is theref ore believed that in such local matters

the best results for the least money can be ob-

tained by stimulating the activities of existing

muni~ipal agencies and school board s.

Regional Authorit y and

Continuing Policies.

It may conf idently be said that the mor e

tr uly regional par k and recreation needs havenever been satisf ied in a metropolis merely by

adding to local agencies such regional func-

tions as each munici pality may see f it to under-



[ 36 ] PARKS, PLAYGROUNDS AND BEACHES FOR THE Los ANGELES REGION

take. Success requires an agency created for

the regional purpose alone, and guided by the

principle of unity-singleness of responsibil-

ity, authority, purpose, and policy.

Responsibility for and jurisdiction over a

broad territory may be focused in one agencycovering the entire metropolitan area. The

agency may cover it as one unit or as more than

one, but should in any case cover a section large

enough to emphasize unmistakably its regional

responsibility. For example, the Boston Region

has one metropolitan park agency covering

about forty municipalities, each with its own

local agency. The New York Region extends

into three states and has several park agencies

of wide jurisdiction, mainly covering an entire

county each; it also has two special commis-

sions (one interstate and one for the State of

New York) each having jurisdiction over sev-

eral counties; there are in addition four hun':'

dred municipal agencies.

The success of such agencies depends on

concentration of purpose. Responsibility for

park and recreation problems should not be

made a side issue. Continuity, stability of pol-

icy, and control of the budget are essential.

This I S true especially because the results of

park expenditures are very slow to materialize, _

slower perhaps than those of any other ex-

penditures. _

Of the conditions most essential to successare: first, stability of tenure of personnel; sec-

ond, a small deliberative body of large-minded

persons, responsible for the policy but willing

to delegate executive work in pursuance of the

policy; and, third, a method of financing which

permits budgeting systematically for consider-

able periods in advance.

Legislation Recommended.

Legislation embodying the principle above

outlined exists in other states, and the prin-

ciple is not unknown here in California. The

East Bay Municipal Utilities District is an ex-ample of regional authority overlapping both

city and county boundaries. *'cFor a detailed comparison of powers, duties and resources of such

agencies see Appendix No. IV.

Legislation is needed here to permit the cre-

ation of a regional park district. A large part

of the needs of the Los Angeles Region is es-

sentially regional, and can best be developed

through the creation of a regional authority.

To create such an authority will require legis-lation.

The Legislature should pass an enabling act

providing for an initiative petition signed by a

large enough number of persons, possibly five

'thousand, to show popular demand and to pre-

vent hasty action. This provision would limit

application of the act to populous districts

where the recreational need really exists. The

petition should be filed with the board of

supervisors, who may reject or approve it, or

reduce the boundaries of the proposed district.

When the petition is approved, an electionshould be called in the proposed district to de-

termine whether the district shall be formed.

Government of such a district should be

vested in a board of five directors, to serve

without compensation, with four-year over-

lapping terms, to be appointed by the Gov-

ernor. In this respect the proposed act would

follow closely the example of other successful

park acts, such as that for Boston, or for the

counties of New Jersey, where splendid per-

sonnels have been secured, consisting of lead-

ing citizens willing to give much time 'and

thought to this question, capable of resisting

political influence and attracted to the office by

considerations of public service where no salary

is involved.

The board of directors of the proposed dis-

trict should have the following powers:

to control such affairs in the district as are

necessary to carry out the purposes of the

act. This power should be substantially the

same as that of the flood-control, sanitation,

and other districts now existing here, and

that of similar park districts elsewhere, in-

cluding the power to acquire and hold land

and rights in land for the purpose of devel-

oping a system of parks and other recreation

facilities.



to levy, in add ition to taxes f or ser vice of

bond issues, an annual tax for maintenance

not to exceed five cents per hund r ed d ollars

of assessed valuation.

to issue bond s not to exceed two per cent

of the assessed valuation of the distr ict, bygiving notice and hold ing hearings, with the

pr ovision that if a r efer endum petition is

f iled an election must be held, r eq uiring a

two-thirds vote to car ry the bond s. Of such

bond s, not mor e than one-half of one per

cent of assessed valuation to be issued in the

first year, nor mor e than one-quarter of one

per cent in anyone year thereafter .

to issue bonds thereafter, when appr oved

by a two-thirds vote of the electorate of the

distr ict, above two per cent but not a bove

five per cent of the assessed valuation.

The provisions a bove outlined are based

upon a stud y of the pr o bable financial require-

ments involved in acq uir ing and constructing

a system of regional park s f or the Los An-

geles R egion as f ully d escribed elsewher e in

this re por t.

ESTIMATED COST OF THE PROPOSED

PARK SYSTEM

To acquire and d evelo p a comprehensive

system of park s as here pr o posed will requir e

a period of many year s. It is difficult to ap-

pr oximate the probable cost very closely, butestimates have been mad e, as car efully as pos-

sible, under the thr ee head s of acquisition, im-

provement, and maintenance.

Costs of acquisition will be higli in the early

year s of the program. Improvement costs will

var y with the rapidity with which acquired

ar eas are brought to their fullest usefulness;

but if sufficient fund s ar e availa ble the annual

impr ovement costs will pro ba bly be highest

f rom five to ten year s after the gr eatest acqui-

sition of proper ty. Maintenance costs will be

low in the early year s and will gr adually in-

cr ease until the acquisition and improvement

have been lar gely completed.

The total cost to acq uir e and d evelo p the en-

tir e system of park s and recr eation ar eas, inso-

f ar as such d evelopment is' herein recom-

mended, includ ing all local as well as regional

featur es, is estimated at $224,000,000. But

.this estimate includ es a number of features,

such as highways and flood -control areas now

being d eveloped or now contemplated, for which f und s will be wholly or par tly available

from various other sources, the total of which

is lar ge, possibly $ IOO,OOO,ooo. This leaves

$ I24,000,000 f or which s pecial f inancing is

need ed. This estimate is necessarily prelimi-

nary only and is subject to various modifica-

tions, but it is a fair measure of the size of the

pr o blem that confronts this Region. The cost

of accomplishment will vary with time as well

as with change in land values, f or it will tak e

many year s even to a ppr oach a completion of

the progr am.

F actor s T hat !V I ay M od i fy C osts.

While spread of ur ban conditions and local

im provements will tend to increase costs, there

ar e several f actors that should aid in reducing

them.

The f act that a comprehensive plan exists

for park d evelo pment may encourage the d o-

nation of lar ge ar eas by persons who might

not other wise be ins pir ed to mak e such gif ts.

A public park makes a s plendid memor ial. Be-

q uests of this sor t have been po pular in the

older communities; and , already, here in thisRegion, several park s have been given, such as

Gr iffith Park, Brand Park, and Stough Par k .

It is possi ble that further gifts, even on a large

scale, may be made which will mater ially help

to r educe the total costs.

The proposed park authorities should have

sufficient power and leeway to mak e f avor a ble

pur chases of lands, and it is possible that such

f avor a ble pur chases may aid materially in

keeping d own the total costs.

There will undou bted ly be various instances

where the creation of parks will lead to a ver y

material increase in the value of ad jacent

land s. Such incr ease is a legitimate source f or

recover y in the assessment of benefits; and

while it is not her e proposed that the par k



[ 38 ] PAR K S, PLAYGROUNDS AND BEACHES FOR THE Los ANGELES REGIO N

board shall have authority to assess f or bene-

fits, it is possi ble that local communities may

join in o btaining land s and use their power to

assess benef its. Also, the fact of cr eated bene-

fits often ser ves to per suade owner s of large

tracts to give land s for park s· in return f or benefits the parks will cr eate, and thus aid in

reducing the total cost.

In the oper ation of the properties ther e will

be certain featur es such as golf courses, bath~

houses, boat landings, refector ies, and possibly

sites for amusement d evices, that may produce

some r evenue to off set in part the cost of main-

tenance.

Large ar eas of pro posed par k land s in the

r iver s and dr ainage channels will have double

value to the public because they will serve both

park and drainage pur poses. The cost of ac-

quiring these ar eas has been included in the

estimates for t he park system, but part of the

cost should be char gea ble to drainage work s,

and thus reduce park costs. I n e ither case the

pu blic will have to pay but once for the pr o p-

erty, whether through park or flood -contr ol

author ities, and will gain in the gr eater use-

fulness of the areas und er such a plan. As a

matter of pu blic re,.cord it would be more just

if a postion of acquisition be borne by each of

the d e par tments, r ather than by the park s

alone.

Possible S ource of Funds.

Bond s to the extent of . two per cent of the

assessed valuation of the district, based on the

pr esent valuation of approximately $3,5°0,-

000,000 will produce approximately $70,000,-

000. Assuming that the full amount of t his

sum may be issued in f ive per cent inter est-

bear ing bonds in the fir st few years, with pro-

vision for $2,000,000 r etirement annually,

and that $2,000,000 of new bond s can then

be issued annually, it will requir e from twenty-

f ive to fifty years to secure sufficient f und s to

carr y out the entire plan. The ef f ect u pon the

present tax rate will then be as follows:

T a x rate

on $ I 00

V alttation

Inter est of 5% on $70,000,000=

$3,500,000 I0.0 cen IS

Pr i nci pal r ctir emen I $2,000,000 5.7 cents

Ma inlena nce tax proposed 5.0 cents

As previously stated, ther e are numerous

f actor s which may r educe this tax rate, such as

gifts of land and money, favorable cond itions

of purchase, co-operation with the f lood-con-

tr ol district and with local agencies, use of s pe-

cial assessments, and revenues fr om o peration.

Ther e ar e still other factor s that may assist in

r educing the tax r ate, the most important of

which is the pr o bable incr ease in the assessed valuations of the district. At the pr esent rate

of incr ease the total assessed valuations will

approximately dou ble in twenty year s, which

will automatically r educe the r ate to a p proxi-

mately half the amount her ein estimated at a

maximum of 20.7 cents.

In the first f ew year s after cr eating the par k

district it will of cour se be impossible to use

any sum a ppr oaching the full amount of the

bond s. Ther ef ore, f or sever al year s, the tax

r ate will be consid erably below the maximum.

As these years pass, the assessed value will in-

cr ease, and the tax rate will corres pondinglyd ecr ease.

I t is also possible that the total inter est

char ges may be reduced by f avorable method s

of retirement of pr incipal, or through special

f orms of serial bonds, or because of lower in-

terest rates pr evailing at the time of issue.

Against all t h e f actor s that may r educe the

tax rate there is one that will tend to increase

it: the higher cost of land lik ely to r esult from

d elay in acq uisitions.

A balancing of all these factor s lead s to the

conclusion that a maximum tax rate of fifteen

cents may be required at certain times. But it

is believed that no mor e t han eight or t en cent s

will be required f or several years) with a prob-



able maximum average of t en cent s over the

f or t y or f i f t y years requir ed to com plet e the

s ystem. But whatever the rate, the authority

to incur ex pense should be established as here-

in r ecommend ed.

] USTIFICATIO N FOR THE PROPOSED

EXPENDITURES

To compar e the present plan with accom-

plishments in other r egions is difficult if not

impossible, because of numer ous dissimilar

f actor s. The Los Angeles Region has a far

wider and thinner spread of population than

any other metro polis, and a far gr eater use of

automo biles.

T he Los Angeles Region is the onl y great

met ropolis that has develo ped almost wholl y

since t he invent ion o f the aut omobile. The rec-r eation of it s people is lar gel y de pendent on

the aut omobile. Favora ble climate and r ecr ea-

tional advantages attract gr eat num bers of

tour ists, to the pr ofit of the community. To

continue to attr act such tourists or to incr ease

the volume until it reaches an economic value

com par a ble, f or instance, with that of Par is,

park s and pleasureways on. a bout the scale her e

pr o posed ar e essential.

Her e is a most interesting op portunity for

comparison. Paris transf or med itself fr om an

unsightly place to a beautiful city. It has long

been the center of world tour ist traffic. The

improvement plan that has so profita bly r e-

sulted was und er tak en in 1850, when Paris had

a po pulation of a bout a million and a half .

During the next f or ty year s a bout $400,000,-

000 was s pent in car r ying out the plan. Dur -

ing that per iod, money was wor th far mor e

than it is today. Mor eover, Paris had far f ewer

economic possibilities, a much less ad vantage-

ous location, and a smaller po pulation than Los

Angeles; and a climate that compar es unf avor -

a bly. Yet Par is is now the wor ld's tr avel center .

If Par is, with all her handicaps, had enoughconfid ence in her future to plan and execute a

$400,000,000 progr am in 1850 at $267 per

ca pita when money was actually of greater

value than it is today, has Los Angeles less

confidence in her self and her futur e? Has she

the cour age to initiate an equally important

pr ogram at an estimated cost of $62 per capita

-less than a f ourth of what Paris paid ?

In Amer ica, the most recent and most com-

par a ble metro politan park plan is that of West-

chester County, New York, where a $60,000,-

000 program was und er taken by a po pulation

of about 361,000, the total assessed valuation

being a bout $670,000,000. The par k system

Ho w THE PARK SYSTEM

H AS C RE AT ED W EA LT H ~

FOR WESTCHESTER COUNTY

AS SHOWN BY INCREASE IN

TOTAL ASSESSED V ALUATIONS

OF TAXABLE PROPERTY

1,300,000,000.

1,200,000,000.

1,100,000,000.

1.000,000,000.

900,000,000.

600,000,000,

700,000,000.

S 6 00,000,000.

7VO,OOO,000.

500,000,000.

$ 500.000,000.

600,000,000.

$ 500,000,000.

YEARS IMMEDIATELY

BEFORE CREATION

OF PARK SYSTEM

YE ARS IMMEDI ATELY

AFTER CREATION

OF PARK SYSTEM

YE ARLY TOTAL OPER ATING AND MAINT~NANCE BUDGET,exCLUSIVEOF 90f'l D 1 t'-'TERE5T- AND AMORTIZATI ON CH ARGe:.S~IS REPRESENTED

BY FULL CIRCLESHADED AREA REPRESENTS RAPIOL'Y IflCREAS1NG REVENUE FROM

RL"lT ALS AND CONCESSIONS AND SHOWS THE TREND TOWARO FULL')'

BAL ANC!NG OPERATING ANDi"1AINTENANCE COSTS.

GRE ATLYINCREASED PARK FACILITIES WERE OPERATEDIN 1928 AT A MUCH LOWER /'lET COST TO TH~ COUNTY THAN EXPENSES

FO R n-i E P RECEDING YEAR S.

PLATE 19. Diagram tak en from 1929 R e por t of

Park Commission of Westchester County, New

Yor k, wher e a large develo pment of park s has r e-

cently been und ertaken.

of Westchester COWlty will comprise 16,000

acr es of par k s and 140 miles of parkways. It

r e pr esented, at the time of initiation, a total



cost of about $ roo per capita, which should be

compared with the $62 estimated for a com-

plete park system for the Los Angeles Region.

The Westchester system represented 10% of

the total assessed valuation at the time of its

initiation; The entire system here recom-mended for the Los Angeles Region represents

30 %. The accompanying chart, Plate No.

19, illustrates how, within six years, assessed

valuations have doubled in Westchester Coun-

ty along with the development of th~ park

system. Certainly such a system should serve

to increase and maintain property values in the

Los Angeles Region. Indeed, in the absence of

such a system urban growth will destroy con-

ditions which have been among the important

factors in creating and maintaining the pres-

ent values.

In addition to the enormous value the park system will have for the people of the Los

Angeles Region, its very great value also as an

attraction to tourists, might even alone justify

its cost. Its total cost will be less than the sum

now spent annually in Paris by American tour -

ists. When completed, the Region will have

here, in the beaches, mountains, and plains,

over six hundred miles of pleasant driveways,

a remarkable combination of scenic values un-

equaled elsewhere in the world -a great assetfor the people, a stimulus for the value of

home properties, and an attraction for tourist

traffic heretofore undreamed of .

Industrial Growth.

A study of the economic resources of the Los

Angeles Region, undertaken as a part of this

report, shows that Los Angeles enjoys a unique

position among large cities. In number of wage

earners, in value of manufactured products,

wages paid, and the like, Los Angeles now

ranks industrially only about one-tenth of the

size of New York; but Los Angeles is enjoy-ing the greatest industrial growth of any of

the large cities; and there is little reason to

doubt the continuance of this growth, as sug-gested in the -following table.'

COMPARISON OF MANUFACTURES FOR 1923 A ND 1925(Source: Census of Manufactures, U. S. Dept . of C ommer ce)

Los N ew

Angeles New Y ork Chicago Philadelphia Det roit Bost on St . Louis Orleans

I923 ------------------------- 2,32 3I 925 2,69 I

Per cent change + 15.8

I923 ----------------------------55,27 °

1925---------------------------58,086Per cent change _ __ _ _ _ ___ +5.1

1923--------------------------- 8 1,236

I 92 5---------------------------85,736Per cent change _ _ _ ___ __ +5.5

I923--------------------------- 4-13I925 --- _ _ _ __ _ __ _ _ _ _ __ _ _ _ _ _ __ __ _ _ 5 3 2

Per cent change +28.6

NUMBEROF ESTABLISHMENTS

27,4-23 9,299 6,399 1,686 2,791 2,4-4-0 632

23,714- 9,112 5,636

1,614- 2,620 2,367

661

-13·5 -2.0 -13·5 -4-·3 -6·5 -3.0 +4-.6

AVER AGENUMBER OF WAGEEAR NER S

577,971 384-,769 273,980 17°,960 82,4-5° 112,698 21>379

538,84-5 370,04- 1 24-6,680 172,74-2 77,334- 105,022 22,1l8

-6.8 -3.8 -11.1 +1.0 -6.6 -6.8 +3·5

WAGESPAID-UNIT: $1000

84-9,937 570,689 356,120 282,672 1°7,256 134-,823 18,59184-4-,64-8 563,635 332,4-15 293,896 103,812 130,857 20,291

-0.6 -1,.2 -7.1 +4-.0 -3·3 -2·9 +9.1

COSTOF MATERIALS-UNIT:.$I,OOO,ooo

2,719 1,882 1,04-9 906 29° 513 93

VALUEOF PRODUCTS-UNIT: $1,000,000

5>3IO 3,288 1,987 1,4-36 567 897 131

5,324- 3,4-39 1,937 1,599 586 875 135

+°·3 +4-.6 -2.6 +11.3 +3-3 -2·5 +2·5

VALUEADDEDBY MA NUFACTUREUNIT: $1,000,000

2,605 1,557 888 693 296 362 62



~

iiI

\ \\\

\

/!I

, I

:J :C ; b " n CO U NT Y O F L e y ) j t - - ;G_E~E5-S1\OWISG i\ . . 'li.A S O C Ct: PI ED B y

y.A .Rrore , USES ~s S l \OWNI1 \E ; RBGIO!iAL PL '. N'i ,X G C C L'i,N c l5 51 0N

PLATE 20. M ap of the R egion showing areas used for industr ies and oil field s and ar eas in agr icultur e

for tr ee cr o ps, hog far ms and d air ies, as prepared by the R egional Planning Commission.

Within the Region enormous deposits of oil

yield a large income not enjoyed by other lar ge

cities. Agriculture forms another large source

of revenue.

In 1923 Los Angeles suffered a period of

ex ploitation that perha ps retard ed its commer -

cial pros perity, but the last f ew year s have seen

a steady and gratif ying pr ~gr ess. The incr ease

of po pulation, unequaled by any other lar ge

city of the world, is a continuing evidence of

the basic soundness and gr owing commer cial

str ength of the R egion.



The Burden of Speculative

Land Values.

The magnitude of local real estate business,

which has successfully withstood several peri-

ods of reaction, indicates that an enormous population throughout the country looks to

this Region as a most desirable place for an

ultimate residence. It has been estimated that

the carrying charges on vacant lots in the Los

Angeles Region must approximate $100,000,-

000 per year . This is a very large sum for

property not in use but held for future homes

or as an investment waiting for a rise in value.

Certainly the hopes of those who contemplate

this as their future home and also of those who

are anticipating favorable opportunities for re-

sale would find a greater and earlier chance for realization if even a small portion of such a

sum as this were devoted annually to the high-

ly constructive purpose of creating an ade-

quate park system.

ESTIMATED COST FOR MAINTENANCE

The public recreation facilities now avail-

able are maintained by various agencies wholly

or partly devoted to such service. The local

park and local and county recreation depart-

ments are established for that purpose alone;

the school departments furnish a definite rec-reation service, and spend considerable funds

in maintenance; and to a lesser degree some

other departments make expenditures for

maintenance that serve recreation purposes.

The total expenditures for maintenance from

all sources amount probably to several million

dollars a year, but are involved with improve-

ments and other factors and are not readily

ascertainable.

Such maintenance costs will doubtless con-

tinue to be met and additional costs for main-

tenance will arise: fairly heavy costs for the

maintenance of local recreation facilities in

built-up sections and for completed parkways

and regional parks; and relatively low costs

for the maintenance of large reservations.

The maintenance of local areas can probably

best be met by local agencies in extension of or

readjustment of their present activities. The

maintenance of regional factors should be met

by a general agency established for regional

park development. The costs for such regionalmaintenance during the first few years will be

relatively low as there will then be but little to

maintain. But when the total system is devel-

oped as proposed the maintenance may cost

approximately as follows:

I. For large r eser vations and areas not in-tensively used $ 200,000

2. For 600 miles of park and park way

roads, planting, etc., at $2,000 a mile _ __ 1,200,000

3. Regional athletic field s 200,000

4 . G eneral o verhead, engineering, account-ing, Custodian and Guardian force, etc. $ 500,000

_ This total exceeds the · proposed budget of

five cents maximum tax on the basis of pres-

ent valuation, but is not greater than such a tax

will produce by the time the system has been

fully developed .

Cost of the Plan to

the Average Home Owner.

Assuming that the maximum estimated tax

rate of ISC should be necessary at the present

time, the average cost to the owner of a home

assessed at $10,000 would be $I5.00 a year; to

a workman whose home is assessed at $2,000,

the average cost would be $3.00 a year . To

them the benefits would be far greater than

this small annual cost; and to other taxpayers

and investors the benefits will come both di-

rectly and indirectly, through general increase

in values in the community. Certainly this

represents a small increase in present cost per

family in order to produce more enjoyable

neighborhood living conditions, and also more

pleasurable opportunities for outings on Sat-

urdays, Sundays and holidays, amid pleasant



and agreeable surroundings-an oppor t unity

now f ast disappear ing in t he Los Angeles Re-

gt on.

Ear ly Action N eed ed

to Obtain Results.A complete plan and progr am is here pr o-

posed based on conditions existing and antici-

pated in the Region. Much of the value of the

plan will be lost, however, if work in accord-

ance with it is not started soon. Changes are

taking place and the chances for accomplish-

ment will be seriously interf er ed with b y de-

lays. Local agencies can a dopt and may be

ready to adopt portions of the plan, and should

be encouraged to do so pr omptly. Other

agencies interested in portions of the plan may

be read y to adapt their plans to the larger

scheme for general public benefit and should

be ur ged to do so. Any other means should be

encour aged which would stimulate public in-

terest and keep open the possibilities for the

finest park development in the world, so that

when a regional authority is set up it may find

a start alread y mad e and many existing finefeatur es pr eserved.

Local existing agencies at their best cannot

accomplish all that is needed . Legislation

should be o btained and a boar d esta blished to

acquir e and preser ve the best f eatur es of the

Region. The plan here presented should ser ve

as a guide and an aid toward development. The

present opportunity thus to improve the Re-

gion should not be lost. The public must be

informed of the economic ur gency of the en-

. terprise as a means to protect and pr omote the

health, welfare, and contentment of the people

now her e and the millions yet to come.



PART TWO

SPECIFIC RECOMMENDATIONS



THE chief means of ser ving local recrea-

tion functions ar e the municipal park s

and playground s, and the school play-

gr ound s. * Certain other functions, notably

educational ones, ar e often to some extentcombined with the r ecreational; and local

functions may also be combined with regional

ones.

The S chool Grounds.

Public schools with their playgrounds are

proba bly the most equitably distributed insti-

tutions we have. Their distribution has come

a bout thr ough a systematic, unremitting, and

lar gely successful effort to locate the schools

at points accessible fr om the homes of all the

child r en; locations being determined chiefly

by the distances which pupils of various ages

can reasonably be ex pected to go daily, by the

present and prospective density of population, .

and by the economical and efficient sizes for

school units.

These are practically the identical consid-

erations that should control the placing of local

recreation center s f or children of elementary

school age. And the considerations controlling

location of high schools and junior high

schools are substantially those that might con-

trol the placing of recreation facilities for

adults. This practical identity of policy strong-ly counsels associating school playgrounds, as

-::-For general statements rcl<lting to local recreation facilities ) s ee

Cha pter 1.

far as practicable, with other local recreation

ground s in combined neighborhood units. And

it should be immaterial whether the land s are

acquired and the facilities operated by the

school or the recreation authorities, or by thetwo jointly.**

Ther e ar e in this R egion numer ous exam-

ples of school ground s that provide adequate

recreation for the children, and contribute not

a little to other recreation needs of the neigh-

_ borhood, especially by community use of

school buildings, good architecture, and pleas-

ant landscape settings. But there are few

schools having ample ar eas for outdoor recrea-

tion, even f or children of school age; and the

great majority of school grounds are decided-

ly inadequate. Only 73 of the 726 public

schools have five or more acres available for

play. (See Appendix No. 1.) The remaining

652 have an average of less than two acres

each.

The total area-2,o57 acres-availa ble for

active recreation on all the school grounds of

the Region, is a comparatively small one for a

growing population of over two million peo-

ple.*** Ama p (Plate 18) shows the distribu-

·::··::-Interre1ation and overlapping of school and recreation f unctions

wer e d iscussed in Chapter 1. Exped iencey alone should d ecide

how much should be done by schools a nd how much by the par k

agencies; practice varies widely. This report does not attemptto discuss the apportionment of responsibilfty; it is ~nough

merely to urge the importance of co-operation.

"··"·"All other existing pu blic and q uasi- pu blic o pen s paces d ir ectly or

indir ectly valuable for outdoor r ecr eation ar e listed in Append ix

No. II.



tion of all r ecr eation areas and indicates, on

the basis of assumed stand ar d s,all territor y not

conveniently accessible to any such area of ad e-

quate size.

E xist ing Public Pm'ks ant iP laygr ounds.

While und er existing agencies pu blic par k s

have been develo ped in various par ts of the

region and playgr ound s have been established

in some cases in such par k s and in other cases

upon ind ependent gr ounds, they are, as ex-

plained in Chapter II, ver y ineq uitably dis-

tr i buted, being almost wholly lack ing in lar ge

sections of the region while fairly complete

in others. In the city of Los Angeles the De-

par tment of Playground and Recreation main-

tains f if ty or more properties, including r60

acres in city playground s and recreation cen-ters, 5 miles of beaches considered her ein

und er the chapter on beaches, and 6 moun-

tain camps, and, under the plans of the De-

par tment, increased facilities will be provid ed

in other parts of the city also. These areas,

together with those und er the Par k Depart-

ment of the city, however , ar e still far below

the need s as estimated on any reasona ble stand -

OC.F A " v

~i~~

PL ATE 21. Ma p of Long Be~ch showing in black the existing park ~r eas ~nd in outline the w~ter

hnd s and the airpor t.



PLA"E 22. Map of Santa Monica showing in black the existing park areas and cross hatched the schoolareas, and n ear the large park the airport.

ITY

OF

S NT MONI

PL \fE

Ma p

of

antaMonica showing in black the existing park areas and cross hatched the school

areas and n ear th e large park the airport



ards, as are those also of many other cities of

the Region.

Long Beach ( Plate o. 2 I) has one large

park, several smaller parks and has an airport

and some water lands that have some recrea-

tional value, but as yet' many districts in thecity are not provided with local parks other

than school grounds. of

Santa Monica (Plate No. 22) like Long

Beach, has several parks, but has many dis-

tricts not yet provided with local facilities

other than school grounds.

In Pasadena (Plate' No. 23) there is one

large string of city parks along the west boun-

dary in Arroyo Seco with several smaller parks

scattered more fully throughout the district.

And there, as in Long Beach, the Departmentof Parks and Recreation has planned, under co-

operative management, to develop the school

grounds and playground areas in a way to serve

as completely as possible for the entire city.

(Plate No. 24.)

PLA'n: 23, Map of Pasadena showing large parks in the Arroyo Seco near the west boundar y and show-

ing smaller parks in other parts of the city.



P L A N F O R

D E V E L O P M E N T O f

P L A Y G R O U N D S

P A S A D E N A C A U f :

Red c l r . ;l t:s - ft{1"/ ~ r 'IJ),:-T $< ; rYl u.

+= L<><. atou wltcr ~ /." ,:1 $""ul J h~ ohl"o,,, .d ~/ '" ,1 . . ,ltl t 5

PLATE 2 4-. Plan of the De par tment of Park s and R ecr cation of Pasadena for d cvelopmcnt of play-

ground ser vice.

Similar maps are availa ble for some of the

other cities and sections of the Los Angeles

Region showing mor e or less similar condi-

tions.

In the entire Los Angeles R egion south of

the mountains there are now 195 public park

and playgr ound ar eas, exclusive of th e school

ground s, of mor e than one acre each in ex-tent, and having a total combined area of

9,559 acr es, as listed in A p pend ix No. II. Near ly all of the lar ge existing park ar eas

lie in the line of the pr o posed regional Park

and Par kway System, exce pt Stough Par k , in

Bur bank, 120 acres; Malaga Par k, in Palos

Verd es, 249 acres; the Huntington Estate, in

Pasadena, 200 acr es; and the pro posed Cali-

fornia Botanical Gar dens (to be 800 acr es),

near Sawtelle, each having some regional value

as well as some local par k value.In the Region ther e ar e also pr ivate golf

and country club gr ound s, amounting to 6,288

acr es, or near ly two-thirds as much as the total



PLATE 25. Map showing the R egion d ivid ed f or convenience into classes of use, r esidential dis-

tricts "A, B, C, D, E, and F," mountain and hill stricts "1\1," a nd industr ial d istr icts " Y ," and

each d istr ict or ponion of distr i ct num ber ed for cOlwenience of r ef er ence as listed in school and

park lists in a ppendices 1 O. I and o. II. ( Base ma p by cou1" t es y o f Aut pmobile C lub o f S ot t t it em

C ali f o1" nia.)

public park and playground ar ea, but not open

to the gener al pu blic and liable to be subd i-

vid ed when most need ed by the incr easing

po pulation.

The entir e R egion has been d ivid ed f or con-

venience of r efer ence into classes: R esidential

(A, B, C, D, E and F); mountain and hill

distr icts (M); and ind ustrial and commercial

distr icts (Y); and these in turn have been di-

vid ed into units as num ber ed on Plate 25, to

which the number s in the a ppendices r efer .

PROPER SIZE AND DISTR IBUTIO N

FOR LOCAL R ECR EATIO N UNITS

Ex perience has shown that people living

within less than one-half mile of any park Ol~

r ecr eation unit ad a pted to their local need s

tend to visit it f r eq uently, use it extensively,

tak e per sonal prid e in it as a neighbor hood pos-

session, and get lar ge values f rom it; but that

per sons living much mor e than one-half mile

fr om such an area are seld om able to visit it

and ar e cer tain to gain less f r om it than those

living nearer by. * It is pro bable, however, that

the reasonable aver age ser vice radius will

pr ove somewhat gr eater here than in eastern

cities, because of the lower po pulation d ensity,

the mor e f avor a ble cliniate, and the mor e near -

ly universal use of automo biles. The peo ple

of each locality will have to work out for them-

"As to the use of lucal parks and playgrounds, the Los Angeles

City De par tment of PliLygr ound and R ecreation in its 1926-27

report shows an ~l\·crage daily attendance for the tweh"c months

for 25 playgrounds, containing 147.6 aCres. This average is 8)14+

persons) ranging f r ail" ) 84 persons per cia.\ ' 011 th e 2o-acr e play-

gr ound at Gr if fith Park, to 76 I per sons on the 2-acr e playgr ound

at South Park. The average shows 326 persons per d ay per area,and 5 5 persons per day per acre, The extremes show f rom 84 to

761 persons per area per day, and 4 to 380 persons p e r acre per

day. The extremes ill the case of Gr iffith Par k ar e pr o bably due

chiefly to its nC\\ nC "s s ;1I 1c1 its present r crn otlOI l(" SS f rom p o)'u lo w::

areas.



selves, gr adually, how much they want and

what they are willing to pay f or . Suffice it her e

to indicate what seems a reasonable norm that

should be appr oximated.

Local Recreat ion Districts

and Recreat ion C ent ers.

To this end it is convenient to regard the

Region as divid ed into r esid ential neighbor -

hood districts, each a sq uar e mile or more in

extent, not infrequentiy consid erably larger .

Their boundaries ar e lar gely determined by

natural or ar tificial barrier s, such as hills, can-

yons, railway tracks, main tho oughfares, in-

d ustr ial districts, or business districts. They

also may be determined by ver y marked and

relatively permanent social d iff er ences, ordif -

ferences in economic status. R ecognition of

these barrier s may lead to a consid er a ble varia-

iton in the size and shape dcertain d istricts.

In each such distr ict the most eff ective meth-

od of meeting local park and recr eation need s,

other than those met by the schools, is to esta b-

lish a single, ad equate neighbor hood center , in

co-operation with the schools wher ever f easi-

ble. It should provid e for people of a ll ages:

sand piles and wading pools for the little tots;

playground apparatus and small play areas for

boys and girls; tennis courts, local ball field s,

playground ap paratus, and other f acilities f or

active play; parklik e ar eas f or q uiet and men-tal r efreshment; f ield house and swimming

facilities, also club r ooms and other indoor fa-

cilities for community use. This list can be cur -

tailed so far as the schools ad equately provid e

f or community use on school premises.

Such a center, ser ving many kind s of need s

in a well-balanced and economical manner, is

a development of com par atively r ecent year s

and is pro bably not f amiliar to many of the

people in Los Angeles. In it there should be

agreea ble landsca pe features, such as ar e f ound

in Westlak e Park , Bixby Park in Long Beach,and Central Park in Pasadena, combined with

playground s and athletic f ields. And , fur ther,

the better school-community center s should

have some at least of the elements found va-

riously combined in Lincoln Park , Hazard

Par k, and Echo Par k in Los Angeles, Br ook-

sid e Par k in Pasadena, and Monrovia Par k in

Monr ovia. All of these more or less suggest

the d esir a ble ty pe.How f ar it is pr actica ble to consolid ate these

f unctions in one center f or one district, and do

it eficiently and economically, is a matter of

local ex ped iency. And how far it may be un-

avoidable to distribute the functions to se pa-

r ate center s because of the f ir st cost of getting

enough land in one piece, or of starts alread y

made, is also a matter of local ex pediency.

But in the long run it is most lik ely that the

convenience, ef f iciency, and economy of ad -

ministr ation of a lar ge, consolidated unit will

more than off set a consider able initial outlay

for the pur chase of land .

In a district of one sq uare mile entir ely built

u p with single-f amily houses and having an

average po pulation density of 25 per acr e,

there would be accommod ations for a p proxi-

mately 16,000 people,* and they would fall

into the f ollowing age grou ps, accor ding to

Los Angeles ratios:

I. Childr en under 5 1,000

2. Child r en of 5-12 (elementar y-school age) 1,500

3. Children of 12-15 ( junior high-school age) .. 600

4-. Child ren of 15-18 (high-school age) 600

5 . Y ouths and active adults of 18-35 4-,8006. Ad ults of 35-6 5 - -6,4-007. F.ld er ly group, of 65 and over ... oo l, 100

Of these the childr en und er five can be and

pr o per ly should be accommod ated mainly on

private grounds thr oughout pr actically all the

Los Angeles Region, owing to the pr evalence

of single-f amily resid ences with good -sized

yard s. But alread y the multi ple-d welling

pr o blem has become insistent, since within

eight miles of the central business district,

from 25-30 per cent of the families live in

multi ple d wellings. Such dwellings are mostly·;:OMany districts may be much more extensive, the size being offset

f or a long time by a much sparser population. Others, of the nor-

mal square-mile size, may, in the rnorc densely popu!:ltcd parts of

Los Angrlcs) have as many ;154-0,000 inhahit:llltS.



without yards, but doubtless a ver y much

smaller percentage of young childr en live i n

them than elsewhere.

Childr en of school age always have some

pI space on school grounds. Nevertheless,

school grounds are generally so inadequatethat even if considerably enlarged they will

still remain inadequate. Ther ef ore, the most

efficient and economical way to meet adequate-

ly the needs of these children would be to con-

centr ate most of the possible additional s pace

in one unit f or the entire neighborhood,

whether that includes one school or many.

Unless neighborhood center s are provided

f or them, the people above school age-12,-

300 in all, or three-fourths of the entire dis-

trict population-wil" have outdoor recrea-

tion only in private yard s and in the str eets,with possibly a partial use of school ground s.

Standards for Recr eation C ent er s.

In ~onsidering the d esir a ble acr eage, and

also the least that is at all adequate, thr ee dis-

tinct kinds of area should be included:

I. Intensively used ar eas f or or ganized or

super vised play, such as outd oor gymna.sia,

minor local ball field s, tennis courts, swimming

pools, and the'like. These are normally from

S to 10 acres in each unit. .

2. Open meadows and playfield s for gen-

eral exercise and fr ee undirected play, nor-

mally from S to 10 acres.

3. Par k-lik e areas f or quiet, rest, and men-

tal r elaxation, f or picnic gr oves, and music

courts. They should include planted border s

and areas, in order to give to the o pen field s

and playground s a satisf actor y enclosur e and

setting. Normally they should contain not less

than 10 to 1S acres for each unit.

These three kind s of areas, together, would

ther efor e require a total of 20 to 3 S acr es, or

from 3 to S per cent of a square-mile district,

in order to form a neighborhood park and

r ecr eation center r easona bly complete.

The Pr oblem of Acquir ing

the N ecessary Lands.

In distr icts wher e consider a ble land remains,

unimproved it is possible that park sites can be

acquired at prices admitting the purchase of ar eas of this standard size, or even lar ger . And

lar ger ar eas may be desir a ble, especially where

the topography is irregular, and where r egion-

al inter est can also be ser ved.

\;Vhere land values are ver y high, or exist-

ing impr ovements must be d estr oyed to mak e

space f or a park, it may be impossible to jus-

tif y the acquisition of as much as twenty acres.

It is also pr o bable that no area of that size

could be found fr ee of impr ovements of ex-

cessively high cost. Ther ef ore, in such dis-

tricts it may be necessar y to consider a smaller

total ar ea, or even to use two or more separateunits.

But no single area of less than 10 or 12 acres

can be ex pected to a ppr oach ad equate ser vice to

a squar e mile or mor e of residential distr ict,

even if develo ped to the highest possible effi-

ciency. Furthermore, the district where the

temptation to buy small parcels is strongest is

nearly always the ver y place wher e it should

be most str ongly r esisted, because such a d is-

trict is usually a densely po pulated one, or

becoming so, and the need for recr eation s pace

is cor res pondingly gr eater than elsewhere.Ther ef or e, any wholesome depar tur e fr om

standard should be toward larger rather than

smaller units.

On the other hand , in d istr icts having a

po pulation d ensity of less than IO per acr e,

there is today r elatively small need for or j us-

tification for fully 'improved neighborhood

park and recreation gr ound s. But i n such dis-

tricts the opportunity in some cases now exists

to o btain land at a cost far below the prices

that will obtain after the community has been

more fully built up. And it is possi ble also in

those districts that need ed park land s may be

acquired now thr ough dedication or gifts, at

little or 110 cost to the community.



The Example o f Palos V erd es.

Such standards have already been applied

within this Region in connection with the es-

tablishment of combined school and neighbor -

hood park sites in Palos Verdes, where in the pr ocess of subdivision of a large tract, sites

averaging a mile apart were set aside, each

with a s pace f or a local playgr ound and com-

munity park. The total area of each unit is in

some cases less than the minimum above pr o-

posed because of the existence of other lar ge

parks nearby, but is larger than that required

for schools alone. There the total number of

pupils predicted on a basis of the total number

of f amilies possi ble in each district under the

zoning regulations was availa ble. These areas

were as f ollows:

I. High school and local par k and play-

ground containing 46 acres in two terraces of

18 and IS acres, and the balance in steep slopes

to be planted as park land. School to ser ve

1,200 pupils.

2. Junior High School and local park and

playground combined with one elementar y

school, containing 28 acres all nearly level

land. Junior High to ser ve 1,700, elementar y

school to serve 800 pupils.

3. Six other elementar y school and local

par k and playground areas, ranging in size

f rom 6 to II acr es each, that will be required

to serve less than f ,500 pupils each.

T y pes o f Dist ricts in Which t o

A cquire Land Prom ptl y.

S peculative value in land is an unusually

serious problem in the Los Angeles Region, es-

pecially within subd ivided areas, where mar-

k et land values are generally higher than in

other large cities. Future incr eases of rental

value are here more highly ca pitalized than

in other metropolitan regions. On the other hand, the value of improvements is lower, and

the improvements are subject to more rapid

d e pr eciation. Consequently, in areas alr ead y

subdivid ed, ther e is less to be lost financially

through postponing the purchase of recrea-

tion gr ound s until the need for them is urgent

and insistent, because the incr ement in land

cost, less d e preciation of improvements, is not

lik ely to outrun the accumulation of compound inter est on an earlier purchase.

Summing up this phase of t he subject: the

thr ee ty pes of distr icts in which it is most ur -

gent to acquire land pr omptly f or local units

of recr eation are:

Outl ying unsubdivided areas where a sharp

speculative rise in price has not yet taken place;

Older dist rict s in which , a f ter a dormant

period o f one t y pe o f occu pancy, r ebuilding f or

a denser population is r easonably to be ex pect -

ed ; and

W ell-established dist ricts in which the pr es-ent ur gent need clear l y just ifies the present

cost of securing the land.

In all thr ee instances, again, the relation to

the school situation and the possibility of cor -

r elative action should be consid er ed.

In this connection a few places in the Los

Angeles Region have been noted where the

effective service of present playground and

school f acilities could be increased very ma-

ter ially by eliminating o bstacles between near -

ly adjacent areas. For example, between theManchester Playgr ound and the Manchester

School, where an alley and one r ow of build -

ings se parate the two. Again, at the Euclid

Avenue School, wher e Ar gonne Str eet might

well be vacated to incr ease materially the use-

fulness of school gr ound s and build ings, which

are now on both sides of the str eet. At Hazard

Park a playgr ound , two schools, two par k

areas, and some local streets could all be com-

bined, extended, and r edesigned to become a

mor e complete unit and still ser ve all pur-

poses. And at Roxbury Playground in BeverlyHills adjacent vacant land in the city of Los

Angeles should be add ed to mak e a mor e com-

plete neighborhood center .



SMALL DETACHED LOCAL PARKS

In many districts of the city there are now,

beside the schoDI grounds and neighborhood

parks, various other park-like areas that have

great value, such as small squares, trianglesand circles at street intersections, small mon..t-

ment sites, and odd bits of public property and

grounds around public buildings, no one of

which will go Jar in itself toward meeting the

recreation needs, but each of which has some

recreational value as w~ll as great potential

value in adding to civic pride and the content-

ment and happiness of people. Some of these

incidental areas may afford space that can be

satisfactorily used for play facilities of lim-

ited character, such as sand piles, wading pools

and park benches, provided those uses do notconflict with any higher value such areas may

have for ornamental uses. Terrace Park, St.

J ames Park, Pershing Square, and the Plaza

in Los Angeles, Memorial Park in Pasadena,

and Drake Park and Santa Cruz Park iri Long

Beach are areas of this sort.

Such small detached parcels of local park

land of course add substantially to the general

attractiveness of a neighborhood if well kept

up, and their free dedication is far easier to

secure in connection with subdivision than that

of larger areas. Within rather close limitations

the creation of such small local public park

areas should be encouraged; but an analysis

of costs of park maintenance, especially in

\Vashington, D. c., where such parklets are

exceptionally numerous, shows that the public

burden of the annual cost of maintenance is

excessively high per acre and that even if free-

ly given to the public they are an expensive

luxury, to be indulged in only with discretion.

There is one sort of district in which the

maintenance cost of small decorative open

spaces is practically negligible because of the

number of people who benefit from them, pro-vided they are so placed and improved as to

give real benefit and to avoid interference

with the prime functions of the district. This

is an intensively used central district, where a

space such as Pershing Square or City Hall

Park is enjoyed by immense numbers of peo-

ple daily. One such space that has been sug-

gested and that might well be acquired, is the

block between 12th and Pico and between Hilland Broadway.

Among other units of park-like character of

public interest may well be included land-

marks of historical interest, such as the old

adobe houses of Southern California, some of

which should be preserved as public monu-

ments.

LOCAL PARKS FOR INDUSTRIAL

DISTRICTS

Industrial districts need spaces also for ac-

tive recreation, some of which are already pro-vided by larger industries on their own

grounds. Just how and where additional areas

can best be located is now difficult to deter-

mine, because of the rapid spread of the in-

dustrial districts and the lack of any definite

knowledge as to what are going to be the re-

quirements of the industries that may come to

occupy the land. Even so, a few areas should

be acquired as opportunity offers in the indus-

trial sections.

A STUDY OF FOUR TYPICAL

NEIGHBORHOODS

Four typical neighborhoods of approxi-

mately one square mile each in extent, in dif-

ferent parts of the Region, now lacking local

recreation facilities, except on school grounds,

have been. studied in detail to detertnine the

local needs and conditions and present possi-

bilities. The neighborhoods chosen are of wide-

ly different character . One is in a small com-

munity fairly remote from the main city, one

in a region closely built up with inexpensive

houses, one in a partly built up section of more

expensive character, and the fourth in a moredensely populated section where improve-

ments are of relatively high cost. The results

of these studies are as follows:





approaches 2,000,000, this means that the

total cost of providing additional complete

local park and playground facilities for t \e

1,500,000 people in the entire 0ccupied area of

the Los Angeles Region would be about

$39,000,000.

This total est jmate is made up o£ two items

that can be divided approximately as follows:(I) Acquisition $ 3 1,200,000

(2) Development 7,800,000

The above figures are based on per capita esti-

mates. On the other hand, on an area basis,

the four units estimated involve a cost of prac-

tically one million dollars or at the rate of

one-quarter million each, and if there are 16o

districts that should now be so treated, the costwould amount to $40,000,000 or about the

same figure. A part of this cost, if not all of it,

can be borne by local districts or local munici-

pal or other administrative units unless by mu-

.tual agreement the entire problem is to be

handled as a regional one.



THE most active d emand for more park s

tod ay in the entire Los Angeles Region,

especially during the summer months, is for

mor e and better beach and water side facilities.

The public now owns and contr ols f or recrea-

tion along the ocean fr ont a bove mean high

tide -line a number of str i ps var ying in width

from a few feet to a hundr ed f eet or mor e, and in length amounting to 14 miles. The public

owns also all the land below mean high-tid e

line and the land und er water, but most of this

land cannot b e used except at low tide without

trespassing on pr ivate land. (See A ppendix

No. V.)With many miles of the finest ocean fr ont in

the wor ld, where the climate is id eal-cool but

never too cold f or enjoyment-the public now

find s a bout nine-tenths of the entire frontage

destined to be screened f rom view from the

near est highways by private d evelo pments.

The remaining tenth is d ivid ed into short dis-

connected stretches.

About six miles is tak en u p by the harbor dis-'

tr ict, which of cour se can be used for pleasur e

only temporarily and wher e not yet needed f or

commerce. Much of the fr ontage at Long

Beach, Redondo, Venice, and Santa Monica is

public, but other por tions are occupied by cost-

ly improvements and are highly d evelo ped out

to the water's ed ge or beyond in a way to pr e-

clud e extensive pu blic acq uisitions in those

stretches except at enor mous cost. The 17 miles

of coast between the harbor district and R ed on-do Beach is mark ed by high cliff s, gener ally

with rock y f oreshor es subject to almost com-

plete submer gence at high tid es, and has no

wid e beaches suita ble and saf e for use by large

bodies of people, although it has a·nota ble

scenic drive along the to p of the cliffs.

West of Santa Monica the 27 miles of coast

has, alternating with the sand beaches, inter -

mittent r ock y and boulder y str etches, a bout 8

miles of such stretches and a bout 19 miles of

fine sand y beaches. Vlhile those beaches are

pu blic pr o perty below or dinar y high tid e, they

PLATE 26. Coast highway near To panga Canyon

showing line of cottages cutting off all view of

the ocean f rom the highway. (Phot o by Stagg.)



PI.ATE 27. The Harbor from Long Beach showing L ong Beach in the foregr ound , the har bor dis-

trict in the center , and the San Ped ro hills in the distance. (Phot o by S pence.)

PLAT E 28. Rugged shor es and high clif f s of Palos

Verdes, attr active to pleasure travel, but not

adapted to beach uses. (Phot o by Pad illa.)

are privately owned above high tide f or prac-

tically their entire length.

For the year 1927 the total number of user sof certain beaches was estimated by the De part-

ment of Playgr ound and Recreatioil of the

City of Los Angeles; to be as follows:

Spect at or s

Sta. Monica Canyon 828,451Venice 1 1,50 5,062

Playa Del R ey _ _______ 314,8 I I

Terminal Island 215,812

Cabr illo ---_ _ __ _________ 744,41 1

13,608,547

Bathers

219,892

1,917,338

108,68289,850

1°4,°78

2,4-39,84°

T otal

1,04-8,34-3

13,422,400

423,493

305,662

848,489

16,048,387



In order to determine the actual usage of

beaches during one busy d ay, counts wer e mad e

in 1928 for the Citizens Committee by the De-

partment of Playground and Recr eation of

Los Angeles, the r esults of which ar e shown in

the f ollowing table:

W id t lt

in F eet

II A. M.

Spect at or s Bat hers

W est County lr ne to Las F lor es Canyon 55 0

LJS F lo r es Canyon to Top ang a Ca nyo n --------- 50Topanga Canyon to Castle Rock 4 ·_ _ _ _ _ 50

Castle R ock to Lighthouse Caf e - 50

Lighthou se Ca fe to Santa Monica _ _ 150

City of Santa M o n i c a . _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 50

Ocea n Park P ier to Ve ni ce Pi er . __ _ _ __ _ _ __ _ __ _ _ 200

Venice Pier to De! R ey __. _ _ _ _ _ _ __ __ __ __ _ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ 100

D el Re y to P icnic G r o u n d s . _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 25

Pi cnic G roun ds to Hy perion Pi eL ---- 50

Hy perion Pi er to E ~ Se gundo Pier 100

EI Segundo Pier to M anhattan Pier 200Manh a ttan and Herm osa Beaches 100

Ci ties of R ed ond o and To rr ance ---------- --------- 75

To r ra nce-P alos Verdes Esta tes --- ------------------ - 5Sa n Pedr o Ci ty __ _ _ __ _ _ __ _ __ _ __ __ __ _ __ __ _ 100

Ter mi na l Island , Lo s An ge les.. _ __ 200

Term ina l Island, Long Beac h 200

Lon g B ea ch City _ __ __ _ _ _ _ __ _ _ __ 100

Total cou n ted _

Assu m ed t ot al for da y _

These tables both show that the number of

s pectators using the beaches was sever al times

as gr eat as the number of bather s, and indicate

the consequent need for a lar ge amount of up-

land area.

From these figur es it appear s that there were

at one time 47,670 peo ple on the beach at Santa

Monica, estimated by the o bserver to be 3 miles

long and to aver age 50 f eet wid e, or 750,000

squar e feet of s pace with an aver age of onl y

1 .5 square f eet of s pace per per son at one

time. Beach "widths" ar e varia ble and uncer -tain things to estimate, and the area which

these 47,640 occupied may have been consid -

erably larger or smaller than estimated.

Lengt l / ,

in M iles

3I

2~

y;3I

20~

2

I

2

2~

5,4 -26

1,67 I

1,250

2,505

1,24-6

10,694-

2,4-60

2,74-3

15°

25°

101

63915,303

Estin zated

12,000

7154-,160

2,°5°

1,800

8,189

5,000

7°1,920

600

1,4-00

2,4-4-4-

1 ,588

620

281

687832

3,235

4-,662

2, 564 -

100

J I S

4 -5

2°79,280

73,352 35,650

109,002

Bather s

II 1,4-0 I

156 ,9 15

3 P. M.

S pect at ors Bather s

13,4-56

3,826

3,105

6, 525

7,825

36,975

9,872

3,127

4-75

72522;

1>3 5623,657

E st im ,at ed

20,000

1>34-5

I1,64-0

2,250

2,800

18,959

4-,9 17

1,820

1,230

1,8671,808

10,695

11,119

2,54-7

283

275

54 -

3°020, 137

6,000

7°4-,600

100

2,300

5,629

168,14-7 75,751

24-3,898

T otal

352,900

672,663

C ompar ison 'Z vithBeacl~es

o f Other Regions.Even with a lar ge allowance f or possible

error in the Los Angeles- figur es, it is signifi-

cant to compare these figur es with those at

Coney Island, New York , the wor ld's most

heavily used beach, wher e airplane photo-

gr aphs showed an aver age of 56 square feet of

beach a bove water-line per per son und er con-

ditions reported to be unduly cr owd ed, and at

Atlantic City, wher e photogra phs showed greatcr owd s with an average of 78 square feet per

person, also r e ported as too crowded f or com-

f or t. In New York, where beach is at a high



PLATE 29. Pu blic beach at Venice on July 4th, showing use to ca pacity, too cr owd ed for comf or t.

(Phot o by St agg.)

pr emium, it is estimated that a beach having a

width of 150 f eet with 9 times as much add i-

tional upland space can accommodate comfor t-a bly a bout 50,000 peo ple per mile at one time,

but in no portion of Los Angeles frontage is

such a width of upland now open to public use,

or lik ely to be so.

There wer e at 3 :ooP. M. on July 4th, 1928,243,898 peo ple along the Los Angeles beaches,

and at p oints they were much crowd ed. Fur -

ther more, many people of Los Angeles who

know that beaches are so cr owd ed either stay

away or go elsewhere at a h eavy per sonal expense, when they would pr efer to enjoy their

own water front, and would flock to the beaches

if mor e public beaches existed.

Fr om conditions actually o bser ved it is f air

to assume that all the usa ble beach f r ontage

her e that can be made availa ble f or the public

may now be taxed occasionally to capacity if

not actually to over crowding. The d emand for

public use of beaches will inevita bly exceed thesupply. Consider able adjoining ar eas in addi-

tion to the beach itself must b e availa ble if a

beach is to accommod ate large cr owd s. Such

adjacent areas may accommodate more peo ple

than the beaches themselves, and space is re-

q uired f or par king of automo biles even greater

than the space requir ed on the beach for the

peo ple who come in them.

U se o f Beach Land s.

Ther e ar e now other demands f or ri parian

lands along the beaches where private owner-ship extends down to ordinar y high tide, and

these have r aised to very high levels the mar k et

price of such land .

One is f or residences close to the beach, in



PLATE 30. Public beach at Atlantic City, New Jersey, showing wide board walk and wid e, sand y

beach beyond.

itself a socially desirable and highly beneficial

use, but a use that tends to become less attrac-

tive in proportion as great crowds use the

neighboring public portions of the beach.

Where the public now uses such beaches in

spite of some inconvenience, crowds will

spread on to the lower parts of the private property above the high tide line, and the value

of such land for residential lots may decline.

A second demand is for business lots because

of transient crowds that are attracted to the

beaches, and for hotel and club house sites.

Business may range from services which are of

the utmost importance and desirability to the

most injurious parasitism. The value of such

lots will depend on the amount of profit that

can be made from them.

The average beach-goer because of his holi-day spirit, is an ((easy mark." Helping him at

a fair price to derive the maximum benefitfrom a visit to the beach is fair business. Ex-

ploiting him is not and should be prevented.

In case after case where large crowds have

once begun to go to a beach for pleasures ob-

tainable only there, commercial exploitation

has gradually put the beach or a large part of

it wholly out of existence, as by decking it over

completely, and has corralled the cr owd into

indoor commercialized enterprises which might

just as well have been elsewhere and which areon the whole distinctly d eleterious in character.

Those are extreme cases, but tendencies toward

such a result accompany commercialization

of the opportunity for ex ploiting beach crowds,

just as the tendency exists for crowds of tran-

sient visitors to blight the use of beach-front

property for residence.

To get the greatest value from the shore

lands, the frontage should be segregated to

serve either - private or public purposes, and

should be protected accordingly. Such segre-

gation should recognize the fitness of the lands

for each purpose and the proportionate impor-tance of each.

To some extent, such protection would fol-

low use of the police power in one or more of



C I T I ZeNS COMM I TTeE ON P A RKS PL AYGROUNOS AN D BE AC II ES

P0551BLc PROFILE rOR CON5TRUCTION or BE ACH ON TiO AL L ANOS

!f ORIZONTA/. . SCA L.E

/()(J .iO 0

" " zo o xx> 400 SOOFr

VERTIC AL SC AU

10 S 0 10 zo 30 40 SOrT.

. .

SURVEY CONSULT ANTS

O / msl~d!3rofh~rs- tJ a r f hol omew f . f Assoc/ a / ~s NOY E M/ J E Il . /.928

its many f orms, such as zoning of a highly spe-

cialized sort applied to properti~s peculiarly

r elated to beaches. But the technique of this

has not yet been develo ped and tested by ex pe-

rience. The main reliance wherever this pr o b-

lem has become serious has been public owner-

ship and proprietar y control of sufficient land

to guard against the wor st evils. Even such

ownership alone may avail but little unless the

control is entrusted to an agency specially and

exclusively charged with the duty of protect-

ing the r ecr eational inter ests of the public, and

having a jo b of sufficient size and impor tance

to win and hold the interest of really first ratemen.

SHOR ES ADAPTED TO PUBLIC USES

Befor e proceed ing to the detailed enumera-

tion of coast land to be acquir ed for regional

public recreation, it seems desir a ble to outline

two lar ge pr o blems aff ecting a long str etch of

coast; the fir st fr om Santa Monica Canyon

westward where conditions have not yet cr ys-tallized but soon will; the second from Santa

Monica Canyon south to Playa Del Rey, wher e

they have ver y rigidly cr ystallized in a man-

ner which is in some r es pects highly unsatisf ac-

tor y.

liVest f r om Sant a Monica.

'Vest of Santa Monica the public highway

par alleling the shor e f or many miles is now a

busy one and is destined to carr y a vastly greater

volume of traffic because it is the most dir ect,

most level, and most agreeable route to Ven-tura and other coastal distr icts beyond. The

time will soon come, as is now clearly recog-

nized by the State Division of Highways) when



traffic will imper atively demand a much wid er

r ight of way than the present 80 f eet. For

a bout three miles the highway is built on a nar-row strip between very high bluff s and a ver y

narrow belt of privately-owned ocean-fr ont

property, wher e some buildings have already

been erected. A continuous barrier of such

buildings is lik ely soon to develop, cutting off

fr om the road views of the sea and public ac-

cess to the beaches. Farther west, the hills re-

ced e and the highway passes through wider

ar eas, part of the way near the shore, wher e

there is a narrow strip of private property out-

sid e the highway'as in the preceding sections,

and part of the way farther back from the shor eand on higher levels with lar ge blocks of pri-

vate property outsid e the road.

A very fine str etch of beach adjoins the high-

way for nearly thr ee miles just above Point

Dume, and back of it lies a ver y fine seaside

mesa.All the way from Santa Monica to the coun-

ty line the road must ser ve not only as a major

state highway for all kinds of traffic, but also

as a pleasure route of the utmost importance

to the Region. It should have a r ight of way

not mer ely wide enough to carr y its destined

traffic without serious congestion, but also wid e

enough to make tr avel upon it thor oughly

agreea ble, es pecially in the fir st str etch, where

ever yone driving westward first comes to the

ocean and where the visual impression is of

great importance. To get a glimpse of the s eaand then file into a choked road behind a row

of buildings is a calamity. With the o pening

of the State Highway and the invitation to



CITIZENS COMMITTEE OIVPA'K,J Pf . A't'GROU",OS AND SUCHeS

LOS ANGEL£S-CALlFOR.NI A.

PLfA5U Rf HAR BOR AND OCf ANS I DE PARK FO R

SA NT A MON I CA R E G / ON

PLATE 33. Plan for an extensive Pleasur e Har bor op posite Santa Monica and Venice, with a park in theDel R ey mar shes and a par kway on a chain of island s around the outsi de of t he harbor .

crowd s to enjoy this coast, a new impetus has

been given to the development of privately-

owned lands between'the highway and the sea,

The beach her e is generally good, and capa ble

of being widened by gr oins, as experiments

have shown. Alread y ver y high land values

have been esta blished in places alongtheshor e; but land that is clear ly most need ed by the

pu blic should be acquir ed bef or e further im-

provements and fur ther subdivision of thosear eas mak e the d ifficulty of such acq uisition

still gr eater .

If the situation is not dealt with ad equately

now, if a nar row but heavily tr aveled and con-

gested highway becomes walled in by r ows of

buildings, if only small openings her e and

ther e connect the highway with the beaches

and if the crowd s push in helter --:sk elter wher-

ever they can get to the beaches below high

tide, conditions will become so bad that reac-

tion will set in and the r ecently boomed value

of the shore lands will fall. Eventually such

intolerable cond itions will be r elieved whollyor in par t either by condemnation of the land

and impr ovements, or perhaps by widening

and extending the beach itself outsid e pr ivate

hold ings and building a new road on the margin

of the beach as thus advanced.

But unless immed iate action is taken things

will be in a mess for year s and may never be-

come just r ight. Any d istr ict that once goes

wr ong is very hard to reha bilitate.

S out h f rom Santa Monica.

South fr om Santa Monica Canyon to Playa

Del R ey practically continuous build ings sev-eral block s in d epth separate the beach f romthe near est practica ble roadway along the coast.

In certain places str uctures on private land ex-

tend to the line of mean high tid e; in othersstructur es on tid elands leased f rom the cities

cover the beaches and extend on piles far out

over the water . The public is now so much

aroused, however , that further private en-

cr oachments on the tid eland s ar e unlik ely, and

cond itions still r ather r eadily per mit broaden-

ing the beach to seaward, where buildings on

pr ivate land have cur tailed the use of its upper

edge.In this entir e r egion, three-quarters of amile

off shor e, the water is only a bout 30 f eet deep

and pr o jects have long been d iscuss.ed for a



I~~~~~,-~~~~~. .~~-,-'"-"-"-" .. _ ~ . ,..,.~~. _ _ ._,,... _- "', .., . . _ _ ._-,-,-_.. _----~~.,~~~--~

PLATE 34. Sketch for extensive Pleasure Har bor and par k and parkway d evelopment as shown on

Plate 33.

harbor pr imarily or exclusively for pleasure

cr aft, to be fo:. med by breakwaters a bout that

distance off shore, star ting consider a bly to the

west o f Santa Monica Canyon.

An off-shore breakwater can be built here so

as to add great recreational value, whenever

people want it enough to pay for it; and the

cost will not incr ease with d elay. It seems not

unr easona ble to look f orward to the time when

the Los Angeles Region will follow the exam-

ple set by Chicago in its gr eat park d evelop-

ment out into Lake Michigan, and not mer ely

build a jetty so as to form a harbor open to

masted vessels at the head of Santa Monica

Bay, but also a long breakwater or chain of

narrow islands connected by bridges and car- .

r ying a par k d r ive, from the State Highway at

Santa Monica Canyon to Playa Del R ey. The

shelter ed water between there and the beach

will be of gr eat value for motor boats and

small boating, and the beach bathing will beimpr oved for most peo ple, while a park d r ive

along the chain or narr ow islands, a bsolutely

away f rom buildings and concessions, will be

used and enjoyed by hundreds of automobil-

ists to every user of boats.

SUMMARY OF SHOR E FR O NT R ECOMMENDATIONS

(T he classes lett er ed A t o E ar e r ef err ed t o in the last

column o f t he ne xt table.)

Lands Along Land Back

S hore F r01' t t o f H ighwa y

Lettgt h i1f M iles Ar ea in Acres

A. Now public (for r ecr e-

ation) 14

B. Now quasi-pu blic (f or

r ecr eation) .~ ~~~ ~ 6

C. Pr o posed to be acq uir ed

for public r ecreation, in

county, extend ing into

Orange County............ 32

D. Specif ically assigned to

use for 0the r pur poses

(including har bor) 9

E. Other land s not includ-

ed in r ecommend ed ac-

quir ements 000........ 19

*In addition to the .f ive other large reservations estimated and in-

cluded in pr oposed park system.



U NITS OF THE ENTIRE SHORE FRONT

Classif ied as A, B, C, D, E, with numbers r eferring to locations on Plate 35 and to Descri ptions

f ollowing this ListFollowing the coast fr om Ventura County eastwar d into Or:mge County, the various units have been number ed for

convenience of r efer ence.

Refer -

e1tce

N o.

A pp ro x. A pprox.

length width

ir t feet in feet

I. Sequit Beaeh 4000 200-300

2. Ar royo Seq uit Park

3. Nicolasand Encinal

Beaches and Bluff s 21000 500-600

4-. Zuma Beach _ -------15000 150-250

5. Dume Park See Chapter VIII

6. Ramirez ~Canyon

R eser vation See Chapter VIII

7. Dume Point Shor e 13000 Narrow

8. Ramir ez Beach and

Bluff s __ 6000 200-1000

9· Escondido Beach - 54-00 10-150

Escondido CanyonMouth _

Corral Beach I6500 10- I50

Malibu Beach and

Plain 4500 200-1200\

Possible Mali buPark _

Mal ibu Slough and Beach 2400

West Carbon Beach 24-00

East Carbon Beach 6200

Carbon Beach and

Las Flor es Beach

(small area now public) 3600 100-200

Las Flores Delta 500 200-300

East Las FloresBeach 2800

Pena Canyon Beach 5 4 -S O

TunaCanyon Beach 7£00

Topanga CanyonPark U pland _

Topanga Be ac h to

Los Angeles City

Line _ 5300 20-1 j 0

Topanga Beach in

Los Angeles City 1600

Castellamar e Beach 700

Santa Ynez Beach _ I900

Bel-Air Pacific Pal-

isades Beach 9000 10-200

Lighthouse CafePoint 300 200

200-[200

80-200

100-300

20- [30

20-130

20- 130

20-1130

100-150

10-500

Back

land C laSJi-

ar ea f ica-

tit acl'es tion

e1tce

No.

29·

A pp rox.

lmgtl z

Name in feet

Huntington Pali-sad es Beach 1800

S:mta Monica Can-

von Beach

Santa J\10nica Can-yon Park _

Santa Monica Pali-sad es Park _

Beach Clubs in Los

Angeles City _

Beach Clubs InSanta Monica City _ 900

GeorginaAvenue to

Calif ornia Avenue

(few small public

wa ys) ------------------ 3900

Cal if or nia Avenue

to Arizona Avenue 1350

Arizona Avenue to

Broad way _

Broad way to Santa

Monica PieL __ _ _ _ _ _ 950

Santa Monica Pier

and beaches to Lick

Pier at Santa Mon-

icaCity line. Var i-ous par cels now

public --------------- 3700

Same- parcels not public 3000

Lick Pier to Del

Rey Pier all in city

of Los Angeles in

Venice. Various par-

cels now public.. __~ _ I0520

Same-Various par-

ce Is that should be

acq uired -------- __ __ _ _ __ 5260

Ballona Creek Mar shes _

Proposed outside

mole and pleasur e bay _

Del R ey Pier to

Hy perion Beach,

areas now public _ 3500

A p pr o x.

wid th

in feet

Bad

land ClaSJi-

area fica-

t 1t acr es tion



Recommendat ions for Public Beaches [ 69 ]

Back Back

Refer - Appr o x. A ppr o x. land ClasJi- Re f er - Approx. Appr o x. land C lassi-

e1t ce lengt lt zddtlt area f ica- e1t ce lmgtlt width area ft ca-

N o. Name i1t f eet i1t f eet i1t acr es tio1t N o. Name i1t feet i1t f eet 11t acr es t i01t

46. Same-Areas to be 67-68. Palos Verdes

acquir ed -------------- 8300 10-50 C R anch ------------------35000 E

47· Los Angeles Hy- 69· Point Vicente

per ion Beach. _ _ _ ______ 5350 20-100 A Lighthouse ------------ 2000 B

48. Los Angeles Hy- 70. Palos Verd es Hill

perion u pland s _ ____ _ --- - ---- ---------~-- 180 B shore and bluf f s. __ _ _ _ 5000 C

49· City o f E l Segundo 71. San Pedro Hills

(Stand ard Oil Co. R eser vation ---------- See Cha pter Vlll Cfrontage) _ ____ _ _ _ _____ _ 1900 70-100 C 72. R oyal Palms shore

50. Same-Ar eas devel- and White's point

oped for other uses 300 D to Los Angeles

51. In Los Angeles County Line - -- --- -- 8400 200-500 C

County (Stand ard 73· White'sPoint Beach

Oil Co. beach) _ _ ____ 1900 70-100 C in Los Angeles City 1900 150-200 C

52. County Public 74· Point Fermin and

Beach in Los An- the San Pedro shores 7875 100-400 i \ geles County __ _ __ ____ _ 1300 80-100 A

75· Point Fermin-

53· Par cel owned by Var ious parcels _____ _ 1100 100 CCounty in the City

76. San Pe dro Westof Manhattan Bluff 6 acr es CB e a c h __ __ _ _ _ ___ _ _ _ ____ _ A

--------------------

500 50-80San Pedro

Manhattan Beach, 77- East

54· Bluf f 6 acr es CVar ious parcels city

--------------------

owned 900 50-80 A 78. Point Fer min Play-------------------

Manhattan Beach, ground s ---------------- 8 acres B

)).

Other beach to be 79· Har bor Section of

acquired -------------- 7950 50-100 C Los Angeles and

56. Park in Manhattan Long Beach onTer -

Beach _____ __ _ _____ _ _____ _ 2 A minal Island .-----__ __ 30600 D

-------- ------------

57· City of Her mosa 80. Harbor Section at

Beach f ron tage nowLong Beach _ __ ______ _

3800 100-600 A public 5500 20-100 A

81. Flood Control-------.,.,.---------

Channel and West58. Same - Fr ontage

Beach 3200 100-200' Adeveloped f or other

------------------

82. Amusement Zone __ 1260 Duses ---------------------- 420 D

83· Long Beach Pier 59· Same - Beach

and Aud itor iumfrontage now pu blic 80-100 A

---- 2000 A3500

84· Long Beach from60. R ed ond o Nor th A.ud itorium to East

Beach ------------------ 3950 10-100 A County Line now61. Redondo Amuse- pu blic ( incl. 1800

ment Zone _ __ ___ _____ _ 1350 D county owned ) ____ 12800 10-50 A62. Red ondo C ity Par k 8 A

85· Same-Ar ea that

63· R edondo South should be acq uir ed 8100 20-250 CBeach --- - ------------- 7030 10-150 C 86. Long Beach Bluff

64-. R edond o South Par k __ ____ __ _____ _ _______ _ 8 acr es ABeach ------------------ 1470 ISO B 87· Alamitos Bay Shor es 3 miles of

65· Torrance Beach _ __ _ 4050 20-80 E inland shor es C

66. Palos Verdes Estates 88. Bolsa Chica Beach

L. A. Cou n ty _ _ _ _ __ __ 26000 B olltsid e city _ _ __ ___ _ . _ -------- ------------ 5 miles C



DETAILED R ECOMME NDATIO NS

1. S equit Beach (4 ,000 Feet).

Fr om the west county line for sever al thou-

sand f eet eastwar d is a good sand y beach. The

old r oad followed this beach, but the new StateHighway f ollows a line farther back. Any

existing rights in the old highway should be r e-

tained and the stri p between it and high tid e

should be acq uired f or pu blic use. This might

well be a State Par k pr oject in connection with

Sequit Canyon, Zuma Beach, and Dume Park

(No.2, NO.4, and NO.5 below) and in con-

nection with shor es in Ventura County.

2. Ar royoS equit Par k (150 Acr es).

At the mouth of the Arroyo Seq uit are some

fine trees and a bit of open relaJively flat land having gr eat value f or a par k in connection

with the beach. The hillsid es u p as f ar as they

f orm cons picuous par ts of the valley scener y

should be includ ed with the floor of the valley

and the reservation should extend back from

the ocean half a mile or so, as f ar as beach pic-

nic parties ar e lik ely to go.

3. N icolas and E ncinal

Beaches and Blu ffs.

Fr om Seq uit Beach to Zuma Beach for a

d istance of f our miles the l1ew highway f ol-lows the f oot of the hills on a mesa 500 feet or

so back from the sea and high above sea level.

In this section the beaches ar e f air, but ar e

r emote fr om the highway. The chance f or

pr ivate d evelo pment of the upland is excellent

and it is believed that this str etch should be lef t

for private use, subject, of cour se, to the ex-

isting right of the public in the tideland s.

The need f or widening the right of way

must d oubtless arise soon and through this sec-

tion it may be possible to develop a second

roadway near the to p of the bluffs, as has beendone on Palos Verd es, for pleasur e travel only,

leaving the present highway f or commercial

uses and heavy tr avel.

4. Z uma Beach.

One of the finest beaches along the coast and

one that would serve an enormous number of

pleasur e seeker s is that above Dume Point

known as Zuma Beach, thr ee miles in length.This has been included in the recommend ations

f or park s and parkways as an integral part

of that plan with the Dume Canyon and mesa

and the hills above. If the entire area is ac-

q uir ed as r ecommended it will be possible

eventually to constr uct an u p per level r oad

parallel to the present shor e road and to divide

and contr ol tr affic thr ough this str etch in a way

to permit the lar gest possible use of the shore

f ront f or recr eation. This beach has already

been in par t su bd ivided and some costly pr ivate

d evelopments have been mad e, but the entire

beach should be acquir ed and the houses should be r emoved or r emod eled f or public uses.

5. Dume Pa7 ' k .

Dume Park, back of Zuma Beach, has been

includ ed also in the par k plan as one of the

most valua ble, healthful and attractive park

featur es f or that part of the general plan, and

it is also intimately connected with the beach

pr o blem. This ar ea with those to the west of

it certainly should be consid er ed in the plan

for State Par k s as well.

6 . Ramir ez Canyon Reservat ions.

Four hundr ed and sixty-f our acr es now U.

S. Lighthouse property that should be made

useful f or public recr eation with Dume Par k

in the general park and parkway plan.

7. Dume Point S hor e.

For two miles eastward fr om Zuma Beach

the highway lies a long way back fr om the

shore, and the shor e is mostly rocky and nar-

r ow, bor d ered by high bluff s,and isnotad ap.ted

for use by large number s of people. This ar ea

is well adapted to high-class private d evelo p-ment for which it is pr o ba bly more valua ble

than for public use. Ther ef ore, it is not recom-

mend ed f or pu blic acq uisition. Back of the



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CITIUNS' COMlllmE ONPAR i'.S. PLAYGR .OUNDS f/ BE ACHES

DIAGRAM O~ B [A CH r RONT A O l

UPLAND-IlllIllIllIllIIt!Z1ZZ l

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·shore the highway problem will be similar to

that farther west, and either a wider right of

way or two routes for travel will be need ed

eventually, and should be included in any plan

for subdivision and local development.

8 . Ramirez Beach and Bluffs.

East f r om Dume Point for a mile or so the

highway is still above and back from the shore

on high bluff s, and the shore itself is rugged

and of limited recreational value and therefore

is not recommended for acquisition.

9. Escond id o Beach.

From near Escondido Canyon wher e the

highway drops to the shor e level eastward for

a mile to Latigo Road and Point, the highway

is ver y near the shore. The beach is good and all inter vening lands should be acquired.

10. Escond id o C an yon M outh.Back of the highway in Escondido Canyon

there is an area of 35 acres or so, large enough

for a small shor e front park that should be ac-

quired to serve as a shelter ed picnic ground ad-

j acent to the beach.

11. Corr al Beaches.

Three miles of beaches very near the new

State Highway. All land between the highway

and the shore should be publicly owned, and

the beach should be k e pt o pen to the public.

12. Malibu Beaches and Plains.

Opposite the mouth of Malibu Canyon there

is a strip of flat land 200' to 1,200' or more in

width and nearly a mile in length between the

highway and the sea that is now lined with cot-

tages and held at high prices andiswelladapted

to private uses and likely eventually to be used

for lar ger buildings if t he ar ea back of it is

d eveloped as a small community center . This

beach is not recommend ed now for acquisition.

13. Possible M alibu Park.

Back of the Malibu Beach and extending

into Malibu Canyon there is a ver y attractive

area of one square mile or so, including the

ranch headquarters, that could be made a beau-

tiful park with the beach, if acquir ed, but is not

includ ed in the l ist as of pr ime importance.

14 . Malibu Slough and E ast Beach.

East of Malibu Creek and at the mouth of

the creek the beach and slough fr om 1,200' to

2,000' or so in width and half a mile long be-

tween the highway and the shore should be

acquired f or public use, and in the slough a

small s pace for water sports can be developed .

Through the land back of this area and through

Malibu Park the County now owns the r ight

of way of the old highway that might reason-

ably be exchanged for a portion of this ocean

fr ont property f or public use.

15. W est Car bon Beach.

From Malibu east beach to the Malibu Pot-

teries for a bout half a mile the highway is

again near the shore and all intervening land s

should be publicly owned.

16. East Carbon Beach.

Along the potteries and land s to the east-

ward for a little more than a mile to Coal Can-

yon Point the s pace between the highway and

the shore is somewhat wid er and back of the

highway ther e is consid era ble land that can bed ~velo ped for residential uses. This section

would doubtless be very costly to acquire and

ther efor e is not includ ed in the recommenda-

tion f or immediate acquisition, even though itwould have gr eat value for the public.

17. C ar bon Bay and

Las Flores Beach (3 ,6 00 F eet ).

From Carbon Point eastward for a number

of feet in Car bon Bay, the highway is now

actually against the shor e and no private land

intervenes, and there public access to the shore

can be kept open. Farther eastward costly im-

provements have been made, and high land

values have already been established. Ther e-

f ore, this beach is not listed f or acq uisition,



PL ATE 36 .. Mouth of Topanga Canyon, showing ar eas that should be . pu blicly owned to c are f or the

vast crowd s that gather ther e, and showing an endless chain of autos extend ing down the beach,

cutting off all view of the ocean from the passing tr aveler s. (Phot o b), S ta gg .)

even though it also would have gr eat value for

the public.

18. Las Flor es Delt a.

Opposite the mouth of Las Flores Canyon

f or a r elatively shor t distance of 500' or ~o,

there is a small d elta being developed with

r oad side buildings, cabins and conveniences,

that would be costly to acq uir e and ther ef ore is

omitted .

19. E ast Las Flor es Beach.

From Las Flores Canyon eastward f or half

a mile or so to the next point of land , the high-way is near the shore below a high bluff all the

way and ther e are 55 small cabins on the sea-

ward side. The land on that sid e should be ac-

q uired f or pu blic use and all the ca bins should

be removed.

20. Pena Canyon Beach.For a mile the highway is ver y close to the

sea, suppor ted most of the way by r ipr a p. Pri-

vate ownership, if any, in this section should

be acq uir ed.

21. T una Canyon Beach.

At the point o p posite the Hear st Pr ivate

Road, ther e is a small ar ea outside the highway

with a tent, and eastwar d fr om there to To-

panga Canyon f or a mile and a half there are

65 small buildings on the nar row stri p between

the highway and the ocean. Some of these

build ings on high timber s may be standing on

public tid elands. All should be removed and

all land should be pu blicly acquir ed .



PLATE 37. Be:1Ch<ibol-eSanta Monica that would be inside pro posed harbor , showing gr oins built far out on the beach to protect the shor e an~ catch the drif ting sand s. (Phot o by S pence.)

22. T o panga Canyon Park Uplands.

At the mouth of Topanga Canyon the small

flat area now occupied by a number of small

cottages is all needed for a park and picnic

area and to hold a large number of automobiles

that come to the shore. Here the value to the

public would be very much greater as a public

park than can be realized on the same area un--

der private owner ship.

23. T o panga Beach.

From Topanga Canyon to the Los Angeles

City line at the Parker Ranch Road f or a dis-

tance of one mile there are 30 small buildings

on the seaward side of the highway, with high

cliffs on the other . The entire strip between

the highway and the sea should be publicly

owned, as it will have a far gr eater value f or

lar ge number s of peo ple under public owner -

ship.

24. Topanga Beach in Los Angeles C ity.

From the city line to Castellammare Beach,

about 1600 feet, Topanga Beach is very nar -

row. The highway is filled out onto the beach

and there is little if any private land on that

sid e except at Castle R ock in the middle of this

str etch. Any f 'rivate land that may exist shou'ld

be publicly acquired.



PLATE 38. Beach at mouth of Santa Monica Canyon, showing public beach in the center with pr ivate

club and parking area in the lef t foreground . (P hot o by St agg .)

25. C ast ellammar e Beach.At the arch over the street and eastward a

stretch of beach 700' long has been fenced in

for the use of owners of property in Castellam-

mare, thus withdrawn from private ownership

and dedicated to quasi-public uses, for which

purpose it is recommended that it should be

left.

26. Santa Ynez Beach.

For a distance of 1,900 f eet between the

highway and the shore opposite Santa Ynez

Canyon there is one old building and some

land that should be acquired .

27,28 and 29. Bel-Air, Pacific Palisad es

Beach , Lighthouse Ca f e and Hunt -ingt onPalisad es Beach to the Count y

Public Beach.

Two miles of narrow frontage, a part of

which has been built out recently by arti-

ficial means upon publicly owned tid eland s.

Through this section a plan is being consid er ed

for constructing a new State road , on a wid er

right of way, partly on the tid eland s just out-

side the private lands and partly on those land s,

and for abandoning the present highway in ex-

change for property rights along the shor e.

Either some such exchanges should be work ed

out or the strips of privately owned shore front

lands should be acquired outright.



30. S anta Monica Canyon Beach.The public now has the use of nearly a

quarter of a mile of beach at the mouth of

Santa Monica Canyon. This is a very valuable

beach, fair ly broad an now ver y po pular .

31. S anta M onicaCanyon

Par k (9 Acres).

At the mouth of Santa Monica Canyon a

portion of the partly vacant land back of the

highway should be acquired to make a small

waterside park for intensive use by automobile

parties near the beach, and to provid e some of

the needed parking space for automo biles and

s pace f or a public bath-house to be connected

with the beach by a foot subway.

32. S ant a Monica Palisad es Park .Santa Monica City owns a f ine coast park of

46 acr es, though it is almost entir ely cut off

from contact with the ocean, and is high abovesea level.

33 and 34. Beach C lubs in Los Angeles

Cit y and in S ant u M onica.Eleven hundred f eet of beach fr ont is now

lar gely tak en u p f or intensive use by a number

of beach clubs and houses on the shor e. The

value pf this area and areas farther eastwar d

has mounted so high that it will. prove much

less costly to leave this land in pr ivate owner -

ship; to allow the pr esent shore road to serve

for or dinar y traffic, and to plan f or pleasur e

travel ultimately to pass outside these proper -

ties either on new land s to be filled out on the

tid elands or on a chain of islands farther out.

35. F rom Georgina Avenue

to Cali f ornia Avenue.East f rom the clubs f or three-quarters of a

mile a ver y narrow strip of the shore outsid eexisting lots might be acquired, but the lots run

almost to high tide and in places may r each it,

and the strip is so narr ow that it would add lit-

tle to the area of tid eland s alr ead y publicly

owned. Ther efore, this strip is not listed for

acquisition.

36 and 37. From Cali f or nia Avenue

to Broad way.

From Br oadway west to Arizona Avenue

the city of Santa Monica now owns a f airly

br oad str i p of beach fr ontage outsid e the walk,

and west of Arizona Avenue f or a quarter of a

mile to Calif ornia Avenue there is a narrow

strip wher e the walk is built up above the tide-

lands. This land can be widened eventually

to seaward by building groins to incr ease its

recreational area.

38. Broad way t o S ant a Monica Pier.

Nine hund red and f ifty f eet of hi-gh value

privately owned p~o perty is not includ ed in

pr o posed acq uisitions.

39 and 40. Santa Monica Pier

and Beaches to Lick Pier .

From Santa Monica Pier to Lick Pier at

the city line there are now a number of narrow

parcels of publicly owned beach outside the

existing walk, and ther e is one small park of an

acr e and a half on the slo pe a bove the walk. In

this str etch f or a bout half the distance the nar-

r ow beach outside the walk is privately owned to tid eland and possibly can be acquired at r ea-

sonable prices, but here again the cost of acqui-

sition is lik ely to be gr eater than the narrow

width add ed to the width of the walk would

justif y, and it is proba bly better policy from

the public point of view to leave the beach here

to be developed eventually farther out by

f illing on existing pu blic lands rather than byrecover y of the pr ivate holdings. .

At Santa Monica Pier, and again at the

Lick Pier , amusement park s have been built

far out over the water on flimsy pile construc-

tion to attr act large crowds with no special pr o-

vi.sion of space for parking of automobiles:

Such facilities should eventually be super seded

by more appropriate and adequate ones under public control.



PLATE 39. Shor es of Venice and the Del R ey mar shes, where a large park and harbor can be d evelo ped

if the land is soon acquired. (P !t ot o by S pence.)

41 and 42. From Lick Pier to

Del Rey Pier through Venice.

Nearly two miles' of beach front in Venice

outside the walk is now publicly owned in va-'

rious parcels, and all of the remaining front-

age amounting to another mile should be ac-

quired, subject to such arrangement as may be

deemed best with owners of existing piers. This

private property lies mostly at the easterly end

of the beach. Some of the land claimed to be

private property is probably really public now

having resulted from filling out upon pUbli~

lands, and is now under litigation. Along most

of this frontage the beach is now too narrow to

render full value to the public and the entir e

beach doubtless should be greatly widened

eventually by proper use of groins or br eak -

waters, but whatever is done should form par t

of a plan for the best possible ultimate use of

this entire section of shore, probably as a pleas-ure bay of large proportions as suggested by

the Venice Branch of theLosAngelesChamber

of Commer ce and as shown in the sk etch plan

herewith pr esented.



43 and 44 . Ballona C r eek M arshes and

Lagoon and P1' o posed Out sid e Mole

and Pleasur e Ba y.

As d escr ibed and r ecommend ed for the park

and par kway system there is o pportunity for

cr eating one of the great r ecr eation f eatur es of

the wor ld at the shor e to includ e the Ballona

Cr eek Mar shes, a mole outside Venice and

Santa Monica and the enclosed Pleasure Bay.

(See Plates 33 and 34·)At the Del R ey Mar shes ther e is now a lar ge

ar ea of low land which can be mad e into a broad

water sid e park to sup plement the beaches that

ar e elsewher e bor dered f or so many miles by

comme'rcial an esid ential buildings. Between

the marshes and the.sand y beaches there is along, narr ow lagoon now popular f or still-

water bathing.

45) 46 and 47. Del Re y Pier and t he Los

- Angeles Hy perion Beach) 33 /z M iles

Long.South of the Del Rey Pier f or some dis-

tance the beach is now fenced in and subdi-

vided ; east of there the Pacif ic Electric car line

follows the base of the bluff on the shore itself,

in some places so close that a high tid e washes

the rock s along the tr ack s. A bove the r ailroad,

the newly constr ucted highway f ollows theedge of the bluff to Hyper ion and there turns

a short distance f arther inland. The public now

owns a bout 3,500 f eet of this fr ontage south of

the su bd ivision and also a mile of fr ontage at

Hy per ion, with a mile of narr ow private pr o p-

erty of limited value between the two. This

private proper ty and a nar row strip at least

along the outer sid e of the subd ivid ed area at

Del Rey should be acq uired to com plete the

shore holdings. The beach at Hy perion is now

public property and insofar as it is not needed

f or sewer outfall purposes, it should be made

availa ble for r ecr eation und er proper inter -de par tmental ar r angements.

48 . H yperion Uplands.A bout 180 acr es of upland is also publicly

owned, str etching f or a mile along the bluffs

and sand dunes. It w ill eventually have ver y

gr eat r ecreational value and should be k ept f or

such purposes, insof ar as it is not need ed by the

Sewer De par tment.

49, 50 and 51. El S egundo and Los

Angeles Count y S hor es Owned b y

St and ar d Oil Com pany. .

The Stand ard Oil Company owns nearly a

mile of shor e fr ont at El Segund o and f arther

east. This shor e f rom the car line and the high-

way down to high tid e is almost all vacant, and

is k e pt fr ee fr om buildings as a pr otection to

their pr o per ty a bove. A shor t str etch is used

f or the pier and accessor y uses. The balance of

the beach should be publicly owned, and it is possible that under certain restrictions f or their

own pr otection the company might r easona bly

tur n this over to the public.

52 and 53. Count y O' lvned Beach

at M anhat t an.

The County und er favora ble opportunity

r ecently acquir ed a bout 1,800' of beach front-

age at the'west ed ge of Manhattan, as another

unit in the public hold ings between the r ail-

road and the shor e.

54 and 55. Manhat t an Beach Sh01'es.The city of Manhattan Beach now owns

a bout half the shore along its fr ontage and the

r emainder in long, narrow parcels of limited

commercial value should be publicly acq uir ed

as o pportunity offer s. The beach thr ough the

city is border ed by the r ailway and by a walk ,

but not by the highway.

56. M anhattan B each Par k.Just back of the shore the city owns a small

par cel of land over looking the sea in which a

pleasing local par k and gather ing place can be

d eveloped.

57) 58 and 59. Cit y o f H ermosa

Beach F ront age.Almost all of the beach frontage of Her -



mosa is now public, in a long, narrow strip out-

side the walk . 420 f eet is pr ivately owned at

the City Pier , and the question of acquiring

that was recently d ecid ed ad ver sely by the city

owing to high value placed upon it. This shor t

parcel has not been includ ed in the recommen-

dations f or acquisition. The entire shor e is f ol-

lowed by a walk on which private pr o perties

face, but the highway and car lines ar e f arther

inland .

60,61,62,63 and 64. Redond o Beach

Shor es.

The North Beach, three-quarters of a mile

long ( No. 6o), is now publicly owned outside

the beach walk. For a quarter of a m ile,

through the center of the city, the beach is oc-

cupied by an amusement zone (No. 61), out-

side a portion of which the city has built a

public pier . This f rontage is not r ecommended

for acquisition. South of the pier to Avenue I,

the beach and bluff s should be publicly ac-

quired for a mile and a half, the easter ly por-

tion to extend up to the nearby public highway,

the Esplanad e.

The city has an 8-acr e park (No. 62) near

the pier that is used intensively at times f or

picnics and large gatherings near the beach, f or '

which it is admirably suited.

At the south end of the city for about a quar-

ter of a mile (No. 64) the beach below the Es-

planade has recently been dedicated as a quasi-

public community beach, and this is not in-

cluded in the r ecommendations for public

acquisition.

65: ,T orrance Beach.

The extreme southerly end of the sand y

beaches of the South Bay District where they

merge into the r ock y shor es of Palos Ver d es is

in the city of Torrance. It is about thr ee-quarter s of a mile long and is bor d er ed by

bluff s and ver y high cliffs, above which the pr i-

vately owned land s are now being subdivid ed

for residences. The beach, bluffs and cliff s

should be, and probably in any case will be, r e-

ser ved for r ecr eation and scenic effect, but are

of more local than regional value.

66, 67, 68, 69, 7 0 and 71. Palos V e1 ,d es

Est at es and Ranch and Lighthouse.These areas lie in the unincor porated terr i-

tory of Los Angeles County, including over 13

miles of coast line. Along the coast a t Palos

Verdes and all the way to Point Fermin in San

Pedr o there is very little sandy beach, the

shore is gener ally rock y, and the shoal water

for a long distance out is f illed with k elp.

A bove the shor e cliff s rise abruptly, so' to 1so' in height, leaving almost no open ground near

sea level. Along the to p of the bluffs for much

of the way a shor e fr ont r oad , the Palos Ver -

des Coast Road, has been built, from which fineviews over the ocean are obtained.

For the fir st five miles f rom the Torrance

Beach the shore and bluff s and a large amount

of canyon and hill land back of the shore, in all

several hundr ed acr es, are quasi- public held in

tr ust for park pur poses f or the benefit of the

local community ( No. 66). The par kway

above the cliff s f ollows the shor e reservation

most of the way and command s fine views that

are protected by the existence of the reser va-

tion along the shor e.

Farther east the coast highway f ollows afifty-foot right of way owned by the County

(Nos. 67 and 68) along or near the top of the

bluff, with f air assur ance that the Coast R oad

will be dedicated eventually 170' wid e, r e-

stricted to pleasure tr avel only, and that an-

other through r oad f ar ther back will be d ed i-

cated to carr y heavy tr affic.

At the Point Vicente Lighth~)Use the U. S.

Government owns about 2,000 feet of f ront-

age ( No. 69).

N ear the easterly end of Palos Verd es R anch

the road was not built along the coast owing tothe a bandonment of the _ f ormer connection

with Pacific Avenue and Paseo Del Mar in San

Pedro, and plans f or possible extension will

depend on the possibility of reopening that

section. A par kway should eventually con-



tinue eastward along the bluff s, possibly to

dr o p down to the seashore along Royal Palms

and \iVhite's Point, then to rise again to con-

nect with Paseo Del Mar in San Pedro east of

\~lhite's Point.

The shores along Palos Verd es are of lim-ited value for general public recreation, and no

acquisition of shores is recommended, except

f or one mile at the easterly end ( N 0.70) where

a lar ge reser vation is proposed in connection

with the park system, to serve as a terminal

feature (No. 7 I) for a large vol ume of traffic

that will come to the shore.

7 2 and 73. Royal Palms Shor e and

l iV hit e's Point t o Paseo Del Mar in

S an Ped ro.

Fr om the Palos Verd es Ranch east line, east-

. ward along the base of the bluff s and \iVhite's

Point the shore and the face of the bluff s

should be acquired, including a suita ble road

location following the shor e past \iVhite'sPoint

( No. 72), then rising to connect with the Paseo

Del Mar in San Pedr o ( No. 73). The con-

struction of a road along the shore will involve

costly shore protection and costly inclines at

either end, but will make a feature of shore

front parkway of great value to the public. It

will ser ve as a local outlet for San Pedro rather

than as a through road in the park system, and

will tur n much traffic into San Pedro from

the west to find its way through city streets

where an extension of the parkway is imprac-

ticable, or to turn back to the San Pedro HilJ

Reservation.

74, 75, 76, 77 and 78. Point F ermin

and the San Ped ro Shor es.

. Of the nearly 2 miles of San Pedro Shore

over 80% is now publicly o'wned, of var ying

width, including much of the bluff s ( Nos. 74and 78). The remaining private proper ty near

the shore ( No. 75) and two parcels on the

bluff s ( Nos. 76 and 77) should be acquired to

complete this park and beach area, wher e al-

y

read y a large number of people go, and where

many more may be expected as the city grows.

79. The H ar bor S ection and

T er minal Island.

Nearly 6 miles of ocean fr ont from San

Pedro across the bay to the old Los Angeles

River, including Terminal Island, is practi-

cally all taken up for Harbor and Commercial

purposes, and aside from minor local recrea-

tion grounds for persons employed in the dis-

trict, this area should be kept free from pleas-

ure seekers and devoted to the commercial and

industrial uses for which it is primarily in-

tended.

8 0. Harbor S ect ion at Long Beach.

Thirty-eight hundred feet of the harbor

lands lying within the breakwater s is now a

public beach belonging to Long Beach. This

section now has considera ble r ecreational

value, but will doubtless be used in time to

meet commercial requirements, f or which it is

well suited; its r ecreational use will then be

largely or wholly lost to the public.

81. Flood Control Channel

and W est Beach.

Three-fourths of a mile of intensively used beach in Long Beach, now publicly owned.

8 2 and 83. Amusement Z one and Mu-

nici pal Pier and Aud it orium.

Over half a mile of the fr ontage o pposite

the main part of the city is occupied by the

amusement zone ( No. 82), the city pier, and

the fill now being made by the city f or an Audi-

torium and other public uses ( No. 83) .

84, 85 and 86. Long Beach fr om the

Aud it orium t o E ast C ount y Line.Four miles of shore east of the Auditorium

in Long Beach, having a fine sand y beach and a

ver y br oad sand y tid eland strip, should all be

publicly owned. Three-fifths is now publicly



[ 80] PARKS, PLAYGR OUNDS AND BEACHES FOR THE Los ANGELES REGIO N

owned ( No. 84), much of that being only a

narrow strip below the high bluff s, with a sea

wall at the base of the bluff practically at flood

tid e level. The city owns the strip of Bluff

Park f or a distance of three-q uarters of a mile(No. 86), over which a fair view can be had

fr om the swar ms of passing automobiles on

Ocean Avenue.

East of the park the bluff s become less and

gr adually disa ppear , and fr om Termino Ave-

nue eastward to Fifty-second Str eet all pr ivate

holdings between the highway with its car line

and the sea should eventually be publicly ac-

quired and ar e now being acquir ed by the city

( N o. 85). East f rom Fifty-second Str eet the

nar r ow strip south of the walk should be ac-

quired to connect with the public beach now

owned by the County. At the east County lineand just beyond , the entire point east of

Seventy-second Str eet should be publicly ac-

quired. From this point a bridge will even-tually be built acr oss Alamitos Channel to

connect with the shor e road farther eastwar d ,

and then the highway along the Long BeachPeninsula will be used by large numbers of

pleasure seek er s.

87 . Alamitos Bay Shores.

Alamitos Bay is the only large inland salt-

water area in the County now used f or r ecr ea-tion. It is of limited extent, having about 3

miles of shores and is only f airly well d evel-

oped f or public use. All the available area in

the nar row str i ps between r oad s or walk s and

the shor e line should be pu blicly acquired and

some additional public r ecreation f acilities

should be established at points where automo-

biles may park in lar ger number s without con-

gesting the shores. For this pur pose it seems

possible that some of the vacant land northeast

of the bay may yet be availa ble.

Five miles long, but immed iately outside

Los Angeles County, the beach between the

highway and the tide-line is followed by thePacific Electric Railway and in places small

cottages have been built and the beach has been

subd ivided, but this entir e str etch should be

acquir ed in connection with the Bolsa Chica

Mar shes. Ther e will be need f or a bathhouse

and a limited amount of shelter , but no ex-

tensive construction need be contemplated at

pr esent. Ther e should be two br id ges over the

railr oad with some automobile parking space

along the shor e side of the track s.

r . Land along

S/ Z O I 'ef r ont.-

Length in

M il es A cqttisition Impr oveme1t t

A.. Now public 14 .... _

B. Now quasi-pu blic 6 _

C. Tobeacq uir ed 32 $13,700,000

11 . Land s back o f Areas in

t lt e highway: Acres

A. Now pu blic 64

B. Nowq uasi- pu blic 188C. To be acq uir ed 206

Ill.Pleasure Bay I m-

provements:

(Par tly char ged un-

d er park and par k-

way plan) Beachshar e .. _



EVEN where local park s and playground s

and school ground s may now ad eq uately

pr ovide f Qt" or dinary daily use, and where

park s and beaches are accessi ble for holid ays

and occasional visits, the· important require-

ments of boys and gir ls just above school age, but not yet established in active employment,

f ull of energy and strength and r a pidly pass-

ing from the contr ol of par ents and teachers,

but not yet held d own by r es ponsibilities of

business, call for some s pecial consid eration.

For these childr en, who ar e just at the "d an-

gerous age" when they will esta blish their

places in the community for good or f or bad,

there is need f or wholesome encour agement

and a fr ee outlet for a lar ge amount of en-

ergy, s pace f or games of active competition

too rough and too widespread ing to be played on the local playgrounds. They need

such areas as ar e provided in Franklin Field

in Boston, with its many acres q f open mea-

dow on which a dozen baseball games ar e

played at the same time, or the gr eat field s

in Pros pect Park in Br ooklyn, and similar

f ield s in Jack son Par k and other park s in Chi-

cago.

To provid e s pace for baseball games, foot-

ball, track events, tennis, swimming and var i-

ous other games and spor ts, with f ield houses,

lock ers, and other necessary conveniences, and to be able to serve large crowds that will gather

at times, each such ar ea should contain 100

acres or more of f air ly levelland.·

Such areas, if they are to meet the particular

purpose for which they are proposed, should

be within easy reach of a lar ge number of young

peo ple at a minimum cost f or tr ans portation.

They should , ther ef or e, be easily accessible by

the str eet car s for a single carf ar e. There

should be one or more such ar eas on each sid e

of t he center of the city.Sever al ar eas have been includ ed and num-

ber ed in the gener al plan f or par k s and par k -

ways (See Plate No. 46) in some orallofwhich

large f ields can be d evelo ped, such as:

3 I. Culver R ecreation Field.

35. R ancho Cienega Recr eation Field.

48. Long Beach Water Land s.

55. South Gate R ecreation Gr ounds.

57. Whittier Narr ows.

59. Lincoln Park and R ecreation Gr ound s.

6 I. Brook sid e Park , Pasad ena.

62. Elysian Park (Chavez Ravine Section)64. Gr iffith Park Playground s.

92. Eaton Canyon Wash.

In each of these ar eas, a s pace large enough

f or an eff ective lar ge athletic field in agr eea ble

park-lik e sur round ings can be f ound and in

several at least, if not all, the land should be

mad e availa ble, if not alread y so, f or such uses.

While some of these ar eas d o not now meet the

r equirements as to accessibili ty, they can d oubt-

less all be mad e easily accessi ble in time. Still

other areas f ar ther out may also be needed in

time in the San Fernand o Valley, the San Ga- briel Valley and the Ballona Creek Basin, for

which other /lar ge reser vations can then be de-

velo ped to meet this need, such as Alondra

Park, the dr ainage basins, and the r eservoir

park s.



[ 82 ] PARKS, PLAYGROU NDS AND BEACHES FOR THE Los ANGELES R EGIO N

DETAILED R ECOMMENDATIONS

31. Culver Recr eat ion F ield .

Culver R ecr eation Field as pr oposed , in-

clud ing the tr iangle between La Cienega Ave-

nue and Venice Boulevard with 160 to 190

acres, is a low flat ar ea suita ble f or such uses.

It~s, however , a little over a mile fr om the end

of the city car line at Rimpau Boulevard , but

is on the Pacific Electric car line.

35. Rancho Cie17 cga Recr eat ion F ield .

Lying east of Angeles Mesa Driveand south

of the line of Ex position Boulevar d and lying

north of pr o posed par k way into the city. About

125 acres of flat land is th er e availa ble, or more

if the pro posed parkway be includ ed . This ar ea

is accessi ble f or a single fare by the yellow car line on Santa Barbar a Avenue less than half a

mile to the south, and by the Thir ty-ninth

Street car line one-quarter mile to the east, and

by the Jef ferson Street line at Ninth Avenue.

48 . T he Long Beach rVat er Land s.

The Long Beach water lands to ser ve Long

Beach and its extension northwar d includ e a

lar ge ar ea that can be and should be mad e

available f or such uses as the city d emands be-

come greater . This area is not now accessible

by a low city tr ansportation f ar e, but is lik elyto be so ser ved in time.

55. S out h Gat e Recr eation Grounds.

At South Gate 600 to 700 acr es of river bot-

tom land is proposed to be acq uired as a park

r eservation. In this ar ea very large athletic

field s can be d evelo ped to ser ve the southeast

section. This area is 9 miles out, and it is not

on a car line at pr esent but is served by the

South Gate Municipal Bus Lines and is a finef ield f or ultimate develo pment.

57 . Whittier N m'l'O'UJS Recr eat ion Park.This park , pr o posed as another lar ge river-

bottom r eservation, has a lar ge acr eage in which

athletic field s can be d evelo ped eventually.

This ar ea is 10 miles fr om the center of t he

city, is near Monte bello, Whittier, EI Monte

and Alham br a, and may in time be served by a

single far e city tr ans por tation line, although it

is not now so served.

59. Lincoln Par k and Recr eat ion Ground s.

J East of and including the pr esent Lincoln

Par k , a lar ge ar ea is easily accessible from aJ1

of the east sid e of the city by North Broad way

and Nor th Main Str eet by street car s for a

single far e, and is crossed by the Pacif ic Elec-

tr ic line. It includ es r ough but usa ble land

that could be mad e into athletic f ields. Par t of

the area is now occupied by the Ascot Race-

tr ack, of d oubtf ul value as such, and there is

an auto camp on the Alhambr a Avenue sid e,

but the land is now nearly vacant and should be acq uir ed f or the pur pose, includ ing boun-

d aries satisfactor y f or the proposed east and west park way as well.

61. Br ooksid e Par k, Pasad ena.

Pasadena now owns lar ge areas in the Ar -

r oyo Seco at Brook sid e Par k that ser ve in part

the purposes of a great athletic field. This par k

will d oubtless be f urther d eveloped on a large

scale for such uses. Brook side Park is now di-

vided f or uses as f ollows:

Playground eqni pment _

Ten n is _

Ma jor s por ts _

Picnic ar eas _

r \utolllo bi Ie park ing _

Pl:11 l red ar eas __ _ _

3 acr es

Iacr e

18 acr es

18 acr es

5 acr es

1 3 acres

58 acr es

Stad iU III 22 acr es -

Autolllobile parking -----15° acres

Golf cour se and und evelo ped ar ea ---290 acr es

62. Elysian Park (C have z Ravine S ection).

Elysian Par k, near the heart of Los An-

geles, on the northerly sid e, is now chiefly

rugged hillto ps, but in the plans to extend the



park to includ e Chavez Ravine and the adja-

cent slopes s pace will be available, es pecially

in the lower section of the ravine, where a

great athletic field can be d evelo ped to meet

the r equir ements of lar ge number s of people,

surrounded by other park f eatur es.

6 4. Grif fith Par k Pla yground.

The city now has Griffith Park Playground,

on a 20 acre tract, a playground and athletic

field of limited extent. This area could be very

materially extend ed to includ e some of the

adjacent water lands. The adjacent lands on

the easterly side of the river ar e subdivided

and becoming built up in small houses, but it

is possible that a fairly large area of such

lands can be acquir ed also, at less cost for ex-

tension to the plant alr ead y esta blished, thancould an equally satisf actor y s pace be f ound

elsewhere. This ar ea is easily accessible from

Glend ale and f rom Ed end ale and the easterly

end of Hollywood.

92. E at on Can' )'on T i llas I t .

In Eaton Canyon Vvash 500 acr es of the

wash and adjacent slo pes are recommend ed

f or acquir ement, and in that area a lar ge ath-

letic field to ser ve the east sid e of Pasad ena

and adjacent towns on the east can be devel-

o ped .

ESTIMATE OF COSTS

An estimate has been mad e of the pr o bable

cost for acquisition of areas not yet owned and

for development of athletic ground s at each

area, insof ar as such d evelo pment is lik ely

to be needed for some time to come. This f ol-

lows:

Cost of acquisition _

Im provements _

---- ------$4-,700,000

- - 2,500,000

This calls f or r elatively little cost on some

areas and high cost on other s. For those ar eas

where a much lar ger r eser vation is r ecom-

mended in the general park plan than is need -

ed f or athletics alone, a f air por tion of the

total estimated cost has been included her e.



- .R ECOMMENDATIO NS FOR LAR GE R ESER VATIO NS IN

THE main Los Angeles R egion as her ein

. considered, lying between the mountains

and the sea, obviously d oes not includ e all the

area~ of recreational value to the people of theregion. With the great use of the automo bile,

the range f or pleasur e seek er s even in l ar ge

numbers has been gr eatly extend ed, and the

need f or s pecial pr ovision for r ecr eation in the

outlying r egions has already been keenly felt.

The County has acquired and developed

sever al ar eas for recreation in the mountains,

and the City of Los Angeles has d eveloped

four recr eation camps at a long distance fr om

the city. The Government also has develo ped

r ecreational ar eas in the Angeles National For -

est, and there ar e other ar eas far within theinter ior of the f or est, of limited extent and

wid ely se parated one fr om another, that could

be used by a large number of visitor s if made

sufficiently. accessible. They can be made ac-

cessible by providing reasonably saf e and di-

rect r oads, and by pr ovid ing the necessar y con-

veniences, such as running water , some f orms

of shelter , toilet f acilities and sanitation, and

stor es f or f ood and camping supplies.

With the constr uction of d ams in the San

Ga br iel Canyon, the pr esent route thr ough the

Canyon will necessar ily be diver ted and may be super seded at least in part by a route far -

ther east through Little Dalton Canyon and

the east f or k of the San Gabriel River to

Vincent Gulch and Big Rock Cr eek and to the

deser t beyond with a connection also to Big

Pines R ecr eation Camp. This would be dis-

tinctly a canyon bottom r oute, and while it

would have many attractive featur es, it will

lack that par ticular inter est which is to befound in a high-level r oute thr ough the high

mountains. The San Gabriel Canyon r oad is

now being extend ed to Crystal Lak e, and some

r oad will d oubtless be carr ied from ther e over

the mountains also to Big Rock Creek, but will

be fairly stee p. A mountain road to aff ord the

greatest scenic value, however, should start

near L a Canada, pass ar ound the head of the

Arroyo Seco as now planned by the State Divi-

sion of Highways, f ollow the r idges fr om

ther e around the west end of the San Ga briel

Canyon to o pen up the mountain plateausalong the r idge, then drop down into R ock

Cr eek and there connect with the Big Pines

Recreation Camp· road. Farther west in the

mountains ther e have been suggestions for

r oads over the mountains to Palmd ale for

commercial use, either along the Ar r oyo Seco

and around the head of the Tujunga Canyon,

or thr ough a canyon farther west. Neither of

those r outes, however, will r each land that has

any ver y great r ecr eational value.

In the mountains and in the d eser t in the

northern part of the County there are severalf eatures of r ecreational value and public in-

terest, nota bly the top of Lie bre Mountain in

the National Forest, now partly in private

owner ship, together with its delightful north-

er n slo pes; the Josh ua tr ees and the open d es-



PLATE 4-0. San Gabriel mountains from mouth of T uj unga Canyon, showing stee p, barr en hillsides,

off er ing little or no r ecreation s pace above the valley floor . (Photo by F iss .)

ert along the north County line, including the

bed of R osamond Lake, which is dr y much of

the time, but is a ty pical desert feature with

its fr equent mirages of consid er a ble scenic in-

terest; and the big Joshua trees at the east end

of the Antelo pe Valley. To get into those areas

thr ough f airly agr eeable pleasure r outes, it

would be possible to construct a pleasureway

circuit from Newhall Tunnel nor thward,along

the western base of t he mountains, east of the

occupied areas of Newhall and Saugus; then to

follow up the Eliza beth Lake r oad to R adium

S prings; then to climb up to near the to p of theridges of Sawmill Mountain and into Liebr e

Mountain, with a br anch d own the northeast

slope of Liebr e Mountain thr ough Oak grove

Canyon, and f r om ther e to the lar ge gr oup of

Joshua trees near Neenach; thence cross the

d esert, north of the cultivated areas, to R osa-

mondLak e and to the grove of big Joshua trees

between Antelo pe Valley and Wilsona Valley,

and connect fr om there southwar d to the Big

Pines R ecreation Cam p road and the roadways

in and over the mountains toward Pasadena,

Glendor a and the other foothill cities. All the

privately owned land s along such routes are

of ver y low economic value and the pu blic

owner shi p of a liberal mar gin of land along

such routes, k e pt in its natur al condition, would

be of gr eat scenic and r ecr eational value to the peo ple of the Los Angeles Region. In the

Owens Valley, f ar north of the County line,

the City of Los Angeles owns many thou-

sands of acr es of land f ormerly cu ltivated but



PLATE 41. Top of Liebr e Mountain, looking down onto nearby ridges, showing l1ati,-e gr owth not

yet ruined by fir e or cutting; should be developed as a public r ecr eation par k.

now r eturned to deser t because the water has

been tak en f or city use. This area even though

r emote has some value f or r ecr eation and may

eventually attract many pleasure seekers, especially in winter .

Within the County there are also the island s

lying some distance off th~ coast, having very

consid erable possible value f or r ecreation for

those who can afford the time and ex pense re-

q uir ed to reach them. Santa Catalina is pr i-

vately owned and is d evelo ped in part f or com-

mer cial r ecr eation. San Clemente, lying farth-

er out, is owned by the National Government,

under the Lighthouse Department, and should

be valuable eventually as a County or State

recreation and cam ping place when ther e isenough demand to war rant the ex pense of

eq uipping and running a recreation station

there and of esta blishing tr ansportation routes

by air or by water or both. It is now chiefly

harr en, and almost without water , and unin-

ha bited , but h as a f air har bor and a lar ge area

with some ver y attr active featur es, canyons,

cliff s, and volcanic cones as well as inter esting

shores. So too, the wester ly end of Santa Cata-lina, with the harbor at the isthmus would

mak e an excellent public r eser vation.

Other r ecr eational ar eas, such as those in

the San Bernardino and San Jacinto Moun-

tains, d raw heavily fr om Los Angeles, and

might eventually be includ ed in a plan either

as an extension of the Los Angeles System or

as State Park s, or as parts o f other Metr o poli-

tan Systems f or the counties east of Los An-

geles.

The Park system as proposed pr ovid es also

for , I 2

or 13 outlets at the County bound ar iesf rom which extensions should be developed

eventually through adjacent counties, and to

which especial attention of the adjacent coun-

ties may well be invited.

I n t he mountain ar eas the lar gest cost to



pr ovide f or recreation will und oubtedly be

that for road constr uction, and the value of the

investment in these roads will depend largely

on the method s and manner of road construc-

tion and the control of adjacent land s. The

use of the road s involves f our kinds of activi-

ties: fir st, dr iving along and enjoying views

and events of the road; second , pausing in the

car t o enjoy points of s pecial scenic inter est;

thir d , sto pping to picnic or to en joy other

forms of isolated outdoor r ecr eation near the

car; and four th, parking the car usually at

some park ing center and leaving it to go else-

where on foot. Each of these f our inter ests

can be, and should be, pr ovided for in the

mountain road s, without at the same time de-

tr acting from the en joyment of the r oad inother ways. Car s parked or pausing on the

outer edge of the road necessar ily red uce the

enjoyment of the road fr om passing car s. So,

too, car s in the outer lane of travel ser iously

cut off the enjoymen~ for people tr aveling

next the hillsid e and even the wid ening of the

roadway to pr ovide f or several lines of travel

cuts off the plunging mountain views f r om

persons using the inner lanes. Ther efore,

wher e roads ar e mad e for en joyment at so high

a cost per mile as is inevitable in the mountains,

some ad ditional cost can well be justified to

o bviate this f eature, by extra grad ing and

planting if need be, through providing even

small hillsid e or woodland "nook s" or d e-

tours, near to but scr eened f rom and not in the

way of the main tr affic. Such nooks can be on

higher or lower levels, and as stub end s or as

loo ps, so long as they affor d s pace enough for

a f ew cars and a chance to turn around .

Where many cars will be park ed in a scenic

r egion it is well worth spend ing a consid er a ble

amount of . money and of ingenuity to r ender the mass of cars less conspicuous, either behind

belts of planting or by parking in "groves," the'

car s being at least partly hidd en under and

among the tr ees.

Wher e the volume of traffic in both direc-

tions is a considerable one, in mountain reg-

ions and where cross-over s are not needed at

frequent intervals, there is a great ad vantage

in having two one-way r oads of limited width

and each on its ind e pend ent location. The ad -

vantage of safety in travel as well as the added

o pportunity f or en j oying the scenery ,free f rom

interruption by vehicles passing in the oppo-

site dir ection, is of very gr eat importance. The

d anger of meeting on the turns of mountain

road s, the glare of headlights at night, and the

constant passing of vehicles is a factor of con-

sider a ble irritation that can be eliminated by

one-way r oads. Two roads may cost more than

one wider one, and two may provide less eff ec-

tively for travel when the peak load is chief ly

going in one direction, but two r oad s will give

infinitely more enj oyment to the tr aveler s

whose chief reason for traveling is to find en-

j oyment. Where preliminary constr uction

calls for making a two-way road, twenty or

twenty-f ive feet wid e now, but wher e a greater

capacity will be needed later, it is often pos-

sible to plan the location so that the additional

width can later be provided in an ind epend ent

second r oad , so as to give ultimately the ad -

vantages of two one-way r oad s.

Enjoyment of scenery from an automobile,

moving as fast as practica ble, is much mor e

possible with broad open scenery from high

level road s wher e the near by f eatur es are un-

impor tant than in narr ow canyons and inti-

mate small scale landsca pe where the scenes

are passed so rapidly that no really good views

ar e possible. In general, the canyons should be

protected fr om the r ush of thr ough travel,

and main r oads should be placed where pos-

sible on the view-command ing slopes and r idges, where they will also best ser ve f or fire

pr otection.



....... :::::o



[ 89 ]

Lengt h A" ea

zn zn

M iles Acres C lass

2 1,290 A

7 D

20 D

2" F)

82 F

160 F

18 F

---- 50,000 C

SUMMAR Y OF PROPOSED OUTLYING

RESERVATIONS AND PARKWAYS

The letter ed classes are referr ed to in the last column or

the next table.)

. Large R eser vations in f or ests._ _ ___ __ 14

. Large R eser vations in deser L ___ ___ __ 10

. Island R eservations _

. Connecting park r oad s in forests __ 97

. Connecting par k road s not inforests 8 I

Camps in mountains _

19,745

7,5 00

60,000

4,800

285

LIST OF EXISTI NG A ND PROPOSED PARK

RESERVATIONS AND PARKWAYS

I N OUTLYING REGIONS

(Number s on the left margin r efer to number s on Plate

No. 42. Letter s at the r ight r ef er to the class of use for

which each is r ecommended.)

Length

W id t h in

in Feet M iles

Ar ea

ZIt

Acr es C lass

WI-Newhall Parkway 200-500 20 1000 E

0z-Elizabeth Lak e Can-

yon and L ie b r eM t.

R oad (mostly through

for est land ) ------------200-500 20 D03-Lie bre Mountain R es-

er vation (10,000 acres

of National Forestland s) - 15,000 7

204-Neenach Park way 500 8

205-Neenach Joshua trees

r eser vation ----- _ ____ ___ _ 5,000

z06-Antelope Valley Par k -

way -------------------------- 500 35

207-Lovejoy Joshua treesreser vation _ __ 10,000 5

208-R ock Cr eek Park way _ _ 500 18

z09-Big Pines Park Road 500 5

2Io-Big Pines R ecr eation

Camp (existing coun-

ty reservaton) ---------- 5

21 I-R ock Cr eek to Ar royo

Seco R idge R oad and

R eser vations _ _ -------500-5,000 42

2 I 2-Mt. Idip Road s _ __ _ _ _ _ 3

12,000 A

500 E

2,500 B

2,200 E

5,000 B

1,100 E

D

4,200 A

D

D

W idth

in F eet

213-Crystal Lake Reser-

vation (existing coun-ty r eser vati on) _

zI4-Devil's Canyon R oad

215-Big Pines Vincent

Gulch and LittleDal ton Road _

2 16-Camp Seeley, City of Los Angeles _

2 I 7-Camp R adford, Cityof Los Angeles _

2I8-Camp High Sier r a,

City of Los Angeles._

z I 9-Camp Oak Flats, Cityof Los Angeles. _

220--San Clemente Island

(Owned by U. S.) _

22 I-Angeles National For -est, Miscellaneous

Ar eas that should be

acquir ed (The An-

geles National For est

contains 670,682

acr es within the coun-

ty r ; J which 41,62Z

acr es ar e a lie n ate d ,

leaving 629,060

acr es U. S. land)

222-Por tion of Santa Cat-alina Island _

DETAILED R ECOMMENDATIO NS

201. N e7.vha ll Par k7 .vay .

From San Fernando Valley toward the

northwest ther e is now a main traveled high-

way through the Newhall Tunnel, and another

par allel to it and a little f ar ther westward is

being develo ped , and through the pass r uns

also the Southern Pacific R ailroad. A parkway

r oute should be develo ped farther eastwar d

through Gr apevine Canyon to cross the foot-

hills a little above the pass and to f ollow along

the easterly side of the railroad along the

present highway fOlJa mile or so, then to f ol-

low und eveloped lands east of the railroad, to

cr oss over t h e r ailroad and highways at Sole-

d ad Canyon and to f ollow around the easter ly

sid e of the Santa Clara River Valley, u p the

easterly sid e of the Castaic Valley, parallel to



but separ ated fr om the Rid ge Route. Through

Elizabeth Lak e Canyon it should turn nor th-

eastward to the f or est boundar y.

This r oute would involve some heavy con-

str uction, but passes thr ough inter esting coun-try that, if pr otected fr om fir e and f rom d e-

vastation, can be k e pt attractive. Much of the

land is of limited comme"rcial value and a wid e

right of way should be acquired.

202. Eli zabeth Lak e C an yon and Liebl·e

M ount ain Road.

A bove the f or est line the park road should

follow the valley f or some distance a bove

\Varm Springs. The entire valley should be

held as a reser vation and the few private hold -

ings should be publicly acquir ed. A bove vVarmS prings the canyon becomes narr ow and ver y

crooked and a bout two and one-half miles

fr om the springs the r oad should turn west-

ward in a branch canyon to rise to the sadd le

at its head; then should f ollow the side of

Sawmill Mountain, rising northwestward to

the notch between this and Lie br e Mountain.

This section will involve ver y heavy constr uc-

tion a n d need not be consid ered until the d e-

mand f or it becomes sufficient to warr ant the

work or until Lie bre Mountain is mad e a po pu-

lar recreation camp, but the right of wayshould be planned and it is possible that a fire

road might well be built along the line in an

effort to prevent further great fire losses, and

that the forest ar ea may r ecover sufficiently in

time from the last great fir es to make the r oute

more inviting than it is now.

203. Liebr e M olt1t tain Reservat ion.

In the northwest corner of the Angeles Na-

tional For est there is a fine r olling mountain

to p just a mile above sea level, extend ing f or

several miles eastward f r om the Rid ge R outeat Sandber gs, and having a native f or est cover

not yet ruined by f ire, wher e a lar ge r ecreation

park somewhat similar in function to the Big

Pines R ecr eation Cam p, but radically diff erent

in hnd sca pe char acter , might be develo ped . A

small portion of the hill is privately owned ,

and should be acq uir ed at once by the pu blic.

At the base of the north slo pe of the mountain,

ther e are attractive small valleys containing

some f ine oak s and pines and beautiful pastoralscenes that should be mad e a part of the reser -

vation by acquiring the privately owned lands.

Thr ough the reser vation a road fr om the

R id ge R oute eastwar d along t he top, then

br anching both" ways to d escend to Sawmill

Mountain Notch would ser ve to afford access

and to open up the interior, and f rom thel-e

westward down the north slope it would aff ord

access to the pastor al land s at the base of the

mountain.

204. Neenach Par k 'Z .vay.Fr om Sawmill Notch a park r oad should

f ollow westward down the north f ace of Lie-

bre Mountain to meet the old r oad where it

cr osses the sadd le, then turn northeastward

along the old road out Oak gr ove Canyon, and

f ollow the Los Angeles Aqueduct eastward

into the Antelo pe Valley, where the large

groups of Joshua tr ees now stand , a d istance

of eight miles thr ough inter esting country and

some trees, though the r egion has recently

been terribly devastated by f ir e.

205. N eet lach J oshua T r ees Reservat ioll.

Near Neenach ther e is a group of Joshua

trees on a sandy plain slo ping gently toward

the north, sever al thousand acres in extent. The

land now has little value. This is an interesting

bit of the desert, within fairly easy r each of

Los Angeles, and it can well be pr eser ved un-

changed in its natural condition.

206 . Ant elo pe Valle y Par k ' Z.va y.

Fr om the Neenach Joshua trees eastward acr oss the Antelo pe Valley f or a d istance of 35

miles a parkway is pr o posed, to follow along

the north edge of the f arming d istrict ar ound

Lancaster close to the County boundary, and

to includ e a stri p of deser t land wide enough



to form a foreground of desert conditions

and to control some of the views over the val-

ley and surrounding hills. This strip should be

400 to 500 feet wide, and wider where inter-

esting buttes and other features occur, and

should extend in places to the edge of Rosa-mond Lake, usually dry, where fine mirages

are to be found. East of Rosamond Lake it

should turn southeast toward the big Joshua

trees in the Lovejoy Buttes and the bed of

Rock Creek.

207. Lovejoy Joshua Trees Reservation.

At the eastern end of Antelope Valley and

just north of the Rock Creek entrance into the

mountains, there is a large expanse of waste

desert land, some of which should be included in a reservation to preserve its natural char-

acter . The reservation should include the very

large Joshua trees, some of the river bed, and

some of the buttes that have little value for

any economic use but are very picturesque and

interesting as landscape features.

208. Rock Creek Parkway.'

From the Lovejoy Joshua trees to the

mountains the route should follow the east-

er ly side of Rock Creek Wash up to a pointwhere it can cross the creek to j·oin the present

road into the mountains.

209. Big Pines Park Road.

From the mouth of Rock Creek Canyon to

Big Pines Recreation Camp a new road has re-

cently been constructed on good lines and

grades to serve both as a general highway and

as a parkway to the recreation camp. In time

this road will have to be widened and it is pos-

sible that in places two one-way roads can bemade to serve better than a single broad road .

As this is primarily a pleasure route special

care should be taken to protect the scenery

along the way, and any private property that

now exists, should either be acquired, or else

restricted against building for some distance

back from the road.

210. Big Pines Recr eation Camp.

To meet the urgent need for big open rec-reation grounds in the mountains near the city,

the County of Los Angeles has wisely acquired

a large reservation at Big Pines, containing a

variety of most interesting and attractive scen-

ery. This area has been made available to the

public by building good roads and by provid-

ing shelters, fireplaces, stores and other neces-

sary accommodations. In order to meet the

needs of a large number of visitors, some for a

day, some for longer, a number of local recrea-

tional facilities have been developed and

doubtless more will follow.The success of the camp with its large at-

tendance is leading to serious problems of wear

and tear and of congestion. The big pines and

firs, among the chief charms of the region, can

stand only a limited amount of trampling and

cutting and regrading about their roots, and in-

tensive use of the grounds may so affect these

trees that they will become weakened and will

fall ready prey to the ravages of pests and

diseases. Ther efore, it may be necessary very

soon to limit the use to a part of the ground s

under the trees in a w ay to give others achance to grow.

Other problems of handling many auto-

mobiles and of adding buildings will have to

be met. Ingem~ty and skill may permit more

intensive use without destroying the charm of

the place; but in any case there are limits on

the amount of use that can safely be permitted .

Such conditions are acutely felt now at the

Yosemite and among the "big trees" where

large crowds gather to enjoy the natural con-

ditions, and by so gathering tend to destroy

those very conditions they have come to enjoy.

211. Rock Cr eek to Arroyo Seeo,

Ridge Road and Reservations.

From the existing roads in Rock Cr eek to



the Arroyo Seco, a distance of over 20 miles,

there is now no way to tr avel thr ough the

mountains. Various plans have been consid-

ered for roads for through tr avel, for f ir e pro-

tection, and for access to recreation ar eas in the

mountains. Sur veys have been consid er ed f or shor t r outes fr om Pasadena and fr om Azusa

or San Dimas to the d esert, and in 19 I9 a r e-

por t was made by. Mr . J . B. Li ppincott to the

Automobile Club of Southern Calif or nia rec-

ommending a consolid ation of eff or ts to d e-

velop one master road over the r id ges between

Rock Cr eek and Arroyo Seco.

Alread y the State is planning to construct

a r oad up the sid e of Arr oyo Seco to the saddle

back of Mount Wilson at R ed Box, and the

For est Service has built a nar r ow road f r om

Mount Wilson thr ough R ed Box to BarleyFlats and along the r id ge from there east and

north to Little Pine Flats and beyond . Along

that r oute, one r oad or two one-way road s,

dod ging heavy constr uction and high scar s

'where possible, but passing through the most

inter esting points and areas, will serve as a

par kway, a tr affic road , and a means of pr o-

tecting the forest r eser vation.

Along this route there are only a f ew sites,

of limited area, suita ble for gener al recreation.

Those areas can be made accessi ble only at ver y

large cost, but have a high recreational value.

Plans have been consid ered by the For est Ser v-

ice for leasing ca bin sites at Barley Flats and

f or turning over to Pasad ena a lar ge ar ea at

Little Pine Flats. Those ar eas will r epresent

actually millions of d ollars of value by the

time saf e and satisf actor y roads are completed

to them, and they may have ver y high value

f or general recreation at that time. Ther ef ore,

it is believed that those and other ar eas along

the pr o posed road way should be r eserved for

the gener al public and be developed under such plans as may produce the most general

benefit r ather than be d evoted to pr ivate cabin

sites. Possi bly small sites in those ar eas should

be leased to cities or clu bs f or s pecial d evelo p-

ment in such a way as to start activities and

encour age their use.

All private holdings along this route should

be publicly acquired now in ad vance of road

building bef or e high values in them may have

been created at public ex pense.

212. C r ystal Lake Reservat ion.

The County has recently acq uired a r eser-

vation of 1,290 acres ar ound Crystal Lak e to

includ e the f ine canyon basin and pine groves.

A road is being built into the basin and d evel-

o pment is proposed for this ar ea. A consid er -

a ble plant f or r ecr eational purposes will be

need ed here and it is possible that und er a care-

fully d esigned plan a complete plant can be

develo ped in a way to preserve the natur al

char m of the basin and still to make ad eq uate

pr ovision f or the need s of the peo ple. Such

a plan should be mad e with much car e, to avoid

possible wasteful and d estructive changes that

other wise may pr ove necessary later, and to

pr eserve as much as possible o f t he natural

charm.

214. Devil's Canyon Road .

From Crystal Lake a road is b~ing built

down the canyon to Cold brook Camp and be-

yond . Below Colsl br ook this r oad may be cutoff by a Sar i Ga briel R eservoir and a new

road will be need ed to the east fork of the San

Ga briel. Such a r oad proba bly can best cr oss

fr om near Coldbr ook to the head of Devil's

Canyon; then dro p down across the cliff s of

the ridge to Ir on Canyon, and d own Ir on Can-

yon to the floor of East San Ga br iel Gorge,

though such a route will involve heavy con-

struction through' extr emely r ugged country.

215. Big Pines-Vincent Gulch and

Little Dalton Canyon Road.Portions of a road are now being built that

will make a f airly direct r oute between Big

Pines Camp and San Dimas, r unning over

Blue Rid ge fr om the camp, then dropping to



ANGELES NATIONAL FORESTCALIFORNIA

SAN BERNARDINO MERIDIAN

192E

_ N _ . . .. _ • . . _ -~ ... -.,. -~,-=~--:"'''''''=---

it _

• G __ e _

£. T"",,,--_

. . ~---~---• . . . • . .T.eN.

. I

1 / V-V-

KEY I

I• RECReATION CA NP! SITes

• CANP SITES II~ AREAS NOT P U B L I C I '

ARe.AS BURNED IN 8 c.AR:3

- NATIO N A L r OR D5 BOUN D RY

rLOOD C O NT ROL e.SE..RVOIRS



the Pass at t he head of Vincent Gulch, then

down the gulch and the gorge of the San Ga-

briel to the head of the proposed San Gabr iel

Reservoir . From ther e the road should turn

westward to rise ar ound the basin of Horse

Canyon and to cr oss the front range; then towind d own the head of Little Dalton Canyon

and to connect with roads already built u p the

canyon.

.216 . Cam p S eeley.

25 acres in San Bernardino National For est.

217. Cam p Radf or d.

82 acres in San Ber nar dino National Forest.

218 . Cam p H igh Sierra.160 acr es in Inyo National For est.

219. Camp Oak Flats.

18 acr es in Angeles National For est.

These f our cam ps oper ated by the City of

Los Angeles are designed to serve vacation-

ists and campers primar ily, and are located far

fr om the city, where attractive conditions exist.

220. San C lement e I sland .

The Island of San Clemente is 50 miles

south of Point Fermin. It belongs to the N~-

tional Government and has been reser ved f or

lighthouse purposes. The island , 20 miles long

and 3 t o 5 miles wide, contains about 50,000

acres. It is now leased f or sheep grazing and

the steeper, attractive nor th slopes are being

bad ly eroded, due to trampling and gr azing.

The entir e island should eventually be used

for a public pleasur e r esort. There is no water

on the island, but a r eser voir can be built inone of the larger canyons to hold enough water

for d omestic uses. Bathing beaches and a f ine

small har bor at the southeast end of f er chance

for bathing and boating. The lar ger area could

be treated as a game and bird preserve.

221. Angeles N ational Forest and Mis-

cellaneous Areas Ther ein T hat

Should be Acquired .The Angeles National For est contains in

all 690,540 acr es, of which 670,682 acr es lie

in the County. This area includ es 41,622 acr es

that have been alienated , leaving 629,060 acr es

of public lands. About two-fifths of this ar ea

is in the f orest above Saugus and three-fifths

in the near er section. Most of the areas alien-

ated are held as water pr eserves, but there are

a number of small areas in pr ivate hands that

should be pu blicly acq uired to protect the res--

er vation for general recreation. In all, about

2,,255 acres of such holdings have been listed by the United States Forest Service as likely

to lead to undesirable develo pment or usage

if not so acq uir ed, and these should be acq uir ed

at once by the Los Angeles Region, since the

Forest Ser vice is not now in a position to ac-

quire them, and since it is mainly for the ser v-

ice of the people of the Region that they are

needed.

222. Santa Catalina I sland .

The wester ly end of Santa Catalina Island

is now unused and is of limited commer cialvalue. The isthmus and its small har bor , with

the nearby slopes on the east and with the

westerly end of the island , might wellbe ac-

quired as a public reservation to be d eveloped

when d emand is suf f icient to warrant the neces-

sar y expense.

ESTIMATE OF COSTS

An estimate has been mad e of the pro ba ble

cost of acq uir ing and of improving all of the

a bove listed units, based on t he present sales

values of pro perty near each unit, and on theamount of wor k d eemed justifiable to make

each unit available to the pu blic. These esti-

mates are as follows:



Lengt lt Area in C ost o f C ost o f

M iles Acres A cquisit ~on I mpr ovement T ot al Co.r !

. - 1 . . Lar ge R eser vations 111 For ests _ _ ----~-------------- 14-.0 19,74-S $ 14-0,000 $ 800,000 $ 94-0,000

B . Lar ge R eser vations 111 Dese r t ________ __ _ _ __ ___ _ _ _ 10.0 7,SOO 110,000 200,000 310,000

C. Island R eser vations ------------------------------------ 60,000 100,000* SOO,ooo SOo,OOO

D. Connecting par k road s in For ests _ _ _ _ _ _ _ __ _ ______ __ g7·0 SO,ooo 9,000,000 9,oso,000F Connecting par k road s not in Forests ________ _ _ _ ' _ 81.0 4-,800 300,000 '2,300,000 2,700,000

F. Pu blic Cam ps in MOll n ta ins.. _ _ __ _ _ ___ __ _ ________ _ _ 28S 0 _ _ ___ _ --------- ----------------

202 92,330 $700,000 $ 12,800,000 $ 13,Soo,000

~·Thc cost of acquiring the islands m u st depend on negotiations, possible concessions or gifts and other factors; theref ore) only anomiml! f igure is used here.

On the basis of the above figures a r elative-

ly small amount of money is need ed f or the

acquisition of land s, while a lar ge amount is

need ed f or r oad building and making the ar eas

available f or use, es pecially in the mountains.

The improvements may be mad e graduallyover a long per iod of year s. Doubtless a con-

sid er a ble shar e will be paid by the State Divi-

sion of Highways and the National Fq r est

Ser vice, and many of the r oad s will be built

by the County, whether a systematic park pr o-

gr am is adopted or not. But many o f the land

acquir ements are now ur gent. -



THE most extensive and possibly the most

urgently needed class of park and recrea-

tion facilities recommended for the Los An-

geles Region is thaf of parkways and related

large parks. The general considerations con-trolling this group of subjects, the meaning of

the term "pleasureway parks" or parkways, as

used in this report, and the extraordinary im-

porlance of such parks to a metropolis of the

automobile age and particularly for Los An-

geles, are set forth in Chapt~r I, pages 12-14.

Their relation to flood control and water con-

servation problems is discussed in Chapter I, page 14. The gen,eral character of such parks

and the contrast between them and more or

less decorated highways to which the terms

"boulevard" and "parkway" are often applied,

are indicated by the illustrations (Plates 4, 5,

53 and 56).Westchester County, in the New York Re-

gion, offers the most up-to-date example in this

sort of development, which is everywhere be-

coming urgent in response to the demands of

a new age. It had in 1927 a length of approxi-

mately 140 miles of parkways in a total COU11-

ty area of less than 450 square miles, with

5.6 per cent its total area in parks, mainly of

this type. Westchester County occupies a posi-

tion corresponding to the outer parts of the

Los Angeles Region, having an average dens-ity of population in 1927 of a little less than

two per acre, but directly in the tide of outer

suburban residential development of the bet-

ter sort. What this would mean in the Los An-

geles Region is suggested in a diagram (Plate

44).Elsewhere in the New York Region and in

many other metropolitan regions-such asBoston, Cleveland, Chicago, Minneapolis,

Kansas City, Seattle, Portland, Oregon, and

Portland, Maine-there are excellent exam-

ples of real parkways; and in most metropoli-

tan regions there are intermediate types shad-

ing off gradually from real parks, through

admirable but generally narrower and more

citified parkways, both informal and formal, to

so-called parkways and boulevards which are

but slightly glorified streets.

In creating any extensive system of parks in

a region like that of Los Angeles where urban

and suburban growth has been active, critical

places are almost inevitably encountered

through which it is of the utmost importance to

secure a reasonably pleasant and convenient

connection but where the cost or physical diffi-

culties of securing a parkway really worthy of

the name would be prohibitive. There it is the

part of wisdom to introduce a different sort of

link in the chain, good of its sort but different.

An occasional narrow neck of no appreciable

length with ample widenings on either end of

the neck need not impair the park-like quality

at cill. Much irregularity of boundaries is infact desirable as facilitating the introduction of

many special features of park value which

could nowhere be secured if the width were



less fluctuating. A general tr imming d own of

width f or consid er able distances, however ,

would r esult in an unprofitable compr omise,

costing as much but less eff ective than if part

of the length wer e an ad equate par k, withgood scenery and o ppor tunities for many park

functions besides mere driving through, and

the rest were a narrower parkway of a f rank ly

different ty pe. Some cr oss sections at various

parts o f the proposed system have been mad e

to illustrate what should be d one (Plate No.

48).There is no standard ,for the amount of ar ea

that should be d evoted to large par k s in any

one region, to say nothing of real parkways,

which ar e a peculiarly modern need that has

only r ecently begun to be met. But the lack of

large par k s in most sections of the Los AngelesRegion and the absolute lack of real parkways,

is evid ent (See Plate No. 17). In the I,500

sq uar e miles of the R egion, ther e are now 33

park s of over 25 acres each, and only I2 of

these are of more than IOOacr es. The I2 have

an aggregate area of 7,539 acr es, or a bout one-

half of one per cent of the total ar ea of the

region, and even then a pproximately half the

acreage consists of stee p and rugged mountain

land s in Gr iffith, Elysian and Br and Par k s.

In the lar ge centr al ur ban area, approxi-

mately 20 miles in diameter , where most of the peo ple live, ther e is now but one possible

park way extending east and west through Ely-

sian and Griffith Park s, and but one route north

through the Ar royo Seco that possibly can be

extended southward f ron1 Elysian Park to the

Baldwin Hills. In this urban ar ea, ther e are a

large number of rad ial str eets lead ing out in

various d ir ections, many of which have been

d esignated as "boulevard s" and on some of

which an effort is mad e to maintain trees and to

k ee p the r outes attr active, but the gener al d e-

mand for ver y wide pavements for large vol-

umes of traffic has been so gr eat that most of

these inter ior routes have been paved f or al-

most their entire width, and very little space

is lef t f or planting.

Ther efore, most of the travel or iginating

within the urban distr ict must pro bably con-

tinue in the future as it has in the past, to f ind

its way thr ough existing highways out to the

regions in which par k s and par k ways can rea-sona bly be established, and tr avel f rom the

outsid e must either find its way around the city

through the pr oposed park way system, or cross

thr ough the center by the ordinary highways,

even though this ar ea, 20 miles in d iameter,

contains the people most in need of access to

park f acilities, and is near ly as large as the re-

gion in which the entire Boston system of City

and Metropolitan Park s has been d eveloped

(See Plate No. 45).

The plans as proposed contemplate the ac-

quisition of a r elatively lar ge amount of land,

but the areas have been selected, so f ar as pos-sible, to use much land which, though less valu-

a ble for commercial, industrial, or resid ential

use, has great value f or par k and recreation

purposes.

The total area of this proposed regional sys-

tem of par k ways and large parks, including

I6,000 acr es of existing publicly owned parks,

water lands, and similar ar eas is a p proximately

70,000 acr es, and the aggregate length of the

pro posed routes is 440 miles. Seventy thou-

sand acr es is a large amount of park land , but,

looking to the futur e of this extr aord inary re-gion, it seems entirely r easona ble. It is only

a bout 7 I/3 per cent of t he total ar ea of the

region. This percentage would be almost im-

perce ptibly increased by including the limited

ar ea of t he beaches, which cannot be precisely

ex pressed in acr es because of their ind ef inite

outer bound ary, while the gradual increase,

with the s pr ead of population, of local play-

gr ounds and other strictly local r ecr eation

areas, not includ ed in this r egional system,

might be ex pected ultimately to incr ease the

percentage a few points further. The island s,

deserts, f or ests and mountains with relatively

lar ge acreages f or r ecr eation, lie wholly out-

side the Region.

As an objective , and f or a metr opolis that is



o

N7R p.p,r n'JRRR ,..

RCO t'1!iT povr C

':"'I'

? } ~ ~ ' J ; ' : - ; ' :

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:,.~.~i

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N

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t - - 1 H ~ - - ·

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\

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,.

PI ATE

45.

Map

of the Los Angeles Region the

Boston l\1c:tropolil3n ParI:

sr.tem

superposed

red

and with the proposedBoston Bay circuit shown cross-

hatched to indic:uc what that pHI system would mean

in

t

cg undari the 8Qston

Metropolitan

,CM .. r

/1



( jJ) R A W - C G 1E

<C (jJ) EXISTINC 0PAOpOSEO [],

.

I

K

iOl

A N

o

lEJ

.

« J

-

•

-

•

V

for a complete s lem o park.

r the: s An l\ dea RCRion. Ba e



growing up under 20th century conditions,

with the special urge to outdoor recreation

which the people of the Los Angeles Region

must f eel, compare this with the f act that Chi-

cago already has within Cook County over

6 per cent of the total area in parks; thatGr eater New York alr ead y has 5.5 per cent in

park s; and that three adjoining counties of the

New York Metr o politan District alr ead y have

from 4.9 to 5.6 per cent in park s (from 5.8 to

13.4 per cent in park s and municipal watershed

land s combined ); and that they ar e all dili-

gently striving f or mor e.

In the following pages there are d escrip-

tions, unit by unit, und er number s which r efer

to the accompanying ma p (Plate 46), of a pro-

posed complete system of parkways and asso-

ciated lar ge park s for the entir e region, such as

a ppear s reasonable in connection with the other

ty pes of units discussed in other chapter s. The

proposed system is grouped chiefly along three

main east and west r outes and six north and

south routes as follows:

THREE EASTERLY AND WESTERLY

CHAINS

T he Mount ain C }z ,ain:

Extending along the base of the mountains

from the Newhall Tunnel to the eastern Coun-

ty line and connecting with all r oad s into the

mountains, it is in large part placed high

enough on the slopes to be above most of the

urban develo pment, so as to command superb

views over the plains and cities, and should be

always wide enough to kee p forever open in

park ar eas the foregrounds of these views as

seen f rom the main roadway. The parks in this

chain in places dir ectly adjoin the Angeles

National For est lands and constitute an exten-

sion or rectification of the present souther ly

for est bound aries. Elsewhere they leave con-

sid erable private land s above them. But anypr ivate land s, either above or below, should

front upon separate border roads or other sup-

plementar y r oad s and not cr owd in upon the

main roadway. The units along this chain are

Nos. 18 to 21, 75 to 80, and 86 to 97.

T he C oast Chain:

Along or near the coast from Ventura Coun-

ty to and into Or ange County, designed to meetrequir ements f or thr ough pleasure travel and

for pleasant following of the shores, the value

of this chain will depend ver y lar gely upon

the amount of public contr ol of land s lying be-

tween the roadways and the sea. Fr om El Se-

gund o to the east end of Long Beach this r oute

is inland, passing through Nigger Slough and

over Signal Hill to connect the best points of

inter est along the route. The units along this

chain are Nos. Ito 3, 33, 38, 41, 43 and 46 to

52.

T he Hillt o p Chain:Fr om Tr iunf o to Pomona along the Santa

Monica Mountains, Griffith, Elysian and Lin-

coln Park s, the Monte bello Hills and Puente

Hills, a scenic middle route connecting a large

number of points of interest and tapping a

lar ge number of ur ban str eets. This route com-

mands some of the finest views into the moun-

tains and over the plains and cities. I t i ncludes

units Nos. 6 to 9, 25 and 26, and 57 to 60, and

62 to 74 .

SIX NORTHERLY AND SOUTHERLYCHAI NS ~

The S an Gabriel Chain:Fr om the mountains to the sea along the

San Ga briel River, a r oute having the advan-

tage of f ollowing the drainage channel. This

includ es units Nos. 53 and 81,82 and 83.

The Rio H ond o and E at on Wash Chain:

From the mountains to Long Beach near the

sea, par allel to and just west of the San Gabr iel

Chain, this r oute ta ps the cities on its border s

and benefits by following the large dr ainagechannels with their points of interest. This

chain includes units Nos. 54 to 57, 84, 85 and

92.



Ar royo S eco and Palos V erdes

Loop Chain:

From the mountains to the sea through the

heart of the city. This chain follows the present

large public holdings in the Arroyo Seco and Elysian Park with a proposed extension

through Ex position Park to the slopes of Bald-

win Hills, and fr om there south to the sea at

Palos Verdes, with a loop ar ound the Palos

Verdes shores and back to Nigger Slough, tap-

ping the heart of the city anq affording a pleas-

ant outlet in both directions for a very large

population. This chain includ es Nos. 35 to 40,

44 and 45,61 and 62.

Tujunga V alle y and Ballona .

C reek Chain:From the mountains to the sea over the

Santa Monica hills. This chain follows the

wash and valley of the Tujunga to a favorable

place to cross over the hills, dropping down

along the Franklin Canyon Reservoirs to cr oss

the west side of Beverly Hills along the var i-

ous Golf Courses to the Baldwin Hills, then

to follow Ballona Creek to the Ballona Slough. at Del Rey. It i ncludes units Nos. 21 to 24,

and 26 to 33.

Newhall, C hatswor th and

Topanga Canyon Chain:

Also fr om the mountains to the sea. This

chain passes the two large reser yoirs, skirts the

head of San Fernando Valley to pass over the

Santa Monica hills and down To panga Can-

yon. It includ es a number of points of inter est

and forms an important r oute. It includ es units

Nos. 10 to 17.

Dume Cany on Chain:

Fr om Ventura Boulevard at Triunf o across

n. , •• lA.-C ' " F t ;o"

~.,,' ' •••••. _ ~ ~j-;-jjip-:·' _ "':'-:':-L£'1«·.",.J

, , , " U ""' P"I ' I ~ p"r''''','''~If'- P. ~"' 51'.J"

/IO/LYIYOO/J-,P.lf LOJ j /.[IU l fJ

HP.YLr EIJ;"';',.f RKW"f YJ

PLATE 4-7. Parkway fr om Los Angeles to Palos Verdes now being planned by the County as the fir st

real park way in the Los Angeles R egion; the plan shows also Alond r a Par k in the center and the

proposed Sepulveda Park way and Gard ena Valley Park across the center .



PON rol!. ( jENTI. Y JI.OPING HILLSIDES

/'fONrE~£LLOMOTH400 rUT o~ Mou

TI'f~~E Raf D PI. AN'!b1i! STE~P itII.L.1ID~~

Gl£NDO RA . S I ERRA NACRE ' A LT AP£ NA

WIDTH $00 rE~r OR. MOIi!£

PARKNA Y AND CHANNEL

EAT O N WAS / 1

NfI)TH JOO FEET

Two ROA(JPLAN FoR.5UEP HIlLsion ALTADENA' Rt/.BIO . MONR.OVIA

Mor H ~oor UT OilMou

Ttlli!EE Ra.4D PL AN r Oil LEVEL L~olos

SAN DIM AS· S AN FERN ANDO' ONE}lSMOUTH

KiDTH300 r E£~

PL AN FOi! VE.IlY ST~E P 1iII.I:.SI/)ES

SANTA MONIC A MOt/NTAINS'Pt/ENTE Hlll-J

h'lIJTH 400 rc.u Oil MOlle

PARKh'AY ANO CH ANNEL

EAT ON WAS H

!YIDTH300 F~ET

r E;A fC-;~ ",

-"-'"-~--~'=". _-

~

~h~ /' v "" " W ' r ' f 'C < . . g : r / / s ; . . .• . . (

, Pl A N FOil Ii I lLTOPS MTH J 'I E I t ' J 80TH W AYS -<F

SANTA MONICA MOl.lNTAIHS PV£NT£ HILLS

MOTH 400 FEET Oil MOlc

PAIi!KWAY AND CH ANNEl.

R I O H ONDO AT / " f ON T E B E L LO

h'IDTH 1000. FCCT Oil!.Motu

PARKW AY ANO CHANNEL

RIO HONDO· AND SAN GABR I EL R IVER.

MOTH 1000 F.ur OR. MOtU:

PARKWAY AND CH ANNEL

. R IO H O NDO AND SAN GABR I EL RIVE R.

MDTH 1000 F~CT OJ?MaR-£.

PLATE 4-8. Ty pical sections for park ways, showing how var ious slopes ma y b e tr eated 111a way to pro-

duce interesting variety and to protect good views and interesting scener y.



the wester ly end of the Santa Monica Moun-

tains to the pro posed lar ge terminal park and

beach r eser vation in Dume Canyon. This chain

includ es Nos. 4 and S.

The areas consider ed have been num bered for con\-en-

ience as a ppr oximately 100 units and these have been

grouped and classified as follows:

Length

M iles

Ar ea

Acres

A. Shor e Front R oad s and Par k Ar eas --- 36.5

B. Lar ge Upland R eser vations 87.5

C. ·Large Drainage Basin Reser vations - 34.3

D. Nar r ower Drainage Basin Reser va--

tions --------------------------------------53.9E. Connecting Parkways 214.0

F. Enlar gements s pecially valuable for

athletic field s, golf, etc. 13.8

6,690

3°,57511,600

6,270

11,560

LiST OF PROPOSED PARKWAYS A ND

R ELATED LAR GE PARK S

Giving the a p pr oximate width, length and ar ea of

each, together with the class of purpose for which it is

recommend ed, and num ber ed as on the Gener al Plan

(Plate No. 46).

A ppr o x. Lengt h Ar ea

W id t h m m

in F eet M iles Acr es Class

I. Venice and Santa

Monica Shor e Par k-

way (land now pub-lic) 200-400 7.0

2. Lower Malibu Coast

Parkway (partly in

existing highway) 200-400 15.0

3. U p per Mali bu Coast

Park way (partly in

existing highway) -2°°-4°° 4.0

4. Dume Canyon Par k

(including 464 acres

U. S. water land s in

R amir ez Canyon) __ _ _ 6.0

5. Dume Canyon Par k-way and Clif f s 400-7000 6.0

6. Russell Valley Park _ 2.0

7. Triunfo Canyon

Park way and Cliff s _ 400-2500 9.0

2000 E

1400 B

A p pr o x. Length Al'ea

W id th in in

in F eet M iles Acres C lass

8. Sadd le Peak Parkway

and R eser vation 3°°-35°° 12.09. Topanga-MulholL:ld

Par k way 300-600 5.0

10. Lower Topanga Can-

yon and Clif f s (now

highway) 500- 15°° 5.0

[I. Old Topanga and Dry

Canyon Par kway and

Cliff s (now highway) 3°O-25°° 6.0

12. Cala basas Parkway ---- 300 2.3

13. Escorpion Park I. 1

14· Escorpion Park way -- 300 I.7

15. Chatsworth R eser voir

Park ( 1 170 acr es now public) 2.6

16. Chatswor th Parkway 300 9.3

17. San Fer nando R eser-

voir Park (1154 acr es

now public) ------------ 7.7

18. San Fernando Park -

way --------.----------------- 300 4.9

19. Pacoima Wash Reser -

vation (partly f or

d rainage and perco-

lation) .. _ . ... _ _ 2.1

20. Pacoima Par k way 300 3.0

2 I. Tu~ unga Valley Park

(partly for drainage

and percolation) ------ 4· 5

22. Tujunga Wash ( part-

ly for dr ainage and

percolation) ------------1200-3500 4.9

23 . San Fernand o Mis-

sion Park way (par tly

f or dr ainage) L _ _ _ 15°-4°° 4· 7

24. Lower Tu junga

Park way (par tly exist-mg park s) 300- 1200 6.0

25. Mulholland Par kway

(now, a highway) 300-600 17.0

26 . Mulholland -Tu jungaParkway 200-600 3.0

27. Franklin R eser voir

R eser vations (322

acres m r eser voir) ---- 5.0

28. Beverly Hill s Park -way 200-300 4.0

29. Culver Park R eserva-tion _

30. Culver Connection --. 225

300 E

80 E

300 B

60 E

2700 B

500 E

400 C

250 E

150 B

10 E



Recommend ations f or Par k ways and Par k s [ 101 ]

A p pr o x. Length Ar ea A p p1·o x. Lengt h A1"ea

W idt h ~1 Z ~1Z W idth 11t I 1t

in F eet M iles Acres C lass ilt F eet M iles Acr es C lass

31. Culver R ecreation 4-9· Signal Hill Park and

Field ---------------------- 0.2 160 F Park way ------------------ 6.0 4-00 B

F· Ballona Cr eek Park - 50. Long Beach R ecr ea-way ( part f or d r ain- tion Park (now pu b-age) ------------------------ 600-1000 5·9 4-30 D lie 4-00 acr es) 3.0 4-20 B

33· Del R ey Par k and 51. San Gabriel R ivcr Bir d R efuge ( part

Mouth (Par tly f or for dr ainage) (54-9 d rainage) -------------- 1000 2·3 300 Dacr es in Gun Clu bs) __ 2.0 1000 A

Baldwin Hil ls Park- S 2. Bolsa Ch ica Par k 34-·

R eser va t ion, Bird way ------------- 225-600 3.2 90 E

R ef uge and Beach35· R ancho Cienega R ec-

(Outside Countyreation Field 0·5 125 F

limits) (220036. In-town Par k way

acr es

Jl1 Bolsa Chica Gun(includ ing Exposition

Club) ---------------------- 5·5 5000 APar k 1 14- acr es) _ __ __ ___ 200-300 8.0 350 E

Inglewood Par k way 53· Lower San Gabr iel

37· River Par k way ( par t-(Plans for acquisition

now being completed Iy for d rainage) ___ _ _ _ _ _ looo 17.2 2300 D

for souther ly por - 54-· Lower Los ~ngeles

tion) --------------- 225-300 8.2 225 E R iver Parkway (par t-

38. Alondr a Par k ( now ly for dr ainage ) _ __ ____ 1000 6.8 830 D

pu blic )-------------------- 0·5 3 I5 B 55· SQuth Gate R ecr eation

39· Alondr a-Palos Ver d es Ar ea ------------------------ 1.7 670 F

Park way (P I a ns for 56. Lower R io Hond oacq uisition now being Par kway ( partly f or com pleted ) -----~-------- 225 8·3 250 E d r ainage) ____ _ __ ___ _ _ _ __ _ 1000 6.4- 800 D

4-0. Palos Ver d es CoastWhittier Nar r ows

R oad (now in part 57·R ecr eation Par k and

d edicated) -------------- 170-300 9.0 200 ADrainage Basin 6.0 F4-1. Alondr a-Del R ey 1250

Parkway _ _ · _ __ _ _ _ ____ ____ 4 _

200 9.1 250 E 58. Monte bello Park way 225-4-00 12·5 270 E4-2. Gar dena Valley Par k

Lincoln Park and "and Park way R eser- 59·

R ecr eati on ground svation (Plans for ac-

(4-6.0 acr es in exist-q uisition now being

ing Park) ____ 0·7 230 Fcompleted) 3·9 500 B

4-3· Nigger Slough R eser - 60. Lincoln-Ar r oyo Seco

vat ion (par t f or Par k way ---_ . _------------ 225 1.8 50 E

drainage) ---------------- 3.0 2000 B 61. :\rroyo Seco Par k and

4-4-. San Ped r o Park way _ 225 10.0 300 E Par kway, includ ing-

4-5· San Ped ro Hills R es- Sycamor e Gr ove, 15er vation ------------------ 2.1 800 B acr es; Victor y Park

4-6. Dom i nguez R anch No. I, 160 acr es; Vic-

Parkway _ __ _ ------------- 225 2.6 70 E tor y Par k No. 2, 187

+7· Los Cerr itos Par kway 3.0 150 1 < : acr es; Lower Ar r oyo,

4-8. Bix by R anch Par kway 70 acr es; Arroyo Seco,and R eservation (in- 90 acr es; Br ook sid e,

eluding 680 acr es 521 acr es; Oak gr ove

water and airpor t and water land s, 334-

land s of Long Beach) 225 5·3 780 1 < : acr es ---------------------1377 11.0 14-20 B



[ 102 ] PARKS, PLAYGROUNDS AND BEACHES FOR THE Los ANGELES REGION

Approx. Length Ar ea A ppr o x. Length Al'ea

W idth ~n ~n W id th in ~n

in F eet M iles Acr es C lass ilt Feet M iles Acres C lass

62. Elysian Park (600 79· Glend ora-Azusa Par k -acr es now pu blic) , __ _ _ _ 3.0 1020 B way ------------------------ 4.2 15° E

63· Los Angeles River 80. Azusa Golf Ground sParkway ------------------ 250-500 2.8 5° E Site _ __ ___ __ ____ _ __ _ ____ _ _ _ ___

0·5 120 F

64· Gr if f ith Park and Ad - 81. San Ga briel Wash j acen t ar eas (includ - R eser vation ( par tlying Griffith Park, f or dr ainage and per -

3752 acr es; water colation) _ _ _ _ _ _ ___ __ __ __ _ _ _ 7.2 5°00 C1and s, 443 acr es; 82. Up per San Gabrielwater lan ds, 43 R iver Park way ( part-acr es; water land s,

1y f or dr ainage) _ __ _ __ 100O-120O 5·5 75° D24acres ;water

83· San Gabriel River land s, 42 acr es; Play-

ground, 20 acres; total Golf Ground s __ _ _ _ _ ____ 0·5 360 F

4324 acr es _ _ ___ __ _ _ __ _ _ _ _ _ 4·0 433° B 84· Upper Rio Hondo

65· Upper Los Angeles Par kway (partly for

River Park way (also d rainage) _ __ _ _ __ _ ____ __ _ _ 1000 3.2 5°0 D

includes dr ainage 85· Eaton Wash Park waychannel ) ------------------22 5 - I5°° 4.0 5°0 E (partly for drainage) 300-400 6.6 360 D

66. Tur n bull Ridge Park - 86. Monrovia-Mt. Oliv.et

way ------------------------ 225-400 5·3 210 E Park way ------------------ 1.7 19° E

67· West Pu en te Hills 87· Monr ovia Par kway ___ _ 2.1 80 EParkway and R eser- 88. Monrovia Golf vation ---------------------- 12·9 17°° B Ground s Site _ __ __ _____ __ 0·5 25° F

68. La Habra Connection 3°0 1.5 50 E89· Santa Anita Canyon

69· East Puente Hills Park and Par kway __ __ 1.5 220 BPark way and R eser-

Sierra Madre Park -vation 620 B

90.-------- _ ._ ----------- 4·9 (includ ing

70. Pomona Basin R eser- way -70

acr es of pu blic water vation ---------------------- 3.0 2400 B

land s) 3.8 FPomona Parkway E

---------------------- 3°0 14°71. ---- 225 1.3 35Puddingstone R eser -

91. Sierra Madre Golf 72.

Ground s Site _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ __ _ Fvoi r Park (5°0 0.2 25°acr esnow 111 flood control 92. Eaton Canyon Wash

basin) ---------------------- 2.8 17°° B R eser vation (partly

73· Ganesha Parkway _ _ _ _ 4.2 9° E f or d rainage and per-

74· La Verne Parkway _ _ _ _ 225 1.9 50 E colation) ___ _ _ _ _ __ __ __ _ _ __ _ 2.8 5°0 C

75· San Antonio Cone 93· Mt. Ru bio Par kway _ _ 3°° 1.7 7° E

R eser vation (partly94· Altad ena Parkway' _ _ _ _ 225 1.9 5° E

for drainage and per -95· Arroyo Seco Canyon

colation) _ __ _ __ _ __ _ __ ____ _ _ 1.7 200 CPark way to Angeles

76. Live Oak Par k and Mountain Road _ ____ _ __ 3°0 3.0 100 EParkway ------------------ 3.8 5°0 B

San Dimas Cone 96. La Canad a Parkway _ _ 3°° 1.7 85 E77·

R eser vation (par tly 97· Verd ugo Creek - Tu-

dr ainage and perco- j unga Park way __ _ _ __ __ 3°0 5.0 3°0 E

lation) -------------------- 2. I 600 C 98. Whiting's Wood s and

78. Glendora-S a n D imas Brand Park R eser va-

Park and Park way tion (par k now 616

(96 acres now In acres) ---------------------- 4.0 110O F

parks) ---------------------- 3·4 165 E 99· Glendale Park way __ __ 225 2.0 100 E



DETAILED RECOMMENDATIO NS

These areas, number ed geographically and

not in their order of r elative ur gency or im-

portance, are d escr ibed br iefly below accor d ingto the number s assigned them.

1. V enice and Sant a Monica Shore

Par k wa y.

Much of the shore at Venice and a part of

that at Santa Monica is now owned by the pub-

lic to a line just above extreme high-tid e line

in a way to pr ovid e consid er able space f or bath-

ing and beach recr eation, but not wide enough

to pr ovid e for long-shor e pleasur e travel. The

land under water is pu blicly owned , and can be

d evelo ped when the need becomes sufficientlyur gent. If gr oins or und er water longitudinal

break waters are built, the upland can be wid -

ened seawar d onto the shallow areas f ar

enough to provid e some s pace at least for pleas-

ure travel parallel to the shor e along the fr onts

of private pro perty. A possible scheme is shown

on Plate NO.3 I. Such a plan would have the,

o b jectiona ble f eature, however, of intr od ucing

a busy thor oughfare between user s of the beach

and user s of adjacent buildings. Another possi-

ble plan that would involve heavy cost but that

may in time be justified as alread y suggested

under beaches (Cha pters I and V) would be to

extend a mole out to sea at the Del R ey

marshes and to car r y it along two to f our thou-

sand f eet outsid e the bathing beaches par allel

to the shore, wher e the water is now 25 t o 40

feet d eep, to meet the shor e again a bove the

pr ivate holdings of Santa Monica. Such a plan

if developed upon a gener ous scale, would en-

close a lar ge pleasur e harbor, would provid e

r elatively still water f or bathing, would carr y

thr ough travel ar ound outsid e the throngs of

beach users and would provide a consid erable

parking sPr ce for autos as well, out of the way

of the beach cr owd s. Brid ges in the mole could

be mad e to permit fr ee flow of tides and aff ord

access to small pleasur e boats. An outer harbor

has been suggested above the pleasure bay that

would care f or sailboats and other cr aft too

large to pass und er the br idges. As a featur e in

the gener al long-shor e tr avel, such a mole

would also have great value.

2. Lower l \ ![alibu Coast Par kway.

From Santa Monica westward to Dume

Canyon, the State has acq uir ed a r ight of way

near the shor e and has o pened a thoroughf ar e

that is d estined to be a busy one, especially on

holid ays and Sundays. This thor oughfare, d e-

signed to carr y a lar ge volume of traffic, n~w

has an 80 f oot right of way for most of its

length. It is designed f or a single roadway, in

a r elatively nar r ow belt of lowland . It extend s

to pu blicly owned tideland s on the seaward

side in only a few places; ther e ar e almost no

side road s above it into which parking of car s

or congestion of traffic can be diverted , and

there is little chance for such r oads or areas to

be d evelo ped because of the clif f s a bove the

road f or much of its length.

Most of the pleasure tr avel that will follow

this route will be attr acted by the cool sea

breezes, the hope of enjoying sea views and the

d esir e to tr avel along the coast or to stop at the

beaches. Mor e than this 80 f eet of wid th will

soon be need ed, and should be pr ovid ed.

Wher e the highway is near the shore, f ew if any buildings should be per mitted to inter f ere

with the enjoyment of this r oute. Wher e the

highway is f arther back , pr ivate pro per ty can

be lef t to develop; but the right of way should

be wide enough to permit widening the road s

ver y materially in the future, or possi bly cr e-

ating two or three se par ate roads f or division

of traffic either by classes or in one-way road s.

Alr ead y the cr eation of the r oadway has led

to much activity in use of the ad jacent land s

and to lar ge increase in land values, and soon

this d evelo pment will create a serious obstacle

to any possibility for wid ening. A right of way

200 f eet or more in width would pr otect the

public traffic and pleasure need s f or all time;

and this, in connection with the acq uisition of



PLATE 49. Air plane view of Dume Canyon and DUl1le Point, showing in dJsh the R ancho line and in

solid line the Jr eas includ ing the beach, the mesa near the shor e, the hill slo pes and the peak suited

for d evelopment of a fine oceansid e park , and showing United States land in R amir ez Canyon that

should be includ ed . (Phot o by F ail·child .)

such fr ontage as may be need ed for beach uses,

should be accomplished now before f ur ther in-

cr ease in d evelopments is permitted. The

County now owns a number of r emnants of roadway along parts of this route that might

well be exchanged f or ad ditional width in the

main shore road.

3. U pper /1 ;1alibtt C oast Parkway.

A bove Dume Canyon, still within the Coun-

ty limits but mor e remote f rom the Metropoli-tan District of Los Angeles, the highway f ol-

lows the coast f or a part of the way, then r uns

f ar ther inland on the coastal mesa. In this re-



Recommend at ions f or Park ways and Par k s

gion also a widening of the right of way should

be made to 200 feet or more, or the route

should be d oubled f or the same r easons as f or

Section 2, and in this section St';l-teaid may be

availa ble both for that part lying within theCounty and f or the par t f ollowing the shor e in

Ventura County.

4. Dume Canyon Park .

Nor thwest of Point Dume at Zuma Beach

there is a f ine shor e, a bout three miles of sand y

beach, with the highway just above the storm

tid e-line, and a bove this beach the coastal mesa

wid ens out enough to aff or d -space f or a fine

water -front park having the ad vantages of the

cool ocean-f ront climate. It is at a reasonable

d istance f rom the city f or a lar ge terminal res-

er vation; it contains beautiful trees, canyons,

and gentle slo pes, wher e park and recr eation

f eatures in gr eat variety can be d evelo ped; and

back of this mesa the hills rise to prominent

points off ering reasonable opportunity f or hill

clim bing and more vigor ous exercises, with fine

scener y.

The ar ea as a whole is surr ounded by natural

boundaries that should be recognized, and on

the east the United States now has a r eserva-

tion und er lighthouse contr ol in Ramir ez Can-

yon that should also be acq uir ed, and, subject

to Government requir ements, be mad e a part

of the reser vation.

To acq uir e the be~ch and mesa land will

d oubtless pr ove costly, but the hills and moun-

tain land s comprising possibly 2/3 of the total

area ar e of limited value. The entire pr oject,

pro perly develo ped , would be of enormous

value to great numbers of pleasur e-seeking,

auto-driving peo ple who will come fr om the

cities and all the inland r egions, as well as to

visitors from af ar . Once acquired, the land

may well be held f or the pr esent lar gely as a

r eservation o pen to the public. Buildings can

be added, conveniences developed and various

ty pes of usage encouraged by improvements,

as the demand may warr ant.

5. Dume Can yon Park way and Cli ffs.

From the pro posed par k above d escr ibed

there should be a cross road leading inland.

This should climb the hills a bove D ume Can-yon and should be k e pt attr active by the pr es-

er vation of the canyon slopes below and the

hill slo pes above. In the small basin at the up-

per end of Dume Canyon, subdivision has

started. The valley is so attr active that it would

be d esir a ble to preserve this basin also, but that

may not pr ove f easible. The lower end should

be 7,000 feet or mor e in width to inchid e all of

Dume Canyon, but at the head of the canyon

this can be reduced to 300 or 400 f eet, and

f rom ther e to Triunf o Canyon the r oad should

d r o p down Sier ra Canyon in a reservation that

need not be over 300 to 400 feet wide in places, but up to I,OOO f eet in others. The land should

be acquired now bef or e f urther impr ovements

are started . The bound aries should pr eferably

f ollow either rid ge lines or be high enough to

protect views fr om pr o posed road s, in which

case they can well be placed on lines wher e

boundary r oad s may eventually be developed.

Dume Canyon is nar row and very r ugged,

with high cliff s especially on the east. Ther e

are huge bould ers in the bottom of the canyon,

with sycamor es in the lower r eaches and fine

oak s in the upper end. La Sierr a Canyon ismore lik e a br oad basin, less picturesq ue and

not so inter esting, but is well clothed with

shrub gr owth and has ample r oom in which to

construct a satisf actory park way, although

ther e is alread y some inex pensive develo p-

ment along the route.

6. Russell Valle y Par k.

In the northerly cor ner of the west end of

the County, the head of Russell Valley with

r olling plains and o pen areas and with fine oak s

offer s a place wher e an inland rural park r eser-

vation of large pr o portions may well be set

aside, a space wher e golf, hor seback riding,

ball field s, picnics and camping can be encour-

aged with ample o pen surr oundings. The



southeasterly boundar y should follow the hills

500 or 600 feet higher south of Triunf o Can-

yon to includ e in all a bout 1,400 acres between

the County line, Ventura Boulevard, the old

Rancho El Conejo bound ar y and the slopes

above Triunfo Canyon.

7. T r iunf o C anyon Par k wa y and Cli ff s.

From Russell Park and Sierra Canyon east-

ward down Triunfo Canyon to Malibu Cr eek

Canyon ther e is chance for a parkway of r e-

markable scenic interest and beauty. The

boundaries should include the bottom of the

valley and so far as possible the cliffs and sid e

slopes as high as can be seen from a satisfactory

road line. A width of 400 feet to 2,500 f eet

should be r eser ved west of Sierra Canyon,

while 250 to 300 f eet may suffice in places eastfrom ther e to Malibu Lake. Around the lake

both shores should be protected, with space f or

a par k r oadway along the northerly sid e, and

possibly a second local road above that. Fr om

the lak e eastward to Las Vir genes Canyon

R oad the r eservation should includ e the nar -

row valley and some of the Goat Butte land s

on the south. The buttes have almost no value

for develo pment but are extremely bold and

picturesque and should be protected against

despoliation.

From there to Cold Creek is a charming bitof pastoral scenery and agricultural develop-

ment bordering the existing roads. Land that

has limited cabin value, but great park value,

should have the boundaries far enough back to

preserve the scener y and some of the adjacentcanyons as well.

The basin at the head of Malibu Canyon of-

fers a fine place for picnics and camping, and

there also a wid ening of the reservation should

be made. From there a reservation d own Mal-

ibu Canyon might well be made eventually,

and that too would make an interesting r eser-

vation, mor e picturesque than Topanga Can-

yon, but this has not been included. No r oad

should ever be built in the bottom of that can-

yon and a parkway up on the slopes would be

very d ifficult and ver y costly to construct.

'Where the parkway will pass through r el-

atively open ar eas it may be of limited width,

but the bound ar ies should be so chosen that

border roads can be developed. In the gor ges

the entire bottom and slopes should be ac-

quired. In some of the side valleys it is possible

that groups of coast r edwoods can be esta b-

lished and many existing trees can be pre-

served, with ample s pace for recreation and

camping and possibly f or golf and other sportsas well.

8. Saddle Peak Par llwa y and

Reser vation.

The top of Saddle Peak is the highest point

in the front r ow of hills; it is a fine outlook point and is being consid er ed as a possible site

for an o bser vator y. Alr ead y a r oad has been

built up to the peak f rom the e ast, and even

though ver y d ifficult to construct, this road

should be extended westwar d towar d Triunf o

Canyon in a strip of sufficient width to protect

the scener y and to provid e a few places at

least for automobiles to sto p. A road has been

surveyed by the County fr om Cold Cr eek at

the head of Malibu Canyon to Coal Cr eek on

the coast highway to pr ovid e a local outlet.

This road can be f ollowed fr om Cold Cr eek up

the hill to the point wher e it begins to descend

and can be continued from there to the Peak

on a suitable line.

Following the road recently constructed

from the Peak to the Tuna Canyon Road the

parkway should turn north at the point wher e

that road begins to d escend steeply, and fr om

there at about elevation 1,250 a new r oute on

easier grades and a bove the local subdivisions

should drop d own to To panga Canyon to en-

ter just above To panga Post Office.

9. T o panga-Mulholland Par k way.

From Topanga Canyon and the pr o posed

Saddle Peak route eastward there is now no

dir ect route towar ds the city, and Mulholland



PLATE 50. R ugged and picturesq ue cliff s along Lower Topanga Canyon, where land has little value

f or houses and should be pr eserved f or scener y. (P hot o by St agg.)

Highway itself does not command any fine

views toward the ocean. Ther efor e, from a

point a bout 2,500 feet above Topanga Post

Office in Old Topanga Canyon a new route is

proposed to bridge over the Topanga Canyon

Road and to climb gradually to the ridges and

then f ollow the cr est northeastward to Mul-

holland Highway. Throughout a considerable

portion of its length wher e the side slopes are

not too rugged and steep, this reservation

should be wide enough to allow for develop-

ment eventually of border roads as well as the

central way, and in all the higher portions, at

least, the border s should be f ar enough fr om

the roadway to protect views and to preserve an

uninterrupted open for eground.

The route is f or the most part through rug-

ged mountain countr y, but near the westerly

end it passes the Trippet Ranch on rolling

hills. The mountains are covered with shrubby

growth and south of the Trippet R anch ther e

ar e fine live oak s.

10. Lower Topanga C anyon and Cli ffs.

Extending back from the Coast Highway

through an extremely rugged canyon and



gorge the lower Topanga Canyon Road is now

one of the notable scenic features of the region.

Much of the route is still unspoiled, although

economic pressure on landowner s to realize on

the adjacent land s, and desire on the part of

others to stop amid st such surroundings is lead -ing to a kind of development that bid s f air to

destroy much of the character that now forms

the chief attraction to the canyon. Much of the

land along the lower canyon is unsuited to resi-

dential uses, is needed for possible r oadway

improvemel1.ts, paths and local stopping places,

and has some value for roadside recreation in

addition to its large value purely for scenic

purposes.The slopes a bove the road on both sid es

should be acquired up to the practical limits of

views, and should be kept undefiled. The bot-tom of the canyon also should be acquired to

be kept for general recreation, relatively free

from buildings throughout most of the dis-

tance, including all of the lowland at and near

the mouth of the canyon, where a number of

small cottages now occupy land that would

otherwise have great value for the gathering

of ver y lar ge number s of pleasur e seeker s

around camp fires and stoves and in pleasant

groves, with a f ew general buildings capa ble

of caring for ver y large numbers of people.

11. Old Topanga and Dry Canyon

Parkway and Cliffs.

. Above Topanga Post Office a new road is

now being completed to Calabasas through old

Topanga Canyon and Dry Canyon. This r oad

passes through some ver y attractive small

basins having good tr ees and local o pen spaces.

Cabins are being s pr ead over these areas, and

the public is being confined more and more to

the limits o f the r oadway. These ar eas have

ver y great recreational value for picnics and

general enjoyment and the entire canyon bot-

tom with s ome of the side slopes s be

publicly owned. Near the divid

some ver y interesting rocks an

little commer cial value, that should be in-

cluded in the pr o posed reser vation.

Along the r oute where the roadway neces-

sarily occupies one side of the canyon the land

above the r oad need be little more than 100

feet wide from the center of the road, but onthe other side the bottom of the canyon and

the slopes for some distance above form a par t

of the scenery and on that side the reser vation

should be from 200 feet or 300 feet wide to

I,200 feet or mor e in places.

12. Calabasas Par kway.

From Ventur a Boulevard northward, in ex-

tension of the Topanga Parkway, a r oute is

proposed through o pen land and a few walnut

and fruit orchard s. This should be a 300-f oot

three-road parkway, with live oak s, pe pper sand simple dignified planting.

13. E scor pion Par k.

At the extreme wester n end of the San Fer -

nando Valley the old R ancho Escorpion with

grazing land and a f ew scattered trees on r oll-

ing hills offer s a chance for an enlar gement in

the park way much lik e an English country

park, with possible s pace for golf and other

forms of open land recreation, near to but in

addition to the pr o posed r eservation at Chats-

worth Reser voir.

14. Escorpion Par kway .

Like the Cala basas r oute this section also can

well be made a simple three-road way, 300

feet or so in width, partly through citr us

groves.

15. Chatswor th Reservoir Par k.

At the Chatsworth Reservoir there is now a

r eser vation of I, I 70 acres of water land s, and

around this area there are a number of hills

and slopes that should be added to the reserva-

tion with the d efinite purpose of using the

areas f 'or recreational purposes, insof ar as that

will not interfere with reservoir requirements.



PLATE 51. Upper San Fernando Valley with rock s of Chatsworth in the distance, along the base of

which the pro posed Chatsworth park way should extend . (Pho t o by F iss.)

The existence of a large reser vation will mak e

possible d evelo pment of park -lik e char acter ,

and the presence of water will ad d char m to

the par k scener y even though the bod y of

water itself cannot be used f or recreation.

The bound aries should be selected on r ea-

sonable lines f or bound ar y str eets, and it is

suggested that on the nor thwest the bound ary

should extend into Ventur a County. Thenorther ly bound ar y should extend to Oak -

wood Cemeter y.

The ar ea proposed should be tr eated as a

lar ge reser vation, to be k e pt undefiled and to

be planted in places, and, as d emand increases,

to be ad a pted to use f or var ious a ppropriate

k ind s of r ecreation.

16. Chat sworth Parkway.

Following north and east ar ound the head

of the San Fer nand o Valley from the Chats-

worth R eser voir to the San Fernand o Reser -voir a r oute is pro posed , to be about 300 f eet

wide and 9 miles long, to be tr eated most of the

way with thr ee road s and planting, with en-

largements f or recreation and views at the

mouth of Limekiln Canyon, at Mission Can-

yon, and on the mesa just west of San Fernand o

R eservoir Park. At the easterly end near the

San Fernand o R eser voir, the route enters Bull

Canyon, ther e to cr oss the canyon and f ollow

the easterly sid e nor thward through pastur e

land, leaving houses and citrus groves und is-

tur bed in the wester ly portion, and mak ing theexisting road along the westerly ed ge of the

bar r anca the park boundar y.

17. S an F ernand o Rese1'voir Par k.

San Fernando R eser voir is in a reser vation

of 1,154 acr es, and lik e the Chatswor th R eser-

voir this ar ea aff ords a nucleus f or a large r es-

er vation. The wester ly bound ar y should in-

clude the hills to the small valley north f r om

Bull Cr eek, with a possible r oad fr om there to

the San Fer nand o R oad. The northerly boun-

d ary should follow the latter ; the easter ly bound ary should f ollow a satisf actor y line f or

a border r oad, and the southerly line should

f ollow the bottom of the hills, where a r oad



[ I IO ] PARK S, PLAYGROUNDS AND BEACHES FOR THE Los ANGELES REGIO N

On the east the bound ar y may well follow

ranch lines and the city boundar y. With the

existence of the new d am above this wash, the

d anger of violent flood s is gr eatly reduced and

the area, while occasionally used f or per cola-

tion, can be used at other times for r ecr eationand can be planted to trees, in part at least, to

make an attr active open space.

PLATE 52. S;n Fer nando Reservoir and surround -

ing hills that should be included in a reser vation

, to be mad e attr active.

can be built near the edge of existing cultiva-

tion and should provide for an outlet toward the San Fernand o Mission. The R eser vation

should be acq uired and planted in part and

held for gradual d evelo pment as r ecommend -

ed for Chatsworth R eser voir .

18 . San F ernand o Par k way.

From the reservoir north and east ar ound

the back of San Fernand o and along the bord er

of the Olive View Sanatorium to Pacoima

Wash a parkway f ive miles long and 300 f eet

wide, with space f or three roads and planting,

is proposed. This r oute, chiefly through r ela-tively flat land, can be in part formally tr eated

with rows of lar ge growing trees.

19. Pacoima Wash Reser vat ion.

Extending f rom the forest boundar y on the

north to Mulholland Street on the south, the

Pacoima Wash should be reserved to ser ve as

a drainage channel ar id percolation basin, and

as ail inter esting park feature as well. The

bound ar y on the west of the souther ly por-

tion should follow the top of the stee p bank of

the wash far enough back to allow f or a bord er r oad in addition to a park drive. Farther north

it should be k e pt far enough west to allow f or

a border road only.

20. Pacoima Par k wa y.

From the Pacoima Wash eastward to the

Tujunga Valley a route is proposed ar ound the

base of the mountain and down the little Tu-

junga Wash. The northerly boundar y should

extend to the Edison Power Line above Mul-

holland Street to avoid leaving a strip of waste

land. From Mulholland Street east a 30o-f oot

strip is pr o posed, suitable for a three-r oad

way, to Kagel Canyon. The parkway will con-

nect with the road to the Dexter Canyon Par k

now being d evelo ped by the County. At Little

Tu junga Wash the par k way should be wid en-

ed to includ e much of the wash and possi bly to

extend into the forest, although this canyon

has relatively little park value. The wash

could ser ve in part at least f or flood contr ol and

percoiation.

21. Tujunga V alle y Par k.

Tuj1 jnga Valley, three-quarters of a mile

wide where the highway crosses, and nearly

five miles long from the Edison Power Line

at the westerly end to the forest boundaries on

the east, is a flat mostly of gravel and bould ers

with scattering bushes and a few trees. It is now

subject to occasional violent flood s, but will be

less so when the pro posed dams in Tujunga

Canyon shall have been constructed.

In addition to use f or flood control and per-

colation, this ar ea can be made useful for cer-

tain k ind s of recreation and should be d evel-

o ped as a simple o pen land scape r eser vation.The boundar ies along the north should f ollow

along or near the highway in the centr al por -

tion, leaving considera ble valuable acreage be-





PLATE 54-. Lar ge ar ea in Tu j unga Wash that is su bj ect to occasional flooding and j, lik ely to be mad e

hid eous by costly "d evelopments" if not acguir ed as an inter esting and useful pu blic open s pace.

(Phot o by F iss.)

plicated by the existence of enormous gravel

plants that oper ate and should continue to o p-

er ate in the valley, and also by the need f or

d efinite flood control channels that are lik ely

to be ver y unattractive unless designed on a

broad general scheme for a double service of

both park and protective purposes. Already

some levees have been constructed and others

doubtless must be put in to confine flood

water s, but if these are kept far enough apart

to allow for shallow water, the possibility of

d evelo ping the area f or added park values will

be far gr eater than with narrow, d eep channels.

Along this route the question of crossing

railroad s and busy highw?-ys will doubtless

lead in time to the consideration of grade sep-

arations and probably will mean that the park drive must go over as the other routes are al-

r ead y developed down close to flood levels,

leaving little chance f or going und er them.

23. S an F er nand o Mission Par k ' 1vay.

From the Pacoima Wash near the San Fer -

nando Mission to the Tujunga Wash, plans ar e being develo ped for a drainage channel to pr o-

tect Van N uys. This channel par allels but does

not follow the two gr eat power lines and the

proposed Whitnall Highway. A parkway

should f ollow that channel fr om San Fer -

nand o R eser voir past the Mission to connect

with the Tujunga Wash, nearly 5 miles away.

At the southerly end Payton Avenue can be

made the easter ly boundar y. The d rainage

channel, to be 200 feet, should have an add i-

tional 250 feet for park roads or even more if

the channel can be widened and flattened togive it a more park -like character and bord er

road s. Nor therly fr om Pacoima Wash the park

r oad can f ollow the westerly sid e of the power '



_ PI. ATE 55. San Fer nand o Mission, a point of inter est

on pro posed 1ine of p ar kway.

line and par allel to the vVhitnall Highway,

where an additional width of ISO f eet should

suffice.At the Mission the boundaries should be

wid ened out to provid e for pr o per str eet in-

ter sections and f or pr o per r elation to the Mis-

sion itself .

In the development of the plan space should

be available for border s of eucaly ptus tr ees

with alder s and other deciduous planting along

the channel, such as poplars, sycamores and

more brilliant autumn trees, including sour

gums and sweet gums. Possibly palms and

other semi-tropical plants should be used also.

24. LO'1ver Tujunga Par k wa y.

Passing Van N uys the drainage channel fol-

lows the nearest wash to the eastward, but will

occupy a r elatively narr ow and deep channel,

while in the wash next farther east there are

now several parks and there are other stretches

of the old wash that could be acquired. There-

for e t he best location for the next six miles

southward follows that wash and the park s al-

read y esta blished.

A width of 300 feet or 400 feet up to 1,200

feet or 1,400 feet should be acquired to allowample space for local recreation and park re-

quir ements in addition to pleasure tr avel. Near

the Los Angeles River, south of Second Str eet

and east of Tujunga Avenue, the parkway

should turn south to the Los Angeles River

and to Ventura Boulevard.

25. Mulholland Par k ' 7.vay.

From Cala basas and the To panga Canyon

road s eastward to Franklin Canyon, Mulhol-

land Highway should be made a part of the

main park system. From ther e eastward to

Griffith Park the highway becomes more of

an urban highway and pr o ba bly should be

consid ered as such, es pecially as a park way is

needed from the Franklin Reservoir to the

Los Angeles River and to the Tujunga Wash

on the north and another to connect with Bev-

erly Hills and the cities beyond on the south.

The C)uestion has been raised as to vacating

portions of the 200 foot right of way d eeded for the Mulholland Highway, since the extr a

width is not being used, and is ;10t part of any

existing plan f or use. If the highway is to be

mad e a part of the park system, however , a

definite plan should be made for ample park -

way d evelopment with proper protection of

fine views, s pace f or planting and impr ove-

ments, allowance f or widening and impr oving

the roadways, and for double r oadways in

places and with pr o per pr ovision for bord er

r oad s wher e feasible and f or other connec-

tions to adjacent lands. Such plans may per mita band oning or exchanging certain ar eas, but

in general should pr ovide rather for acq uiring

more land f or public use and enjoyment, and

land enough so that satisf actor y r oad s f or ac-

cess can be d eveloped to serve the adjacent r e-

maining private land s.

From Calabasas to the mountains, the high-

way should be made 300 f eet wid e with pr ovi-

sion f or border r oad s and central road and

ample s pace f or planting. To be of really gr eat

park value the lines of roads should be some-

what modified; in places the roadways can bed oubled to follow both sid es of small summits

and there the summits should be acquir ed also.

So much has been d one now that it would be



unf ortunate not to car r y the work far ther to a

satisf actory completion. Where the proposed

route from Topanga Post Office joins the high-

way a r elatively large summit exists that will

be sur rounded if the junction .is mad e in both

d irections, and this might also be add ed to ther eser vation.

26 . Mulholland-T ujunga Par k way.

Fr om Mulholland Highway at Franklin

R eser voir d own to the Los Angeles River and

the pr o posed Tujunga Park way a f airly direct

r oute for compar atively easy construction

would dr op d own thr ough the corner of the

Hollywood Countr y Club land s to the str aight

portion of Laurel Canyon Road, then r ise

slightly towar d the east to pass around the

south and east sid es of the subdivid ed area tomeet the Tujunga Parkway just west of Uni-

versal City. This r oute should be 200 f eet to

600 f eet in width, wid e enough to per mit

pro per development of a central road way with

one or two bor der road s and with s pace for

tr ees and planting, and with contr ol over the

local and distant views.

27. F r ank lin Reservoir Reservations.

Ther e are now two water land r eser vations

in Fr ank lin Canyon containing 322 acr es and

there is a r oad up t hr ough the canyon toward

Mulholland Highway. The r eservoirs f orm

objects of inter est. The land r eser ved provides

d ef inite open space that can be made attractive,

and off er s a possi ble r oute for a par kway f or

par t of the distance through the canyon. Fr om

the to p of the canyon down to a point below the

lower reser voir, the park d rive should f ollow

the canyon below. the reservoir s, but back of

most of the d evelopment of Beverly Hills the

r oad should turn westward acr oss the f oothills

and d own Pea vine Canyon to the mouth of

Bened ict Canyon.

28 . Bever l y H ills Par k way.

Four miles fr om Benedict Canyon to the

Hillcr est Countr y Club, crossing the lower end

of Benedict Canyon, the route should f ollow

the westerly ed ge of the canyon floor south-

ward along the easter ly edge of the Los An-

geles Countr y Club to cr oss Wilshir e and Santa

Monica Boulevard s at the Beverly Hills west

city line, continuing along the easterly lineof the Westwood Public Golf Cour se to cross

Pico Boulevar d and cut t hrough the nor th-

east corner of Hillcr est Countr y Club and

eastward along the old ranch line to the vacant

hills beyond . The thr ee countr y clubs f ollow-

ing most of the r oute are now inter esting and

proba bly will remain so for some time to come.

As a connecting link through costly land s the

reservation may be mad e relatively nar row.

Along the golf courses ther e will be no need

f or a border r oad on that side and a two-road

way may pr ove sufficient with an understand -

ing that should the golf clubs be subdivid ed, a

service road and park strip is to be add ed by

them at that time. In crossing Bever ly Boule-

vard, the route f ollows that road f or 1,000 feet

and a s pecial plan f or cr ossing and for parallel

road s will be need ed and eventually grad e sep-

ar ations there and at Wilshire, Santa Monica

and Pico Boulevar d s res pectively may also be

requir ed. The taking of land now should be

sufficient to per mit such changes within the

park land s when req uired.

29. Culve1' Par k Reservat ion.East of Hillcr est Countr y Clu b on the va-

cant hills of the Arnaz tract, IS O acres of land

along the pr oposed r oute is now available and

is recommend ed f or a local and gener al par k .

This area may be reduced somewhat if the

area f ar ther east is acquir ed as r ecommend ed

for a large recr eation center . Bound ar ies sug-

gested are, on the north the old ranch line and

existing str eets, on the east existing streets, on

the south and west arbitrar y lines to enclose an

ar ea of about IS O acr es.

30. Culver Connection.

From the Arnaz tr act to La Cienega Boule-

vard , a little over a mile, there is now com par a-



PLATE 56. Back Bay tid al mar shes in Boston conver ted into an attr actil-e water sid e p:lr k, such as m:lY

be possible for the Del R ey m:lr shes.

tively vacant land between Cadillac and David

Avenues that should be acq uir ed, and those

street lines should be extended eastward to

ser ve as bor d er r oads f or a parkway.

31. Culver Recreat ion F ield.

East of La Cienega Boulevard and north of

the Pacific Electric R ailway there is a tri-

angular tract of 165 acr es or so, that is still va-

cant, that would ser ve as a fine location f or a

lar ge r egional athletic field and r ecreation cen-

ter . It is low and subject to occasional f looding

and is not ideal f or building uses, but could be

used f or play. It is within a mile and a half of

the city car lines, and is on the Pacific Electr ic.

32. Ballona C1' eek Par k way.Fr om Culver City to the sea the channel of

Ballona Creek runs on a ver y flat gradient.

This cr eek will receive a very lar ge volume of

water in occasional stor ms, from paved streets

and roof s of the urban regions a bove it. The

volume of water it may be called on to carr y is

lik ely to be much larger at times than is now

possible in existing channels and brid ges. Thenew brid ge at Culver City has an o pening 80

f eet wid e by 20 f eet high. The older brid ges

ar e smaller and the channel as defined has less

ca pacity. If the city is allowed to gr ow ar ound

the channel and then wid ening proves neces-

sar y, the economic loss to the community will

be ver y gr eat. It is possible that a channel 10or

12 feet dee p and three or f our hundr ed f eet

wide may be need ed eventually, especially in

the lower reaches of the cr eek . Such a channel

if mer ely walled in is lik ely to become a ver y

ugly featur e in the district, standing empty and

dr y most of the year, a r ece ptacle f or pa persand rubbish. The channel can better be devel-

o ped as part of a parkway. The bottom can

have pools and basins in places and a r elatively



narr ow channel f or a small r un-off with the r e-

maining floor on a slightly higher level to be

cover ed with low growth and occasional tr ees.

In a br oad, low channel it would be possi ble, as

suggested for the hujunga Wash, to have a

par k driveway within the channel, a bove allordinary floods, but subject to occasional flood -

ing, with bord er str eets on still higher levels to

aff ord access to adjacent pro perties. The big

pr oblem today is to acq uire a wid e r ight of way

600 feet 1,000 f eet wid e while much of the

land is still o pen, and to d eter mine on ultimate

lines and gr ad es for bord er roads wher e private

pr operty will certainly be saf e from flooding.

33. Del Re y Park and Bird Re f uge.

At the mouth of Ballona Creek at Del R ey,

near Venice, ther e is a lar ge ar ea of mar sh land and low upland subject to occasional flooding

and close to sea level. This ar ea might be mad e

usa ble in part for housing by filling, es pecially

if other portions are dred ged to f orm lak es or

canals and the material is thus o btained near -

by. Such wor k neces!,arily is costly and the r e-

sult would have no particular ad vantages over

equal areas on the near by upland s. The

mar shes ar e now f req uented by swarms of

shor e bird s, es pecially in rough weather, and

549 acres of the area is owned by t wo gunclu bs. The entir e area has alr ead y been con-

sider ed f or a boating harbor , lagoons and a sea-

sid e park. Any plan for a pleasure harbor at

Venice and f or attr acting additional throngs to

the seashor e will need a large inland area f or

aU,to park ing, f amily picnics, shallow water f or

small boats, and other f or ms of recreation, and

under a general plan for complete d evelo p-

ment this mar sh ar ea can be made of gr eat r ec-

r eational value asid e from but in connection

with the beaches, and some s pace can still be r e-

ser ved as a bird r efuge.

The entire ar ea should be acquir ed f or such

pur poses. The bound ar ies should include near -ly all the land s between the two railway lines

and , on the west, the rid ge and the lagoon

near the sea. with one or two broad connections

across the occupied sand y strip next t o the sea-

shor e, and with s pace enough to allow f or a

lar ge outlet from Ballona Creek to the still

water s of the proposed pleasure harbor.

34. Baldwin Hills Par k way.From Ballona Creek at Culver City east-

war d aJong the north f ace of the Baldwin Hills

a r oute is planned on a line high enough to

command views over the city and to the San

Ga briel and San Bernar d ino Mountains. This

strip should be wid e enough f or a good border

road a bove the park d r ive to ser ve the u plands

and f or another bord er r oadway f ar enough

below the drive to k eep buildings fr om en-

cr oaching on the views, and to allow space for

planting as well. The width should var y from

225 f eet to 600 f eet at the steeper places. Fromthe northeast corner of the hills a route to the

heart of the city is suggested to cross Mesa

Drive and the o pen land s beyond . Around the

east sid e of the hills the park way should con-

tinue southwar d to tak e all land between two

existing bord er streets, ~nd the line should r un

parallel to and one to two block s west of Mesa

Drive to connect with the Inglewood Parkway.

This portion of the route will r un thr ough a

built-up section and a number of houses will

have to be r emoved. The houses are of good

quality, rather a bove the aver age, but will be

less costly than any plan to wid en Mesa Driveto a suitable widt.~, even if that were f easi ble.

35. Rancho Cienega Recreat ion F ield .

East of Mesa Drive and south of the Pacific

Electric R ailway there is now a large area of

vacant low-lying flat land that would make an

id eal site for a regional athletic f ield. This area

of 125 acres should extend fr om the line of

Exposition Boulevard south to the location f or

the In-town Parkway (No. 36) and f rom near

Mesa Drive eastwar d acr oss the o pen lands.

36. I n-t own Par k 7vay.

Fr om the Baldwin Hills and the pr oposed

routes to Ballona Creek and to Palos Verdes,



several plans have been considered for a con-

nection toward the center of the city or along

the westerly side to Hollywood and Griffith

Park or to Silver Lake and Elysian Park. Such

plans have been found to involve very gr eat

costs through the destruction of expensive buildings without r eaching the heart of the

city. Just west of the business district of the city

in a r egion of many small houses and shops of

less costly character there is a possible location

for a connection from the Baldwin Hills to Ex-

position Park, the campus of the University of

Southern California and Elysian Park. This

route should be projected at once before big

buildings on Sixth Street, Wilshire Boulevard ,

Seventh Street and elsewhere introduce still

further obstacles. For such a r oute it is possi-

ble that some aid may be obtaina ble from the

major highway fund s. The route that appear s

most f easible from a preliminar y study runs

from Baldwin Hills diagonally across Mesa

Drive and the open land to follow the south-

erly sid e of Thirty-eighth Place to Thirty-

ninth 'str eet at Ex position Park; then north

across the corner s of private pr o perty and the

park to follow the west side of Hoover and

lower Severance Str eet, and the east sid e of

upper Severance Str eet through St. James Park

and along. the east side of N oi"wood Str eet,

Oak Str eet, Albany Street and Whittier Street

to Seventh Str eet; then to f ollow the westside of lower Witmer Street, Har tford Ave-

nue and upper Witmer Street to Beverly

Boulevard; then to curve eastward across the

small blocks and steep grades to follow the

west side of Toluca Street and East Edgeware

Road and the east sid e of Marion Avenue to

Sunset Boulevard ; then to turn westerly along

the south side of Ever ett Street to the proposed

extension of Elysian Park.

This r oute will enter the proposed extension

of the park at an interesting point, where it can

bridge over the road in Chavez R avine to con-nect with park driveways beyond. _

Grade separations at Seventh Street, Wil-

shire, Sixth Street, Beverly Boulevard, Glen-

dale Boulevar d, and S unset Boulevard will

doubtless be required in time and any plan for

complete improvements should include suffi-

cient space for such possibilities.

37. I nglewood Pat -k r way.Fr om Slauson Avenue south to Alond ra

Park, the r oute has been designed to f ollow a

block west of and par allel to Mesa Drive south

to the city limits, and to remove a number of

houses now in the way. The width is planned

to be one block part of the way and half a

block farther south. At the Santa Fe Railway,

plans should provide for ultimately passing

under the railroad, but a grade cr ossing will

doubtless be necessar y at present.

South of the railr oad the Inglewood Ceme-

ter y occupies a lar ge ar ea just west of the r outeand possibly the park land s should bend west-

ward to skirt the cemeter y for some distance,

then bend eastward again to connect with the

parkway 225 feet wid e, now being d esigned

from the city line southward to Alondra Park

and beyond,'passing the Potrero Countr y Club

and f ollowing the line of Cy pr ess Str eet muchof the way.

38. Alond ra Par k.

Southwest of the city in a section where ther e

was no lar ge park of any sort, the County re-cently acquired 3 I5 "acr es of gently rolling

agricultur al land on which to deyelo p a park of

both local and regional character . A plan has

been made for complete development of the

area, to include local playgr ound s in the two

southern corner s, a gener al athletic f ield in the

central portion, ball field s in the nor theast cor -

ner and a golf course in the wester ly portion,

with walk s and drives through the area and

ample s paces for planting to pr oduce a gener al

park-like character. (See Plate 58.)

39. Alondra-Palos V er d es Par k way.Much land has been acquired, some con-

struction has been started and plans have been



PLATE 57. Sketch for a broad, d ignif ied an d at tr active park way 225 f eet in width with thr ee r oad -

ways planned to extend f r om Los Angeles city to the sea at Palos Verd es.

lar gely com pleted for the acq uisition and im-

provement of this section of the pro posed Hollywood -Palos Verdes Parkway by the

County (known as A. & 1. No. 15). Designed

as a three-r oad parkway 225 f eet or more in

width, this bid s f air to be the first r eal par kway

in the Los Angeles R egion; one to become an

impor tant link in a pleasur e route fr om the city

to the seashore. In the plans provision has been

mad e for ultimate se paration of grad es at sev-

eral crossings.

40. Palos V er d es Coast Road.

Following along or near the to p of the cliff sof the rugged coast line of the hills of Palos

Verd es, fr om the beaches of Redondo to the

pr o posed park reser vation near San Pedro, a

pleasure road is alread y built and in use, and

in part has been d ed icated of am ple width toensure to the public for all time aroutethr ough

pleasant surroundings with fine views over the

ocean. For the fir st f our miles south of Re-

d ond o the parkway has been established 180

feet or more in width between building lines,

and for near ly half this distance the land be-

tween the highway and the ocean is established

as a quasi- public park never to be built upon.

The right of way has been restricted against

commer cial tr affic und er restrictions that ar e

designed to continue in perpetuity.

Through the unsubdivided areas farther south the pr esent Coast Road has been de-

signed to be 170feet in 'Yidth, with r eser vation

of the coastal ar eas f or a part of the way, and



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wi~h double roadways wherever possible to

afford fine outlooks for travelers in both di-

rectio11s.

41. Alondra-Del Re y Parkway.

From the Del Rey Marshes and the pro-

posed termina~ park there south and eastward,

a parkway ~connection is needed. Two routes

for this offer advantages: one following the

shore to the beach cities, then following the

hilltops back of the built-up areas to cross to

Alondra Park or some point farther south; the

other route to follow the line of proposed Sep-

ulveda cut-off that has already been surveyed

and planned as a proposed County improve-

ment, making a direct connection from Del

Rey Marshes to Alondra Park through areas

now mostly undeveloped, but Mines Field, oilwells and other activities now developing may

prove serious obstacles to this line. The shore

route offers the advantage that the city now has

about 200 acres in the Hyperion Sewer Farm,

much of which may be available fOl"the crea-

tion of a large shore front park just west of

EI Segundo, all in close connection with a

shore front parkway.

42. Gard ena Valley Park and

Parkway Reservation.

Plans have already been considered under a

County Project (A. & I. No. 15) to acquire the

bottom of Gardena Valley and the side slopes,

including border road locations, and a general

plan has been made for ultimate development

as a pleasant rural park with lakes, boathouses, .

ball fields, picnic groves and many attractive

features. The entire area should be acquired at

once, the boundary roads should be developed,

and planted; some planting should be done in

the interior and the balance can be held as a

reservation for more intensive improvement

from time to time as demand may warrant.

This valley is subject to heavy flooding at rare

intervals and the lower end is so near sea level

that it will drain very slowly. The area can be

used for park purposes even if flooded oc-

casionally, but is not suitable for other uses.

This park reservation should be materially ex-

tended through the lower valley as described

in the next section.

43. Nigger Slough Reservation.

In connection with and in extension of the

proposed Gardena Valley Reservation, the

broad flat flood plane of Nigger Slough now

unfit for residential or commercial uses should

be made a park.

Nigger Slough is one of several large areas

in the County where the elevation of the land

is so near sea level that ordinary methods of

gravity drainage by open channels and bystorm

sewers, whether undertaken at the general ex-

pense by the Flood Control District or at localexpense by local drainage districts, cannot pos-

sibly protect the land from constantly repeated

serious inundations, unless the surface of the

land is raised in a wholesale manner by filling.

(See Appendix No. III.)

This area could be developed as a large low-

land park, having interesting interior park

character with ample space for various forms

of recreation, with possible extension of lakes

and pools and water sports suggested for Gar-

dena Valley also.

44. San Pedro Parkrway.

From Nigger Slough to the hills back of San

Pedro a parkway 225 feet or more in width

as a connection from the Nigger Slough to the

Palos Verdes Coast Road is proposed. This

route should cross the lowlands back of Wil-

mington and Harbor City, skirting the slopes

north of San Pedro to the hills overlooking the

shore. The route can possibly be designed in a

way to benefit by the park reservations already

set aside in the Miraleste section of Palos Ver -

des. The south end of the reservation should

be wide enough to connect with both the up-

hill and the down-hill hairpin turns of the

existing Palos Verdes Coast Road.



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45. S an Ped ro H ills Reser vat ion.

San Pedro Hill, just back of San Pedr o and

close to the sea, rises to a height of 1,480 f eet

above sea level. It command s views in all di-

rections over the sea and over the coastal plains and the surr ounding cities back into the

mountains 100 miles or more away. The f ace

of the hill off er s s pace for park development

where the cool climate of the sea can be en-

joyed . The base of the hills includes the r ock

coast and cliff s a bove the sea and connects with

the Coast R oad toward the west and the Royal

Palms Golf Cour se and possible road s into San

Pedro toward the east.

The small amount of fair ly level ar ea on

the slopes above the sea could be developed for

picnic ar eas and parking of a large number of car s, as that will be a necessar y featur e of any

park in this r egion. Such a par k may off er un-

usual opportunities f or such public inter ests as

a marine biological station and museum, or a

botanic gar d en with ex perimental stations.

46 . Domingue z Ranch Park ' 1vay.

From Nigger Slough eastward to the Los

Angeles River a connecting route is need ed as

a link in the one main east and west parkway

between Los Angeles and the ocean. This sec-

tion off er s no particular interest and should beas d irect as possible. It will necessarily pass

through industrial areas and cross busy high-

ways. It should be 225 feet or more in width to

be ample for planting and for thr ee r oadways.

47 . Los C errit os Par k'1va y.

Fr om the Pacific ElectriC brid ge over the

Los Angeles River at Los Cerritos southeast-

ward to the Union Pacif ic Railroad at Signal

Hill a route is planned , to be 225 f eet or mor e

in width. For much of the way the location will

be on a side hill and a gr eater width will beneeded f or border r oadways at the to p and bot-

tom of the slo pes. Ther e are many oil wells

along this route which can be left to o perate

within the r eser vation und er s pecial agr ee-

ments until aband oned .

48 . Bixb y Ranch Park ' 1vay

and Reser vat ion.

The City of Long Beach now owns near ly

700 acres of airport and water land s nor th of

Signal Hill, most of which should be included

in a reser vation in connection with a parkway

eastward and as a lar ge athletic field or should

be cor related in a way to be mutually bene-

f icial f or park uses and other uses. East of

the water lands, the route crosses f lat land and

can be 225 feet or more in wid th, crossing the

San Gabriel River to the Orange County line

at a point f rom which it can be extend ed even-

tually farther eastward . Through the water

land s, two connections toward the southwestar e possible, one to Signal Hill on the south,

the other near the Union Pacific R ailroad to

the proposed Signal Hill Parkway.

49. S ignal H ill Par k and Par k wa y.

Over looking the City of Long Beach and

the plains behind it, Signal Hill stand s out

alone as a commanding hill. It is now cover ed

with oil wells and sho ps and oil sumps, but

those featur es ar e tempor ar y as compar ed to

the life of the city. The time is not far off when

activities will slack en and some of the land will be r eleased fr om oil uses, and gradually the

entire area will be o pened for other uses.

Under a plan f or gr adual d evelo pment,

much of the land could doubtless be acquir ed

now, subject to sub-sur face rights and par tial

use of the surf ace wher e needed . Possibly

much of the surf ace of the land could be o b-

tained practically without cost in exchange f or

certain pr ivileges and r elinquishments und er

pr o per negotiations.

The fir st need on the hill will be f or a

through east and west r oadway as a link in the par k system, and it is possible that this could

be develo ped among the derrick s and shops

while they ar e still in active use. At the easter ly



end, ther e is a r eser voir that should be included

within the limits of the plans.

The park dr ive should f ollow one or both

sid es of the hill high enough in places to afford

f ine views over the country, the city and the

har bor . The hill itself eventually can be mad e

a strik ing f eature in the land sca pe with f orest

trees in place of the pr esent oil d errick s, with

possi bly a bowl f or concer ts, and other park

featur es.

50. Long Beach Recreatjon Par k.

The City of Long Beach has a park of 400

acr es in the line of the proposed main park way,

extending f rom Anaheim R oad to the San Ga-

briel River near the County line. The par k con-

tainswithin its bound ar ies several pr ivate hold-

ings that should be eliminated . The width of the easter ly end is scarcely sufficient to aff ord a

satisf actory location f or a through road way

toward the coast unless the water ar ea be r e-

duced or add itional land be acquir ed . The park

dou btless should continue chiefly as a local

par k and some for m of agr eement should be

mad e between the city and such authority as

may be established to d eal with the lar ger

problems of regional pleasur e tr .avel.

51. San Gabriel Rivet· Mouth.

Below, Anaheim Str eet, the San Ga briel

River has been r elocated to flow between d ik es

in a re~atively narr ow channel 300 feet to 330f eet ~Id e. A par k str ip should be add ed along

each sid e, sever al hund red feet in width and so

designed that the entir e river mouth can be

tr eated as a' br oad, openparkway. ,

The southwester ly bound ar y should extend

to the east line of R ecreatiol~ Park and ' the

south ' bound ar y sho'uld extend to Alamitos

Bay, and a col1nection toward the southeast

should extend to the County line and the BolsaChica Mar shes.

52. Balsa Chica Par k Reservat ion)

Bird Re f uge and Beach.

Just outsid e the southeast County line the

lar ge mar sh ar ea of Bolsa Chica and Los Ala-

mitos and the beach fr om Anaheim Landing to

Huntington Beach off ers a fine location for a

big water -fr ont reser vation similar to that pr o-

posed for the Del R ey Mar shes, but more ex-

te'nsive, and to includ e more actual ocean front.

This area, lying in Or ange County, but on the

main diagonal coast road fr om Long Beach

and the Los Angeles R egion southward, off er s

gr eat possibilities for the d evelo pment of a

lar ge and impor tant r ecreational area, pleasure

bays, picnic gr ound s, and wild reser vations all

within easy access of a very large pr o portion of

the peo ple of the metro politan r egion.

The beach (as discussed in Cha pter V on

beaches) is being cut u p into small lots and has

a number of small houses upon it, but its gr eat-

est value would be attained if it were kept o penfor lar ge num ber s of the general public. The

marshes have little value, except at the back

where oil has been f ound, and the bound ar ies

should either exclud e the oil wells or includ e

them subject to the life of their operations.

Five and one-half miles long by a mile and

a half wid e, the area that could r easona bly be

set asid e f or pu blic use and enjoyment includ es

a bout 5,000 acr es.

A ' part of this ar e'a, a bout 2,200 acres, is

owned by the Bolsa Chica Gun Clu b, and that

par t might reasona bly be acq uir ed subject to

cer tain r ights and r eservations f or a definite

per iod of time t o permit them to continue to

occu py it until the public requir es the ar ea.

This r eser vation should be of much value

not only to Los Angeles and Or ange County,

but also to R iversid e and San Ber nar dino

Counties, as it is one of their nearest shores,

and one that can be r eached without passing

through busy urban areas.

53. Lower S an Gabriel River Par k way.

Fr om the San Ga briel River mouth below

Anaheim Road, nor thward to the Whittier N arr ows, a distance of over 17 miles, plans are

now being consid ered for acquiring a channel

f or flood contr ol for the San Ga br iel R iver .



PL ATE 60. San Ga br iel River near the Narrows, showing ar ea need ed for d r ainage that has park value,

es pecially if the border vegetation can be preser ved . (Photo by F i.rs .)

The river bed is several hundred feet wide but

und er control may be narrowed and deep-

ened, thus destroying the not unpleasant tr ee-

bord ered wash that now exists. For a parkwayit would be f ar mor e attractive to preserve

much of the character of the present bed, to

develop border roads and dikes farther apart

in a less formal manner and to make some uses

of the land in the bed of the stream during

most of the year when little or no water is

runnmg.

Just what plan can be develo ped to bring to

the community the most interest and enjoy-

ment from the river treatment will depend on

many factor s, but of these the first and most

important will mean the acquisition of a stripnot less than 1,000feet wide outsid e which pri-

vate property may be encour aged to develop,

and to hold the centr al area for car efully d e-

vised plans for use and control, and not to

change the pr esent character until a d efinite

plan f or a satisf actor y r esult has been ad opted.

Any plan f or develo pment will be some-what complicated by the existence of electr ic

power lines and railroad lines along the bank s

in places, and the boundaries should be adjust-

ed to r elate pro per ly to these also.

Alr ead y a few subd ivisions have extend ed

into the line of d esired r eser vation, but not ex-

tensively. In places th e boundaries should in-

chide existing streets subject to right of use.

The most serious question in any plan for

impr ovement will necessarily be that of pro-

viding satisfactor y and effective revetments or

other for ms of river control without ser iouslyinjuring the land scape value of the river bed.

The prospect of a d am in the mountains to con-

trol the river off ers a possi bility of materially



PLATE 61. Riverway in Boston, once a pestilential d rainage channel but r ed eemed und er a joint plan

for d rainage and park uses.

r educing the size of r evetments required.

The river bank s offer o ppor tunities for s pe-

cial ty pes of tr ee gr owth and special effects of

f oliage with cottonwood s, sycan~ores, willows

and po plar s, wild gra pes and even sweet gumsand sour gums. The alr ead y interesting foli-

age masses can be kept and made a striking fea-

ture of the district instead of giving way to an

ugly vacant channel.

At the norther ly end on the east bank is the

old Pio Pico Adobe House, owned by the

State, that should be included within the park-

way r eser vation.

54. Lower Los Angeles

River Par k wa y.

From Long Beach northward to the RioHondo at South Gate the Lower Los Angeles

R iver offer s much the same pr o blem as the

Lower San Gabriel. Below Los Cerritos the

river has already been confined between revet-

ments 300 feet apart and commercial use of the

edges has been encour aged and made possible

so that parkway construction of an inter esting

char acter would be difficult and costly if at-tempted, but a bove ther e wher e a right of way

400 f eet or 500 feet wide is needed for flood

control a width of 1,000 feet or so should be

acquired, and a bove Center Str eet wher e the

channel is broad and meandering a width of

1,500 feet or so in places seems desir a ble.

55. South Gat e Recr eat ional

Ar ea at the C ount y F arm.

Between the County Farm and the Rio

Hondo and in the point of land between that

and the Los Angeles River for a distance of nearly two miles to the Stewart and Gr ay

Road, and for a width of 4,500 f eet or so, there

is an ar ea that should be acquired f or a public



PL ATE 62. Gorge in Montebello Hills not yet invad ed by d evelopment, where a par k way can be

located . (P hot o by F iss .)

reservation in connection with park and drain-

age problems and to serve as a large athletic

fiele j. as well. This area should be acquired in

advance of intensive development and held asa reservation to be made more and more usef ul

to the public as the need for it increases. It is

possible that the area might be acquired by the

County and used as an extension of the County

Farm in part at least, but held as a public trust

to become available for recreation when de-

mand for its use becomes sufficiently urgent.

As the Region grows and values increase the

time may come that a part or all of the County

Farm of 480 acres may be diverted to other

uses, or may be available as an extension of the

proposed recreation area and it is quite possiblethat a portion of the farm may be made acces-

sible to the general public in connection with a

general plan for the development of the park

and recr eational features, and that on the other

hand a part of the r eser vation may be used f or

grazing by the County live stock in a way to

improve the pastoral type of scener y and toadd interest to the reser vation itself .

56. Lower Rio Hondo Par kway.

A bove the County Farm to Monte bello and

the Whittier Narrows for a distance of 6 miles,

the same flood channel problem exists. Ther e

again a width of 1,000 feet or mor e would

afford ample space for a satisfactor y d evelop-

ment. North of Telegraph Road the west shor e

rises in steep bluffs and offers some inter -

esting problems in locating park drives and

border roads. Some small private houses in-Montebello should be removed . On the west

bank south of Telegraph Road is one of the

original adobe r anch houses of the great S pan-



ish grant to Don Antonio Maria Lugo. This

house, which was later the home of Henry T.

Gage, one of Calif or nia's notable governor s,

with its ad jacent ground s, should be includ ed

in the r eservation.

57 . Whitt ier Narr ows Recr eation Par k

aJ~dDrainage Basin.

Between the hills at Whittier and at Monte-

bello, the San Ga br iel and the R io Hond o Riv-

ers run parallel and little over a mile apart.

Ther e the und ergr ound r iver water s come to

the sur face for ced up by the natur al d ik e that

crosses the narrows. In this ar ea, two proposed

routes f rom the south, two from the north and

one each f rom the east and the west converge,

so into this ar ea a lar ge amount of pleasure

travel will be brought from all directions.

Ther ef ore, the entire area should be made a

public reser vation and r ecreation field. The

bound aries should includ e both r iver s and ex-

tend to Lincoln Avenue on the west and to

Durf ee R oad on the nor th, and should includ e

und er agreement the 49 acr e water reser ve of

Pasadena in the valley and extend south to the

existing cross street.

In the nor thwest por tion, ther e ar e oil wells

that should be includ ed in the area but may be

allowed to continue to o perate .under a suita ble

agr eement.In this area it may be possi ble to d evelop la-

goons f or bathing and boating and to aff or d

var ious other f orms of recreation.

58. Mont ebello Par k way.

Fr om Whittier Narrows west to Lincoln

Par k a par k way just a bove the base of Monte-

bello hills is proposed . This route will r un

thr ough o pen land most of the way, although

plans ar e being mad e now for the su bdivision

of one large tract that should be crossed.

Oil f ields will be crossed near the easterlyend where s pecial concessions 'may pr ove nec-

essar y. Just south of Third Street, west of

Montebello, a cut 60 or 80 feet in d epth will be

PLATE 63. Plan for parkway thr ough gorge in

Montebello Hills as prepar ed by R egional Plan-

ning Commission.

necessar y thr ough a nar row r idge. West from

there to Coyote Pass and Garvey Avenue a

side hill par k way is pro posed wher e three r oad s

should be planned, the middle park drive high

enough a bove the lower bord er road to protect

f orever a view out over the city, and another

border dr ive above on a satisf actory location.

In this section a width of 250 feet to 300 feet

at least will be need ed. West of Coyote Pass

the r oute should tur n nor thward in the deep

canyon alread y consid er ed by the RegionalPlanning Commission f or a parkway, then

turn west at the Pacific Electric tracks, cross

the track s thr ough the pass and then cr oss Al-



[ 128] PARKS, PLAYGR OUNDS AND BEACHES FOR THE Los A NGELES REGION

hambr a Avenue to the back of Ascot Speed way.

This r oute will involve consid era ble heavy

construction and some costly land takings, but

it f ollows the most f easi ble line to enter Los

Angeles city f rom the east, and it offers some

inter esting scenic features along the route.Plans should provide suf ficient s pace f or pos-

si ble gr ade se parations wher e lik ely to be

need ed in the f uture.

59. Lincoln Par k and Recr eat ion

Grounds.

Los Angeles City now has 46 acres in Lin-

coln Par k d evelo ped as a neigh borhood par k.

Just east of this park is a lar ge area as yet

und evelo ped or slightly used , includ ing the

Ascot Track . The entir e area, containing possi-

bly 180acr es, should be acquired as one of sev-eral pro posed r egional athletic fields, to be

develo ped for intensive use by a large number

of athletic teams and players in var ious games.

North of Lincoln Park is the Selig Zoo that

should be ad ded to the par k as a city feature if

it can be o btained on ad vantageous terms. The

city now has no satisf actor y zoo within easy ac-

cess and a well-organized public zoo would

afford pleasure to many people.

60. Lincoln- An'oyo S eco Par kway.

From Lincoln Park to the Ar royo Seco and toward the city a connection is needed, and for

that a satisf actory route is not easily f ound.

The best location seems to be to cross Mission

Road f r om Lincoln Par k on a viaduct and to

sk ir t the base of the hills nor thward to the

Ar royo. Possi bly the small hill o pposite Lin-

coln Park should be included in the taking to

provid e material for f ill and location for an

overhead crossing over Mission Road and over

North Br oad way also. The r oute if k e pt east

of Pasadena Avenue can dr op d own into the

Arr oyo to join with other park road s toward the city. Part of the way the width may be less

than 225 feet; in other portions it should be

wid er to meet existing str eet and lot lines.

6 1. Arro yo S eco Park and Park way.

Fr om the Los Angeles River at ~lysian

Park to the mountains, alread y much of the

land f or a park and par k way system up the

Ar r oyo Seco has been acquir ed, includ ing Syca-more Gr ove, two Victor y Par k s, Lower Arr oyo

Par k, Ar royo Seco Park, Br ook sid e Par k , Oak

Grove Par k, and the water land s, 1,377 acr esin all. A bout 43 acres more will be need ed to

eliminate various small hold ings and to com-

plete the route, or mor e if boundaries are ad -

justed to allow space f or r eally am ple par k d r iveways wher e narrow streets now exist.

From River sid e Drive at Elysian Par k the

park road should either cross on the Dayton

Avenue br id ge or dip down and follow the

river bed, or both, then follow the ed ges of Arroyo Seco low enough to pass und er brid ges,

with connections u p to the streets in places.

Through the par ks f rom Victory Park to the

mountains some r emnants of private property

should be acq uired and par k dr ives and bord er

streets of ample wid th are needed to aff ord

pleasant continuous tr avel from the city to the

mountains. At Devil's Gate Dam there is need

for a good connection ar ound the d am on one

or both sid es and possibly for some additional

land s to protect par k views and park featur es.

Under the Colorado Street bridge there is

still some vacant land in pr ivate ownershi p

that should be publicly owned.

62. El ysian Park .

The City of Los Angeles now owns 600

acr es in Elysian Par k hilltops, but does not own

the enclosed valleys toward the south. About

420 acr es more should be acquir ed to incr ease

the value of this close-in public pr operty and

plans ar e now being consid er ed by the city to

acquire a lar ge ad d itional area. This additional

area is par tly vacant and should be acquired be-f ore lar ge sums ar e s pent to d evelop it f or

other uses. A street has been suggested thr ough

Chavez Ravine, but it will. be much better if



that entire r avine can be d evoted to r ecreation

and mad e a part of the park. From the pr o-

posed In-town parkway at the southwest cor -

ner a drive should extend along the westerly

rid ge through the pass at the head of Chavez

Ravine to connect with the' proposed Los An-

geles River Parkway in both directions along

the nor ther ly f ace of the hills.

With the proposed extension of the area,

various ty pes of park scener y can be developed

within the park itself, and recreation can be en-

cour aged in a way not possible in the hilltops

alone. Insofar as possi ble, the steep slopes sur-

rounding the r avine should be included in the

park extension to control the park scenery and

to k ee p pr ivate develo pment fr om detr acting

fr o~he park value.

The bottom of Chavez Ravine near the

easter ly end is easily accessible from the city

and would mak e an ideal place for athletic

field s of lar ge size to serve large crowds, and

on the slo pes a golf course may be possible.

63. Los Angeles River Parkwa y.

R iver side Drive fr om Elysian Park to Grif-

fith Park has been consid er ed as a possible

route for a parkway. It is now being developed

as a busy str eet and is destined to become sim-

ply another traffic artery. The south bank of

the Los Angeles River on the other hand is aregion of low valuations and poor develo p-

ments, and fr om the Dayton Avenue bridge to

Griffith Park the bank of the river and the

river bed should be acquired with enough up-

land to aff ord ample s pace for park-like treat-

ment. This route should connect with the Ar-

r oyo ~eco under t~e Dayton Avenue bridge,

and wlth the Elyslan Park entrance wher e it

now enters R iver side Drive northwest of the

park.

6 4. Gr iffit h Par k.

Griffith Park is the largest public area in theLos Angeles Region, outside the National For-

est reser ves, available for par k and recreation

purposes. The park contains nearly 4,000 acr es,largely in steep mountain lands of r elatively

limited recreational value. A bout one-quarter

of its area, however , is level enough to be used

f or active r ecreation. Of this intensively usableland near ly one-fourth has recently been cut

off fr om the main park by Victor y Boulevard,

a busy highway along the r iver bottom through

the park.

In addition to Griffith Park lands there are

now also sever al other ar eas of adjacent water

lands in public owner ship, having high value

for park and recreational uses, that should be

and doubtless can be made a part of the park

r eser vation. Nearly 600 acres of such land s

might be made available and thus ser ve to al-

most d ouble the intensively usa ble area of this

gr eat park reser vation.The park and water land s also are unfor-

tunately cut in two by the highway a bove re-

ferred to, so that ther e is little possibility for

creating a single large ar ea having a fine qual-

ity of interior park scenery and unity unless

that road can be diverted around the park, but

in the northwester ly section where much of the

water land lies there is still space that can pos-

sibly be dedicated to a high ty pe of park use if

properly guarded. Victor y Boulevard can be

and should be r elocated east of the r iver along

the power line and the inter vening small par-

cels should be publicly acquired.In Griffith Park itself there are possibilities

for the development of par k featur es and park

scener y of far greater value than have' as yet

been brought out. In time, space should be

found elsewhere on land of less value for the

propagating houses and shops and work yards

so that the interior of the great park area can

be made mor e park-like and beautiful and

those fine open s paces can be kept free from

o bstructions as o pen scener y for public enjoy-

ment. The valley sections of the park itself can

be made finer and finer as time goes on by the

gradual d evelopment of suitable enclosing and surr ounding foliage masses, and by develop-

ment of interior groups and masses of vegeta-



[ I 30 ] PARKS, PLAYGROUNDS AND BEACHES FOR THE Los ANGELES REGION

tion with finely proportioned, varied and in-

teresting open spaces where most appropriate.

There is an enormous value to the people at

large in a simple, quiet, beautiful open space

screened in and kept free from all evidences of

commercial activities and from the less attrac-tive conditions of the outside world. This value

can be created and developed only in such an

area as Griffith Park or other large reserva-

tions, and it is worth creating even to the ex-

clusion of some of the many kinds of activities

that~nsist on finding a place in the best part of

every large park.

65. Upper Los Angeles River Parkway.

Four miles from Griffith Park westward to

the Tujunga Wash, the upper Los AngelesRiver with adjacent water lands and necessary

drainage channels offers a good location for

a parkway westward . Already the river is being

constricted to an ugly deep channel and the

channel is being crowded on both sides. A strip

wide enough to provide reasonable space for

border streets, and a pleasant roadway should

be from four or five hundred feet wide to

twelve or fifteen hundred feet in places. Near

Griffith Park all of the pleasant valley on the

south side of the river should be included in

the boundaries. Farther west the present pri-

vate road may well serve for the south bound-

ary as a park drive and border street. Through

Universal City and west to the sharp bend in

Ventura Boulevard the local street should

form the south boundary.

The banks along the river range from five

to· thirty feet in height and are higher along

the south than the north shore most of the way.

The park drive doubtless should follow the

southerly shore.

66. Turnbull Ridge Parkway.From the Whittier Narrows eastward up

the Puente hillsides to Turnbull Canyon Road,

several possible routes for a parkway two

hundred and twenty-five to four hundred feet

or more in width have been considered, but

the most practical and most attractive route

climbs the southerly face of the hills from the

Workman Mill Road along the route recently

surveyed for a roadway by the County. A

width of two hundred and fifty feet along

Workman Mill Road is needed to continue

that road as a fairly wide traffic road on the

easterly edge of the parkway. This ro~te would

make a veritable skyline drive overlooking

the valley and plains to the south'f

67. West Puente Hills Parkway. ,

From the Turnbull Ridge Parkway an ex-

tension nearly thirteen miles long and from

three hundred to four thousand feet in widthis proposed to include the hilltops down to

reasonable locations for side roads. This route

following along or near the line recently sur-

veyed by the County for a ridge road from

Turnbull Canyon to Brea Canyon Road, passes

through some interesting canyon tops and up-

land valleys with attractive native growth and

with the finest views toward the mountains.

A few oil wells will be encountered and land

acquisition can be made subject to existing

operating privileges. This is one of the routes

where the owners of large areas might well

be persuaded to set aSIde land f or a really fine

public parkway and reservation as a splendid

monument to the donors. The plan should be

so designed that the remaining property along

the sides can be developed to the best advan-

tage and will benefit by being near a really

fine public way.

68. La Habra Connection.

From the proposed parkway above men-

, tioned, a branch toward La Habra as far as

the County line should be acquired to meet the

possible location that may seem best in Orange

County for future extensions.



6 9. E ast Puent e Hills Par k way

and Reservat ion.

East of Brea Canyon R oad acr oss the Dia-

mond Bar Ranch to the big basin southwestof Pomona, a route is pro posed following the

r id ge line as sur veyed by the County f or a

shor t distance, then tur ning northwar d across

the head of the broad upland valley of the

Diamond Bar Ranch to enter the big basin

f rom the west.

A num ber of f ine upland features along

the route should be pr eser ved and bound aries

have been suggested to includ e these.

A r the head of Rodeo Canyon, two miles

east of Brea Canyon Road, wher e the r oute

tur ns nor th, a rugged and picturesq ue gorge is

encountered that will involve heavy constr uc-tion.

This par k way should be ample in wid th as

pr oposed for the West Puente Hills Section,

and this is another section that might possibly

be acquir ed by gif t on the same basis as that

suggested for West Puente Hills ( No. 67

above).

70. Pomona Basin Reservation.

Southwest of the City of Pomona at the east

end of the Puente Hills lies a large basin sur -

rounded by rolling hills. The basin with theslo pes to the r im of the hills includ es about

2,400 acres. The entire area with one f arm

group and with f ine oak s and sycamores in the

canyons would mak e a complete self -contained

unit f or an extensive rur al park of the f inest

ty pe, with ample s pace for all sor ts of r ecrea-

tion activities, such as golf , ball games, picnic

groves, auto cam ps and hiking tr ails. The area

should be acq uired and reserved f or later de-

velopment. It is apparently now in only one or

two large ownershi ps and should be acq uired

bef ore it may be brok en u p.

71. Pomona Parkway.

From the Pomona basin nor thwatd to the

Pud dingstone R eservoir to cross the u pper end

of the Spad r a Valley at its narr owest point a

connection is planned to d r op gradually f r om

the rim of the a bove mentioned basin along

the f ace of the slo pes among existing native

walnut trees and in f ine command of views of

the mountains. Cr ossing the valley, where two

highways and the railroad ar e in close prox-

imity, plans for the parkway should provid e

f or ultimately br idging over all of them, even

though gr ad e crossings may be necessar y at

present. Nor th of the railroad , walnut groves

on flat lands ar e to be crossed and a thr ee- t road park way 225 f eet or 250 f eet wide should

be mad e. Fr om there the r oute should clim b

nor theaster ly towar d the Pud d ingstone Reser-

vOIr .

7 2. Puddingst one Reser voir Pa1' k .

The Pudd ingstone d am now subjects 500

acres or so of land to flooding and may cr eate

at times a f air ly lar ge lak e, fluctuating with

rainy conditions and, ther ef or e, of limited rec-

reational value. The r eservoir lies in a basin

at the east end of the San Jose Hills. A reser -

vation sur r ounding the basin and extending to

r easona ble lines f or boundary str eets is sug-

gested. Most of the land is unim proved , ex-

cept some ar eas lying so low that they will be

flooded by the r eservoir .

73. Gctnesha Parkway.

East of the Pud d ingstone Reservoir , the

County owns 73 acr es of f air ground s, and

south of that the City of Pomona owns 6 I

acres in Ganesha Par k. Fr om the proposed

r eser vation at Pud dingstone Reser voir a con-

nection to these two areas may well be made,

although not an essential link in the proposed

park system.

74. La V erne Pm·kway.

From Pud d ingstone Reservoir nor thwar d

to the mountains across the upper end of Wal-

nut Creek and of San Dimas Valley a route is



pr o posed as a shor t link between the hills and

the mountains. This connection, involving no

particular local pr o blems, can best be acquired

along the east sid e of Artesia Avenue, leaving

that street for the westerly road of a three-road

parkway.

75. S an Ant onio C one Reser vat ion.

As the easterly unit of the pro posed r oute

along the base of the mountains, the San An-

tonio Cone extending fr om the County east

line to the flood contr ol basin a t Palmer Can-

yon off ers a peculiar ty pe of land scape scener y.

At the mouth of the San Antonio Canyon a

. perfect cone has f or med as a half cir cle sever al

miles acr oss, extending into Claremont and

f ar into San Ber nar d ino County. High up on

this cone against the base of the mountains, the parkway is planned to cross the cone, and

on the cone a br oad strip of land having rela-

tively low commer cial value should be in-

cluded in the plan, wide enough to preser ve a

bit of the natural char acter of this ty pe of

countr y and wide enough to k eep a fairly open

view in both dir ections over t h e length of the

route. This area may d ou btless have some

value for absorption of water as well. The

northerly bound ary may well includ e the ex-

isting road along the base of the mountains

and an extension of its line westerly. The width

should be not less than 1,200 feet to 1,500 f eet

for much of the distance, to be in scale with the

countr y.

Oak s, sycamor es, yuccas, holly and other

native gr owth should be develo ped to f r ame

the scener y along this route.

76. Live Oak Park and Park way.

From the Palmer Canyon Flood Basin

westward to San Dimas \Vash the route should

pass above the foothills around the branches

of Thompson Creek and across Live Oak Creek

and Marshall Creek thr ough most interesting

rolling uplands of wild and rugged waste

lands. The reser vation should be br oad enough

to control local scener y and to include many

interesting local f eatur es; the boundar ies

where pr actical should f ollow lines where bor-

d er r oad s can be made to encourage favorable

d evelo pment of the adjacent ar ea.tl. Both sid es

of Mar shall Creek should be included in thetaking, and west of these Wheeler Str eet can

for m the southerly boundar y ·of the pr oposed

reservation; a wid th of 800 feet to 1,000 feet

is d esira ble.

Along this section ample s pace should be

available for picnic ground s and many forms

of recr eation for auto par ties. This will form

one of the most picturesque and attractive sec-

tions of the f oothills chain of parkways .

7 7. S an Dimas Cone Reser vat ion.

Fr om the San Dimas Canyon two mileswestward to Artesia Avenue a reser vation is

pr o posed on the San Dimas Cone. This cone

is less cons picuous as a geological featur e than

the San Antonio Cone and it has been deeply

er oded. The plan pr o poses to acq uir e the wash

and some of the land to the north of it u p to

the f or est bound ar y, and to includ e the 16-

acre County park at Artesia Avenue and the

80-acr e park on the hills a bove. The main par k

d r iveway may f ollow one or both of two

r outes, one along the San Dimas R oad to the

small park, then turning northwest; the other to cr oss on the f oothills higher up and to con-

nect also with the route from La Verne (No.

74)·

7 8 . Glendor a-S an Dimas Par k ceva y.

Fr om Artesia Avenue the route should r un

west to the Dalton Washes across the f oothills

high a bove most of the pr esent developments.

This is another pictur esque and attr active link

in the pr o posed system, thr ough gr azing and

wild land s, having much natur al char m along

the way that should be preserved, and com-

manding fine outlook s and views over the

valley.



79. Glendora-Azusa Parkway.

From the Dalton Washes across the f oot-

hills a bove Glend or a and Azusa to the San

Ga briel Wash, a straight line location has beensurveyed by the County for a main highway.

This line should be followed, taking a width

of 300 feet or so f rom Sier ra Madre Avenue

southwar d to pr ovid e for a three-road attrac-

tive formal parkway. This route crosses land

well develo ped in citr us orchard s, and it is pos-

sible that the land can be acq uir ed for thr ee

r "oads to be d eveloped when need ed and the

citrus groves can be continued in use for many

year s.

80. Azusa Gol f Ground s Site.

Northeast of Azusa the hilly spur pro ject-

ing from the mountain mass and lying south

of Sierra Madre Avenue, off er s an unusually

interesting site for golf gr ound s and picnic

grounds, and for local park uses as well. The

land is now und eveloped and should not be

costly.

81. San Gabriel Wash Reservation.

From the south bound ary of the f or est at

the mouth of San Ga briel Canyon southwest-

ward to the Whittier Nar rows) the San Ga briel

River has s pr ead out acr oss a basin thr ee or four miles in width, forming an enormous

wash in which the r iver is now partly confined

to a limited channel. In the wash are large

gravel pits and gravel washing machines, and

in places houses and cultivation have spr ead

into the wash, but there is still a large area of

waste land su bject to possible flood ing at long

intervals and unsuitable for agricultural or

residential development. In this area a spread-

ing basin of several thousand acr es is need ed

for f lood waters, and around this area d efinite

boundaries for a good type of develo pmentshould be established. Within the bound ar ies

of the wash, plans should be made for the

most satisfactory development of basins, d ik es,

gravel pits, highway crossings, recreation ar eas

and gener al park scenery of a type suited to

the situation and attractive as a f oreground

over which to enjoy views of the mountains

fr om bor d er str eets and par k drives. A plan

has~een stud ied to includ e within the wash

f rom the Forest on the north to Los Angeles

Street west of Bald win Park a str ip 4,000 feet

to 9,000 f eet wide and seven miles long, con-

taining 5,000 acres, within which ar ea the land

should be definitely withd r awn f rom real es-

tate development to f or m a pu blic reservation

to be used und er a well-d evised and a ppr o-

pr iate plan f or the various pur poses it can best

be mad e to serve. In places gr avel pits ar e be-

ing sunk to a tremendous d epth so close to ex-

isting highways and r ailways that trouble will

cer tainly arise, and conditions are lik ely to be-come still worse in time unless pr o per ly con-

tr olled .

While it is evident that a plap f or broad and

extensive d evelopment is need ed to lead to-

ward a satisf actory per manent result in this

gr eat ar ea, such as can be prod uced only under

general public control, it is difficult to say

just what that plan should be until f ar mor e

time and stud y has been given the problem

than is possible in a preliminary survey. That

such a plan is need ed is evident and it is be-

lieved that a large reservation such as is here

pro posed should be mad e at once su bject to j oint planning by flood control authorities,

par k author ities, and suita ble agreements regu-

lating the gravel removal that can be and

should be permitted or encouraged to continue

to operate within the area.

In the area the County alread y owns gravel

pits, various road plans are alread y being de-

velo ped and flood contr ol dik es have been

built, but so f ar there is yet no d efinite plan

designed to lead to a complete and satisfactory

solution of the problems of t he entire area

und er the many more or less conflicting inter-ests. At the up per end the mountain-sid e park -

way should cross, and bor d er streets and park

drives along both sid es of the wash should



[ 134 ] PARK S, PLAYGROUNDS AND BEACHES FOR THE Los ANGELES REGIO N

eventually serve as important north and south

routes.

8 2. Upper S an Gabriel River Par k way.

From the wash a bove d escr i bed southward for five and a half miles to the Whittier Nar-

rows the river wash becomes mor e constricted .

A few hundr ed f eet of width will be r eq uir ed

for flood water s and a f ew hundred f eet more

should be add ed f or park drives and bor d er

streets, making a total of 1,000 f eet to 1,200

feet that should be acquired, within which the

flood channel can b e left rather ir r regular in

outline and less sluice-like than would be

necessary within a narr ower s pace.

8 3. S an Gabriel River Golf Ground s.Between the Wor kman Mill R oad and the

river north of the Puente Hills, two miles

a bove the Whittier Narrows, there is an area

of 360 acres that would make an excellent golf

site on rolling mesa land that could well be

made a par t of the reservation to be reached by

pleasant par k ways f rom various dir ections.

The lowland is f ar med and the upland is d ry

farm or pastur e land with some fine tr ees and

with room f or gener ous planting when d evel-

oped.

84. Upper Rio H ond o Par k wa y.

From the Whittier Narrows northwar d to

Eaton Wash, a distance of three miles, a chan-

nel400 feet to 500 f eet in width is need ed f or

flood contr ol with thr ee channels enter ing

from the nor th. Along that wash a strip 1,000

feet or so in wid th should be acquir ed f or park-

way develo pment similar to that pr oposed f or

other lik e channels.

Near the southerly end the west boundary

should be k ept u p on the high bluff s overlook -

ing the valley, where a number of oil wellsexist that may be allowed to continue under

proper r egulation as pro posed f or other sec-

tions also.

85. E at on Wash Parkway.

Six and one-half miles f r om the R io Hondo

to Villa Avenue, Pasadena, a r ight of way 50

feet to 110 f eet wid e will be needed f or flood

contr ol. Along the northerly por tion of thiswash the Edison Com pany has a power lihe

and along the high bank s and existing streets

the d evelopments suggest a ver y irr egular

bou¥r y f or a parkway 300 feet to 400 f eetwid e, just wid e enough to include those f eat-

ur es of interest and of necessity, and to aff ord

room for a park d r iveway, and on each sid e for

border streets.

A car ef ul stud y of the route has shown that

a plan can be d evised to mak e a satisf actory

park way along the wash of varied and inter - .

esting character, but need ing much d etailed study to d etermine the exact bound ar ies that

can best serve for the needed right of way.

86 . Monrovia- M ount Olivet Parkway.

From the u pper end of San Gabriel Wash

for nearly two miles westwar d f ollo~ing

along or near the line surveyed hy the County,

the r oute should rise grad ually to the top of

the mesa back of Mt. Olivet Station. In the

upland section, a broad ar ea of the rougher

land s should be included to pr otect the scenery

along the par kway and to pr otect fine views

out over the valley f rom this elevated location.

Fine oaks and pines ar e included within

proposed boundar ies and afford excellent

places for picnics and par k enjoyment.

8 7. Monrovia Parkway.

From the canyon above M t. Olivet west-

war d f or the next two miles to the line of

Myr tle Avenue in Monrovia the r oute should

f ollow a line higher u p than the line surveyed

by the County. The right of way should be

250 f eet or 300 feet wide and the lines should

be ir r egular to f ollow good grades and avoid

existing im provements where feasible. For

much of the way the route passes through one

lar ge estate, and passes along the upper edge



of some f ine citrus groves. Heavy grading will

be necessar y in crossing Monr ovia Canyon.

88 . M onrovia Golf Ground s S it e.

Northeast of Monrovia on one large estate

there ar e rolling hills, partly used for gr ain

field s and par tly in citrus gr oves, that would

mak e an id eal site f or a countr y park and golf

site, from 120 acr es to 250 acr es or mor e in

extent. In locating the par kway thr ough this

r egion it may pr ove mor e practical and better

economy to take much or all of the estate than

to pay dear ly for a part of i t and in that case

this ad ditional area most certainly should be

includ ed .

89. Sant a Anit a Canyon Park

and Parkway.Behind the mountain s pur , between the

Myr tle Street line and Santa Anita Canyon f or

a d istance of a mile and a half thr ough upland

valleys, pr actically f ollowing the line surveyed

by the County, the park way should wid en out

to include most of the beautif ul basin at the

easter nly end, and all of the smaller valley

d escending westwar d to Santa Anita Canyon.

Some heavy grading will be necessary in en-

tering the canyon, but that seems unavoidable.

Live oak s, sycamor es and eucalyptus tr ees

mak e this route es pecially attr active. Somesmall orchard s of d oubtful value will be in-

clud ed in the bound aries.

90. Sierra M ad re Par k way.

Fr om Santa Anita Canyon westwar d to

Eaton Wash, near ly four miles, the pr o posed

route f ollows the line surveyed by the County

par t of the way, but rises a bove it i n Sierra

Mad re and f alls below it f ar ther westwar d .

In order to get a f air width the parkway should

includ e some land a bove Grand view Avenue.

Through Sierr a Madr e a number of houseswill necessarily be involved and a num ber of

streets should be included , but as a link in a

long line the additional cost f or this section

will be justif ied and the length of the im-

proved ar ea to be crossed is not great as com-

pared to the length of the total scheme.

Several vineyar d s will be involved and some

heavy gr ading is necessary to cr oss the many

canyons that penetr ate the mountains a bove.Just west of the center of Sierra Madre the

70 acr es of publicly owned water land in

Bailey Canyon that has been consid ered f or a

possible botanic gard en joins the par k way on

the nor th and that ar ea should cer tainly be

ke pt as a pu blic holding with its f ine canyon

mouth and bit of o pen land.

91. Sierra Madre Golf Grounds Site.

South of the par k way, par tly west of but

chiefly east of Sierr a Mad r e Villa Avenue, 120

to 250 acr es of r olling f oothills land nowmostly in vineyards or vacant may well be in-

clud ed in the r eser vation to contr ol the view

out over the valley f rom the pa,r k way and to

aff or d s pace f or a bit of country park and pos-

si bly golf gr ound s.

92. E aton Canyon Wash Reser vat ion.

Fr om Villa Avenue, Pasadena, and Eaton

Wash to the mouth of Eaton Canyon pr oper,

a distance of near ly thr ee miles, the wash wid-

ens out fr om 2,000 feet to 3,000 feet in width,

forming a br oad basin that should be entirelyincluded in a reservation. A d rive should f ol-

low the wester ly r im of the basin, the f oothills

parkway should swing into the basin f rom the

east on the f ace of the bluff s to r each the bot-

tom near the head of the basin where the

reservation will be r elatively narrow, and from

ther e it should f ollow the norther ly face just

a bove the floor along the line surveyed by the

County to the upper end of the wash, and cross

the Mt. Wilson Toll Road.

The u pper end of the wash above New

Yor k Avenue is beautifully wood ed with oak s

and sycamor es, and off er s a fine place f or pic-nics, regional recreation, and local park inter-

ests as well. Extr emely fine views over the

valley are f ound f rom the high mesa along





o pen basin should be includ ed to mak e an at-

tr active local par k. At t h e head of the valley

the route should cr oss diagonally over to the

mountains to wind d own around the nor th side

of the City of Tujunga to the sad d le wherethe canyon r oad now crosses over into Tu junga

Canyon. From ther e the road way should win.d

down the H.orth f ace of the small butte west-

ward to the canyon floor to connect with pro-

posed road s in the Tujunga Wash and with

road s into the f orest area.

98 . Whit ing' s Wood s and Brand

Park Reservation.

On the south sid e of Ver d ugo Hills there

is now a public ar ea of 6 I6 acres in Brand Park

that is und evelo ped and little used. Nor th of this park on the nor therly slopes is an attr ac-

tive wooded canyon and basin at Whiting's

Woods that has been suggested f or par k pur-

poses. The lower portion of the wood s offers a

Dne place for picnics and a small wood land

park . The basin back of it aff ords space f or a

pleasureway on wind ing lines and easy gr ades

up to the summit in Brand Park 3,000 f eet

above the sea with a connection through the

saddle a few hund r ed feet lower, f rom which

the park d r ive can again wind d own the south-

erly slope in Brand Par k to the canyon in its

southwester ly bound ar y to meet the proposed

Glendale Par kway to Gr iffith Par k. This pro-

posed road over the hill having the advantage

of large par k reservations along the r oute and

fine views from the summit will form the

only practica ble cross connection f or a par k way

.in a distance of ten or f ifteen miles between the

Tujunga Wash and the Ar royo Seco. Much

heavy constr uction will be involved in making

a satisfactory road .

99. Glendale Parkway.

From Brand Par k to Gr iffith Par k across

Glend ale a par kway connection is pr o posed toloop westward , then southeastwar d back of

Glendale, then to cross Grand View Avenue

PLATE 64 -. Whiting's Wood s, a shad y s pot in the

nor th f ac e of Verd ugo Hills that should be in-

cluded in a public r eser vation. (Phot o by F iss.)

and to turn south par allel to the avenue to thenor theast cor ner of Griffith Park . Some im-

provements will have to be crossed thr ough

Glend ale to r each Griffith Par k , but the most

f easible route should be acq uir ed or made a

par t of definite plans .

ESTIMATE OF COSTS

A detailed estimate of pro ba ble cost for ac-

q uisition and f or impr ovement has been mad e

for each unit of the system on the basis of

present selling values for acreage and lots in

each neighborhood, on the assum ption of pur -chases and of improvements ad a pted to the

conditions near each section.



TABLE OF ESTIMATED PROBABLE PURCHASE COSTS A ND IMPROVEMENT COSTS FOR

EACH TYPE OF PARK A ND PARKWAY

Lengt h Ar ea C ost o f C ost o f

T y pe o f Pr o ject Pr o posed in Miles in Acres Acquisit ion I mpr ovements T ot al C ost

A. Shor e Front R oads and Park Ar eas (notincluding costs estimated und er Beaches) 36.5 6,690 $ 7,4-00,000 $ 18,4-00,000 $ 25,800,000

B. Large U pland R eser vations _____ _ _ _____ _____ _ __ 87·5 30,575 22,670,000 6,260,000 28,930,000

C. Lar ge Dr ainage Basin R eservations ________ 34-·3 11,600 9,250,000 2,4-10,000 11,660,000

D. Narrower Drainage Basin R eser vations _ _ 53·9 6,270 12,800,000 3,150,000 15,950,000E. Connecting Par kways ____ __ __ _ ____ __ _____ ___ _ ___ _ 214-.0 11,560 39,830,000 13,610,000 53,4-4-0,000

F. S pecial sites f or large athletic field s, or

golf cour ses or other uses (not includ -

ing costs included und er R egional Ath-

letic Fields) ---------------------------------------- 13.8 4-,515 7,220,000 850,000 8,070;000

TOTALS ------------------------------------------ 4-4-0.0 71,310 $99,17°,000 $4-4-,680,000 $14-3,850,000

CONCLUSIO N

The above list of park and parkway pr o-

jects covers the complete system proposed f or

the Los Angeles Region south of the National

For est and the mountains. It d oes include

many but not all the existing park s, some of

which are fairly large and impor tant. It d oes

not include beaches, strictly local parks and

playgrounds, or the mor e remote reservations

in the mountains, deserts and islands, which

are d iscussed in other chapter s.

A lar ge number of u nits involving a lar ge

total acreage has been discussed , extending

over a great variety of kinds of land and in-

volving many problems. No at tem pt has been

made t o indicate the order o f urgency or pre f -

erence f or t hem) as such a selection must d e-

pend upon local factor s that ar e constantly

changing, and that should be d eter mined asthe work proceed s and as conditions affecting

the various plans call for action.

Two d istinct pr o blems are involved in the

plans, fir st the acq uisition of land s and second

the impr ovement of the pro jects to meet exist-

ing demand s. The need f or acquisition of lands

is urgent now f or nearly all pr o jects bef or e

further obstacles make acquisition more diffi-

cult. The need f or improvement in a general

pr eliminar y way is f airly ur gent now for most

of the plans, but a ppar ently is not realized by

the public in gener al pr o bably because thegreat possibilities for better things that might

be done here and the immense opportunities

for better things that ar e being lost thr ough

lack of plans and action have not yet been

made sufficiently evident.



PPENDI ES



List o f S chools in the Los Angeles Region Having Mor e Than F ive Acr es E ach of

Available Pla ygr ound Space

Dis t ric t Unit

No. No.

A-2

A-5

A-6

A-8

Area of Ar ea of

Site in Recr eation

Acres Space in Acr es

Owensmouth High _

Van Nuys High _

Lank ershim High _

Br oadway High, Glen-d ale _

New High (to be

built), Glend ale _

Eleanor Toll Junior

High, Glendale _

Santa Monica High _

Venice High (]r . & Sr.)

Fairf ax High, L. A. _

John Bur roughs Junior High _

Los Angeles High. _

Bever ly Hills High _

J. A. Foshay Junior

High, L. A. . _

El Segundo Elementar y

El Segund o High. _

Inglewood Union High,

Lawnd ale _

Wise burn Elementary,

Hawthor ne _

Jef f erson High, L. A. _ _

George Washington

High, L. A. _

John C. Fr emont High,

Lo s A ngeles _

Hyd e Park Elementar y

Enterpr ise Elementary,

Compton _

Compton High _

25.2

23.2

18.2

9.23

13.78

24·95

24·3

10·4

18·518. I

9·

13·7

10.32

14.0

8.

6.89

14·9

9·5

5.28

9·3

7-

6.86

6·3

6.85

Di st ri ct U nit

No. No.

Area o f Ar e a o f

S ite in Recr eation

Acres Space i n Acres

A br aham Lincoln,

Compton 8.4

Narbonne High, Lomita II.I

Phineas Banning High,

Wilmington ------------ 9.5

Valmonte Elementar y

Site, Palos Verd es __ __ 11.23

Montemalaga Elemen-

tar y S it e, Palos Ver -

d es ---------------------------- 9.67

Zur ita Elementar y Site,

Palos Verd es 10.15

Cor onel Park High Site,

Palos Verd es __ _ _ _ __ _ _ ___ _ 45.83

Lunad a Bay Elemen-tar y Site, Palos Ver -

d es 10.58

Mar gate Elementary,

Palos Verd es -------- _ __ _27.73

Huntington Park High 20.

High School Site, Hunt-

ington Par k 18.

Lindber gh Elementary,

Compton 8.6

Poinsettia Elementar y,

Com pton ------------------ 7.5

East Whittier Elemen-

tary 8.48

Whittier High -------------- '3.4

Excelsior Union High,

Norwalk 18.66

Lowell Elementar y,

Long Beach 12 _02

5.88

9.38

5·94

6·7



[ 142 ] PARKS, PLAYGROUNDS AND BEACHES FOR THE Los ANGELES REGIO N

Area of Area of Area of Area o f

District Unit Site in Recreation District U nit Site in Recr eation

No. No. Acres Space in A cres No. N o. Acres Space in A cres

D-5 Wilson High, Long F-3 San Marino Elemen-

Beach ---------------- '3.56 6.78 tary ... _ .... _ ................. 12. 6.

J)-5 27 Long Beach Polytechnic F-3 Garfield Elementar y,High ------------------------ 19. I 6 9.58 Pasadena .................. I I. 5 8.05

E-2 617 Hollenbeck Junior F-3 12 High School, Alhambra 17.82 8·9

High and Boyle F-3 21 Alhambra High ---------- 8.66 6.1H'eights School, L.A. 9.86 6. I

F-4 High School, Monrovia.

23.6 II.8II

E-3 30 James A. Garfield Jun-F-4 17 Huntington Elemen-

ior High, L. A ..... _... IS· 11.5tar y, Monrovia __ _ _ 7·3 5. I

E-3 Washington Elemen-F-4 T8 Monrovia High .. 8·5 5·95

tar y, Los Angeles.. .. 7·5 5.25F-4 Woodrow Wilson Jun.24

E-3 4 Montebello High 12.0 6.ior High, Pasad ena. 14.98 '3·73

F'T 2 Eagle Rock High ....... 12·5 6.25F-5 El Monte High ..______ _ .2 17· 9·

F-2 9 Pasad ena High SchooL 38.0 12.66

F-2 McKinley Junior High, F-s Columbia Elementary,

I I

Pasadena _ .._ _ __ . _ ___ _ ___ .. 8.05 6.05 El Monte ---------------- 12. I 8.47

F-2 15 John MuirTechnology, F-6 4 Citrus Union High,Pasadena -------- 15· II. Glendora _ _ 15.68 7.89

F-2 17 Thos. Jefferson School, F-6 19 Puente High ---------------- 10.7 I 5.85

Pasad ena ---------------_ ..- r o·57 7· F-8 Bonita High, San Di-

F-2 T8 John Marshall Junior mas ---------------- 22.41 II.25

High, Pasad ena ------ 14·37 10.8 F-8 4 La Verne Elementary .. 8.6 6.

F-2 21 Henry W. Longf ellow F-8 6 Claremont High ..... __ _ ___ 18.22 9. I

School, Pasadena ...... 7·75 5· F-8 '3 Pomona High ------------ 7·9 5·53F-2 22 Washington Junior Y-4 Torrance High 18·75 10.58

High, Pasadena ------ 12.64- 10·5 Y-4 Torrance Elementary .. 7·55 5·3

F· 2 41 South Pasadena City

High ------------- 15· 7·5 Total ------------------------ -------------------- 636.82*

*Since the above was written the Red ond o Union High has acquir ed a 22-acre athletic f ield.



List o f E xisting Public and Quasi-Public Open Spaces , E ach o f One Acre or More,

in t he Los Angeles Region ( N ot I ncluding School Grounds)

Dist rict Unit

No. No.

Ar eas

Class in Acres

No. of No. o f

Ar eas Acres I I San Fer nando R eservoir Land s _ G I, '54

12 Olive View Sanatorium, San

Fernando I 656

14 San Fer nando Mission . I 4

'S San Fernando Mission Gar d ens _ I 38

16 Maclay R eservoir Site, San Fer -

nando G 6

'7 Gravel Pit on San Fer nand oRoad - _ __ _ __ __ ____ _ _ ______ _ _____ _ _ _ _ ___ ____ 40

18 Dexter Par k , near Little Tuj un-

ga Canyon ___ K 40

9 Sher man Way, San FernandoValley _ _ 2-l-

10 Whitley Park Countr y Club,

North Hollywood F 210

II Hollywood Countr y Club,

North Hollywood F 104

'3 Eagle Airport , North Holly-

wood ------------------------------- J 3,

14 Hollywood Heights Polo and

Hunting Clu b F 78

9 Pioneer Par k, Bur bank _ _ C 35

22 Nor th Hollywood Par k and

Playgr ound _ . C 90

26 Burbank Par k , Bur bank A 2

28 Lak esid e G olf Club, Nor th

Hollywood F 100

30 Glendale Airpor t, Glendale J 20

3 I Burbank Civic Center _ B 20

32 Lockheed Airport, Bur bank _ _ J 16

33 Panor ama Airpor t, Burbank J 38

34 Valhalla Cemetery, Bur bank _ II '35

35 Hollywood Aero Corpor ationField, North Hollywood J 40

37 Fernangeles Park, North Holly-

wood B 10

A. Park s a nd playground s I to 5 acres each _ _ 95 247

B _ Park s and playgr ound s 5 to 25 acr es each 69 839

C. Park s and playground s 25 to 100 acres

each ------------- ----- _ __________ _ ___ _ _ __ _ _ _ __ __ _ _ _________ I 9 93-l-

D. Park s and playgr ound s 100 to 1,000

acres each I 2 3 ,8 96

E. Par k s and playground s over 1,000 acres 3,752

Quasi-P uhlic Recreation A l-eas.-

F. Golf Clu bs and Country Clu b, (outsid e

of park areas) 42

Qttasi-Public Areas H aving Possibl y

Some Recr eational Value.-

G. Water Lands ---------------------------- 53

H. Cemeteries ------ '7

1. Public Institutions a nd other quasi-public

land s (County, City, State and private) _ _ 36

J. Airpor ts (not including small land ing

fields) ---- ----- _______________ __ ___ _ 3 I

6,523

',347

A-6

A-6

District U nit

No. No.

Ar eas

Class in Acr es

A-I 4 Chatsworth R eservoir Land s G ',309

A-I 5 Oak wood Cemetery, Chatsworth H 200

A-2 8 Encino Park, Ventur a Blvd. A 4

A-2 9 _ El Caballer o Countr y Club F 120

A-2 10 St. Andr ews Golf Club F 120

A-4 6 Brand Par k at San Fer nand oMission B 6

A-4 8 County R ock Quarry at Pacoima

on Sa n Fer nando R oad I '91

A-6

A-6

A-6

A-6

A-6

A-6

*Since this table was compiled, Metropolitan Airport, near Van Nuys, Boeing Airport, in Burbank, Western Air Express Field, in Alhambra, and possiblys om e o thers, have been opened, while some airports have been discontinued. Areas included in this table under one ac re i n e xt ent are shown asone acre; oth er fractions have also been omitted.



District Unit

No. No.

1'1.-6 38 Stonehur st Par k , near S an Fer -

nand o . B

1'1.-6 39 Lopez Wa te r Land s 111 Burbank G

1'1.-6 40 Lopez Water Lands 111 Bur bank G

1'1.-6 4 I Lopez Water Land s 111 Burbank G

1'1.-6 ,p Pomeroy-Hook er Water Land in

Bur bank . G

1'1.-6 43 Los Angeles Water Land inBurbank G

1'1.-6 45 Victor v-Van Owen Par k , North

Hollywood D

1'1.-7 2 Monte Vista Park, Sunland B

1'1.-7 1·1 Flintr id ge Country Club F

1'1.-7 13 Oak mont Countr y Clu b,

Glend ale F

1'1.-8 13 Ni bley Par k , Glend ale A

1'1.-8 16 Brock mont Park , Glend ale A

1'1.-8 3 I Hawley Playgr ound (leased ),

Los Angeles B

1'1.-8 32 Gr if f ith Park Playground .. B

1'1.-8 34 Verdugo Par k Site, Glend ale B

1'1.-8 35 Gr if fith Park Air por t, Los

Angeles -----.--------- ---------------- J1'1.-8 37 R aymond R eser voir Site, Glen-

d ale G

1'1.-8 39 Gr and view Cemeter y, Glend ale H

1'1.-8 45 Glend ale R eser voir Park . A

1'1.-8 49 Cam pbell Str eet R eser voir Site,Glend ale G

1'1.-8 52 Glend ale R eservoir Site G

1'1.-8 57 Hunter s Highland Tract-L.A.

Water (San Fer nand o R oad ) G

1'1.-8 58 L. A. Water Land on Los An-

geles River G

1'1.-8 59 L. A. Water Land on Glend ale

Boulevard ~ G

B-1 2 R ivier a Golf Club at SantaMonica F

B-1 Br entwood Countr y Clu b at

Santa Monica F

B- I 7 U .C.L.A. Campus _

B- I 10 Los Angeles Countr y Clu b at

Beverly Hills F

B-1 I[ Westwood Golf Clu b at Bev-

er I y Hi 115... _ _.__ __ ____ __ _ _ _ ____ ____ ___ F

B-1 12 Hillcr est Countr y Club at B~v-er ly Hills.. F

B-, '3 R ancho Countr y Clu b at Bev-

er ly Hills F

B-, '7 Sawtelle Playgr ound . B

B-, ,8 Clover Field Air por t, Santa

Mon i ca ---------------------- ------------ JB-, 19 Santa Monica Golf Cour se, D

AI' eas

Class in A cr es

' 40

43°

Dist rict U nit

N o. No.

Ar eas

Class inAcres

B-1 24 Palisad es Avenue Par k , Santa

Monica _ _ A

B-, 26 Palisad es Park , Santa Monica _ C

B-, 27 Lincoln Par k, Santa Monica BB-, 34 Santa Monica Playground A

B-1 40 Machado Park , Venice A

B- [ 47 Westward Ho Country Clu b atVenice __ F

B-, 49 Lindber gh Par k , Culver City A

B-1 50 Victory Par k , Culver City A

B-, 53 California Country Clu b' at

Culver City __ ___ __ _ _ _ ___ _ F

B-, 57 South Sid e Park, Santa Monica _ A

B-, 58 Holmby Par k , near Bever ly

Hills . .___ B

B-, 6, Lindber gh Park , Santa Monica A

B-1 62 Santa Monica Park A

B-, 63 Wood lawn Cemeter y, SantaMonica H

B-, 64 Venice Beach . _.. B

B- I 66 Soldier s' Home, Sawtelle I

B-1 68 Santa Monica R eser voir Site " G

B-'! 7 I Centinela Sewer Land s, Mesmer Ci ty I

B-'! 73 Del R ey Gun Clu b, Venice F

B-1 74 R ecr eation G un Clu b, Venice F

B'2 Beverly Hills Park .. __.. A

B-2 3 Bever ly Hills Par k .. __. A

B-2 9 Poinsettia Playgr ound, Holly-

wood . .. ._.__ __ B

B-2 14 De Longpr e Par k , Hollywood .. A

B-2 19 Wilshir e Countr y Clu b .. _ _ F

B-2 22 Los Angeles High School Me-

mor ial Par k ; Wilshir e Distr ict A

B-2 25 Hancock Park , Wilshir e District B

B-2 27 La Cienega Playgr ound, Bev-

erly Hills.. . B

B-2 29 'Roxbur y Playgr ound , Bever ly

Hills .... .___ _ __ _ _ _ _______ B

B-2 38 Queen Anne Playgr ound, Wil-

shir e DistricL A

B-2 +' Ver mont Avenue Par k way,Hollywood . B

B-2 42 Vineyard Playground, Wilshir e

Distr ict A

B-2 46 Hollywood Cemetery if B-2 47 Calif or nia Aer ial Trans por t

Field , near Benrly Hills ----- JB-3 5 Yale Playground , Los Angeles .. A

B-3 " Echo Park Playgr ound, LosAngeles .____ _ A

B-3 64 Barnsd all Park, Los Angeles B

B- 3 6 5 Silver Lak e R es~r voir Land, LosAngeles .. G



District Unit

No. No.

Echo Park, Los Angeles C

Everett Park , Los Angeles A

Old U.C.L.A. Campus, Los

Angeles ILa Fayette Par k, Los Angeles B

Westlak e Par k , Los Angeles C

Terrace Park .. _ A

University of Southern Cali-

f ornia Campus .

Occid ental Boulevard Park , Los

Angeles .. . __.. _ _ A

St. James Park, Los Angeles A

Rosedale Cemeter y, Los An-

geles ... _ . _.. c •• H

Belleview R eservoir Land , Los

Angeles .. . ... _ _ .__.. G

R owena R eservoir Land , Los

Angeles G

Darby Str eet R eservoir Land,Los Angeles G

EI Segund o Park . _ .... A

Los Angeles Univer sity Land s,

Del R ey Hills . . I

Loyola Univer sity, Del R eyHills _ _. . _ _ ___ _ _________ I

Del R ey Beach Park B

Hy per ion Sewer Land , near El

Segund o . .....

Mines Field A ir port, near In-

glewood ----------------------------.--- J

Fox Hills Countr y Club, near

Culver City . _ _ . _ .. . _ _.. F

Inglewood Par k . __.. __. C

P otre ro Country Cl ub, Ingle-wood . ._ _ _ __ __ _ ___________ _ _ F

Wester n Avenue Golf Coul'se,

ne ar I nglewood _ _.. F

Alond ra Par k, near Lawnd ale __ D

Grevillea Avenue Park, Ingle-wood . . . _ __ _ __ _ _ _ _____ __ __ _ _ A

Inglewood Cemetery . H

Los Angeles Airways Field,

near Inglewood J

Master Air craft Corporation

Field , n ear Inglewood _ _ _ _ _ __ _ ___ _ J

Aero Cor por ation of California

Field, nea I' Inglewood _ .____ JK elly Air port, Hawthor ne _ .. J

Belleview Golf Course, near Inglewood .. F

Dycer s Airpor t, near Gard ena _ _ J

Centr al Playground , Los An-geles . A

Areas

C lass in Acres

District U nit

No. No.

C-3 67

C-3 75

C-3 80

C-3 87

C-+

C-+ 2

C-4- 14-

C-+ J 8

C-+ 19

C- + 20

C-+ 2 I

C-4- 22

C-+ 26

C-j 13

C- j J+

C- j 16

C-6 9

C-6 12

C-7 1 to 4 -

C-7 7

C-7 9

C-7 10

Areas

C lass in A er e!

R oss Snyd er Playgr ound, Los

Angeles ._ _ _ _ _ _ ___ __ B

Slauson Community Play-

gr ound , Los Angeles __ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ __ __ ASlauson Playground, Los An-

geles _. ... A

Manchester Playground, LosAngeles .____ _ _ _ _ _ _ __ __ _ __ B

Har var d Playground, Los An-geles _ .. .. B

Chester field Sq uar e Park, Los

Angeles .. A

Sou th Pa rk , Los Angeles. B

Vermont Squar e Park, Los An-

geles ._ _ _ _ _ __ ____ _ ___ __ _ __ _ _ __ A

Ex posit ion Park, Los Angeles __._ D

Pacific Air Trans por t Field , at

Bald win Hills .. J

Lincoln Air Line Field, at Bald -W1l1 Hills -----------------------------. J

Amer ican Air cr aft Field , at

Baldwin Hills .. .__ J

R oger s Air por t, at Bald win

Hills ------------------.------------------- J

Sunset Golf Cour se, Baldw inHills F

Manhattan Beach Park A

Manhattan Beach Par k B

R edondo Beach City Par k .. B

Vincent Par k , R edond o Beaeh _ A

Her mosa Beach Park . A

R ed ondo Beach Country Clu b __ . F

County Beach at Manhattan

Beach .. . .__ A

City B~ach at Manhattan Beach A

Hermosa and R ed ond o Public

Beaches .. B

Palos Verd es Air port, near Palos

Ver des ------------.-----.--------------- J

Southwest Airpor t, near Gar -

d ena ----------... --------.------ JShor t Ai rport, near Gardena --- J

Compton Airport ----------- J

R oosevelt Cemeter y, Gard ena _ 1-1

Banning Par k & Playgr ound,

Wilmington . . ._ _______ B

Wilmington Water Land G

Val Monte Park, Palos Verd es __ C

Val Monte Par kway, Palos

Verd es . .._. . .__ A

Malaga Str ip, Palos Verdes B

Malaga Park , Palos Verdes D



Dist r ict U nit

N o. No.

D-3

D-3

D-3

D-3

D-3D-3

D-3

D-3

D-3

D-+

A" eas

C lass in Acr es

1 + Malaga Hills Park, Palos

Verd es C

16 Mar tins Park , Palos Verd es A2 I Zurita Canyon Par k , Palos

Verd es B

23 I'llar gate Canyon Park , Palos

Verd es ._ _ C

2 + Douglas Hillsid es, Palos Verd es C

26 Del Sol H illsid es, Palos Ver d es _ B

27 La Costa Hillsid es, Palos Ver d es A

28 Malaga Bluff s, Palos Verd es B

29 Bluf f Cove Shor es, Palos Ver des C

30 Mar gate Parkway, Palo s V er d es A

3 I Estudillo Hillsid es, Palos Ver d es A

J2 Land etta Hillsid es, Pa los Verd es B

33 Cor onel Canyon, Palos Verd es _ B

3+ Mir ola Hill, Pa los Ver d es A37 Zumaya Trail, Palos Verd es B

38 Zumaya Canyon Park, Palos

Verd es A

+0 Lunad a Canyon Par k , PalosVerd es C

+ 2 Paseo Lunado, Palos Verd es A

++ R esor t Point Bluff, Palos Verd es B

+5 Lunad a Bay Shor e, Palos Verd es B

+6 R ock y Point Bluff, Palos Ver d es B

5 Averill Par k, San Ped r o B

8 And er son Playgr ound, San Pedr o A

10 Alma Park, San Ped r o___ _ _ _ _ __ __ ___ A

1+ Point Fermin Park , Sa n Pedr o _ B

15 Leland Par k, Sa n Pedr o B

18 Harbor Playgr ound s, San Ped r o B19 San- P ed r o Cemetery, San Pedr o H

20 Fort McAr thur , San Pedr o I

23 R oyal Palms Golf and Country

Club, San Ped ro _ _ F

City Park, Huntington Park B

5 Rio Hondo Country Clu b, near

Downey F

7 Security Airport, Montebello J8 Pasad ena Water Land s, Monte-

bello G

6 Alta Par k, Whittier . A

7 Centr al Park, Whittier A

9 Loftus Par k , Whittier A

25 Br oad way Park , Whittier A

27 Whittier Water Lan d, Whittier .. G28 Pio Pi co Mansion, Whittier .. I

J2 Mt. Olive Cemeter y, ¥-'hittier _ H

3+ State Hos pital, at Nor walk I

36 State School f or Boys, Whittier I

10 Houghton Park, Long Beach C

Dist r ict Unit

N o. N o.

D-+

D-+

D-+

D-5

D-5

D-s

D-,D-,D-5

D-S

D-5

D-5

D-5

D-5

D-5

D-5

Areas

Class in Acr es

Vir ginia Countr y Club,Long Beach F

Long Beach Water Land &Air por t G

Long Beach Water Land G


County Farm, near Downey _ I

R ecr eation Par k, Long Beach __ D

Bluff Park, Long Beach B

Bix by Par k , Long Beach B

Lincoln Park, Long Beach A

Los Cerritos Park, Long Beach A

Knoll Par k , Long Beach A

Santa Cr uz Park , Long Beach _ A

Look out Park, Long Beach _ A

Ocean Avenue Par k s, Long

Beach B

Alamitos Beach Park, LongBeach A

Long Beach R eser voir Land _ _ ___ _ G


Long Beach, Beach A

Long Beach Pu blic Beach and

Auditorium B

Downey Playground, Los An-

geles A

R ecr eation Center Playground ,

Los Angeles ____ _ ___ ___ _ _ ____ _ A

Whittier Playground , Los An-

geles A

Ever gr een Playgr ound, Los

Angeles B

Pecan Playgr ound, Los Angeles A

Pr os pect Park, Los Angeles A

State Str eet Playgr ound, LosAngeles A

Hazard Park and Playground,

Los Angeles C

Hollenbeck Park, Los Angeles _ _ B

Hostetter Playgr ound, Los An-geles A

Lincoln Park, Los Angeles C

Ever gr een Cemeter y, Los An-geles H

New Calvar y Cemeter y, Belve-

d er e Distr icL H

B'nai B'rith Cemetery, Belved er e

District H

Calif or nia Air ways Field, Bel-

ved er e DistricL _ _ _ _ _ __ _ _ __ _ _ _ ___ __ _ JCounty Hos pital, Los Angeles _ I

l.O.O.F. Cemeter y, Belved er e

District H

Monte bello Golf Cl ub F

Monte bello Park B

95

+82

+00

710



District U nit

No. No.

E-3 11

E-3 14

F-l 16

F-I 18

F-2 50

F-2 51

F -2 53

F-2 54

F -2 55

F-2 56

F -2 57

F -2 59

F-2 61

F-2 62

F-2 63

F-2 64-

F -2 65

F-2 66

F -2 68

F-2 69

F-2 70

F -2 73

F-2 82-85

F -2 97

F-2 98

F -2 99

F-3 2

Areas

C lass in Acres

Montebello Playground A

Belved ere Park , Belved er e Dis-trict A

Monar ch Air port, near Monte-

bello --------------------------------------JVail Field Air port, near Monte-

bello, -- - -- -------------- -- JYosemite Playground, Eagle

R ock .. B

Occid ental College Cam pus,

Eagle R ock _

Sycamor e Grove Par k, Los

Angeles ,_ _ _ _ _ B

(Ar royo Seco) Victory Park

NO.1 and No.2, Los Angeles D

Garvanza Park , Los Angeles A

Arroyo Seco Playground , LosAngeles A

Oak Gr ove Park & Water Land,

Altad ena D

Garfield Par k, South Pasad ena A

R aymond Golf Cour se, South

Pasad ena F

American Legion Park, Pasa-dena A

Singer Par k , Pasad ena A

Central Park, Pasad ena B

Memor ial Park, Pasad ena A

La Pintor esca Park , Pasad ena A

Washington Park , Pasad ena . A

Pasad ena Country Club, Alta-

dena ... ... _ _.. . . _ .... _ F

California Institute of Tech-

nology, Pasad ena ..__ .... _ . . I

Tournament Park , Pasadena B

San Mar ino Park , San Marino _ C

Arroyo Seco Park, Sou th Pasa-d ena C

Mission Par k , South Pasad ena _ _ A

Brook sid e Par k , Pasad ena D

Carmelita Park, Pasad ena B

Lower Arroyo Par k , Pasad ena _ C

Huntington Estate, San Mar ino I

Los Angeles County Nur ser ies,Altad e-na . I

Yard R eservoir Site, Pasad ena _ _ G

Pasad ena Civic Center .. ._.. B

Casitas Wells, Altad ena . G

Mt. View Cemllter y, Altad ena _ H

Pasad ena R eser voir Site G

San Ga briel Country Club, SanGabr iel F

Alhambr a Park B

District U nit

No. No.

F-8

F-8

M-l

Areas

Class in A cns

Midwick Country Club, Alham- bra F

Savannah Par k , R osemead A

Air por t, San Ga br iel _ _ ___ _ _ _ __ _ _ _ __ _ _ JSan Ga briel Mission I

Pasad ena Sewer Far m, San.Ga-

briel __ . . __ I

Besse Playground, Lamand aPar k A

Sier ra Mad r e Park _ A

R oss Field Air port, Etc. (U. S.),Ar cadia . I

Arcadia Par k A

Monr ovia Li br ary Park ._ A

Monrovia Park B

Santa A nita R iding & Hunting

Club, Ar cad ia F

Pr eci pice Canyon Water Land ,

Altad ena G

Eaton Canyon Water Land , Al-tad ena _ _ . G

Sierr a Mad r e Water Land G

Sierra Madr e Water Land . G

Michillind a Par k , Pasad ena A

Monrovi a Water Land , Ar cadia G

Ar cadia Water Land s G

County Quar ry, Azusa I

- Temple Park, Ar cadia __ ____ _ __ __ _ _ _ A

Sierr a Madr e Water Land s G

Monr ovia R eservoir Site, Ar-cadia G

Monrovia R eser voir Site,

Ar cadia G

Covina Park BCounty Quarry, Azusa I

Morgan Park, Bald win Par k B

Pomona College, Clar emonL I

County Fair Gr ound s, Pomona _ I

Lincoln Par k , Pomona A

Wash ing to n Park , Pomona A

Garf ield Park, Pomona A

Central Par k , Pomona A

R odger s Field Airport, near

Puente ---------------------------------- JPomona Airport ------------------------ JSan Dimas Pa rk I

Bel-Air Countr y Club, near

Santa Monica F

Occid ental College Site, near

Santa Monica _

California Botanic Gar d ens, near

Santa Monica I-

Hollyw ood Bowl I



Dist rict U nit

No. N o.

M-I

M-T

M-[

M-I

M-I

M-I

M-5

M-5

M-5

M-5

M-6

M-6

M-6

M-6

M-6

M-8

M-8

A" eas

Class in Acr es

Encino Countr y Club, Ventur a

Boulevard _ F

Gir ard Countr y Club, Girard F

U pper Fr anklin R eser voir Land,

Bever ! y Hills G

Lower F ra nklin R eservoir Land,

Bever ly Hills G

Stone Canyon Water Land s, Bel-Air G

Encino R eser voir Site, Encino G

Stone Canyon R eser voir Site,

near Santa Monica _ _ __ _ _ G

Gir ar d R eservoir Site, Girar d G

U . S . Lighthouse Water Land s,

Malibu R anch _ ___ _ ____ _ __ G

Stough Par k , BIll· bank D

Sunset Canyon Gol f C lub, B ur- bank F

Br and Park, Glend ale D

Burbank R eser voir G

Chevy Chase Golf Club, Glen-d ale F

Glendale R eservoir Lands G

Chevy Chase R eser voir Land s,

Glend ale G

Vacant Water Land, Glendale _ _ G

Annand ale Country Clu b, Pasa-d ena F

Ver d ugo Playground s, Los An-

geles B

For est Lawn Cemeter y, Glend ale H

Ascot R eser voir Land s, Los An-geles G

Elysian Par k , Los Angeles D

Elysian Par k Playground , Los

Angeles _,__ ____ _ _______ _ _ _ ____ _ _ B

Di_ ,t rict Unit

N o. No.

M-8

M-8

M-8

M-8

M-9

M-9

M-TT

M-q

Y-I

Y-I

Ar ea;

Class in Acr es

Victory Heights Water Land ,

Los Angeles G

Catholic Cemetery, Los Angeles H

Pest House, Los Angeles I

Jewish Cemetery, Los Angeles _ _ H

Yale Playgr ound, Los Angeles _ A

Gr iffith Park , Los Angeles E

Hollywood R eser voir Land s G

EI Tesoro Canyon Park, PalosVerd es B

Lor raine Bound ar y P a rk, PalosVer d es A

Fr ascati Canyon Park , Palos

Ver d es B

Mir aleste Canyon Par k, Palos

Verd es . B

Haciend a Country Club, LaHabr a . _ _ __ _ F

Mountain Mead ows Countr y

Clu b, Pomona F

Ganesha Park, Pomona C

Plaza, Los Angeles A

A pablasa Playgr ound , Los An-

geles _ ,-------------------------- A

Per shing Squar e, Los Angeles B

Wall Str eet Playground, Los

Angeles A

Civic Center, Los Angeles A

Silverad o Park , Long Beach B

Plaza Pa rk, San Pedro ____ _ ____ _ __ _ _ A

Ter minal Island Playgr ound B

Allen Field Airpor t, Ter minal

Island ------------------------- --------- J

Long Beach, Beach B

Prad o Park , Torr ance ___ _ A

Tor r ance Air port ------------- -------- J



C o py o f Lett er on Nigger Slough and Other Lands L ying Below Possible Drainage

Levels, Submitted by Olmst ed Brothers on May 21st, 1926, to the Board

of Supervisors of Los Angeles County

GENTLEME N: Our preliminar y studies of the

Nigger Slough portion of Improvement No. 15

und er the Mattoon Act have r aised certain problems of drainage and f illing, our consid era tion of which has

d r awn attention to certain fund amental questions of prin-

ciple and policy aff ecting also other large areas of land

in Los Angeles County lying wholly outsid e of the pr es-

ent southwestern im provement district.

These q uestions are of such far -r each ing importance

to the County and the need of adopting a sound general

method f or d ealing with them is a ppar ently becoming

so ur gent that we feel bound to su bmit this brief outline

of them to you, and to ad vocate their pr ompt and thor-

ough consider ation apart f rom, but c oncurrently with,

the development of plans for Improvement No.1 5.

Nigger Slough is only one of sever al lar ge areas in the

County wher e the elevation of the land is so near sea

leve l tha t or dinary method s of gr avity d r ainage b y open

channels and stor m sewer s, whethe r und ertak en at thegeneral ex pense b y the Flood Control District or at

local ex pense b y local dr ainage distr icts, cannot possibly

be mad e to protect the land from constantly repeated

ser ious inundations, unless the surface o f the land is

r aise d in a wholesale manner by f illing.

For some kind s of par k uses, land may be subj ect to

occasional flooding without serious d etriment, provided it

can be pro perly dr ained in the inten'als between flood s,

and the same is true of most agricultur :ll uses. But it is ob-

vious that cond itions ought not to be allowed to a rise

which will subject land used for streets and for build-

ing purposes to r ecurring inund ations.

In the absence of d ef inite engineer ing d etermination of

the elevations to which flood water s can be limited in

these low ar eas b y method s which ar e pr actica ble f rom

an engineering and fr om an economic stand point, and inthe a bsence of pr oper legal contr ol of building operations

on such land s, it is as cer tain as anything can be that, par tly

through ignor ance and par tly through unscr upulousness,

these ar eas will be largely d evelo ped in such a manner that

in ever y per iod of heavy rainfall not only will streets be

submerged but the water s will r ise over the f loor s of houses

and other buildings, causing enormous inconvenience and economic loss, creating seriously unsanitar y conditions,

and tending to pr od uce the most ob j ectionable of slums.

And the wor st of it is that wher e this cond ition ar ises ther e

will be no practicable r emed y short of r aising bodily the

elevation of entir e districts after gr eat sums of money may

have been s pent in build ing streets, houses and other im-

provements below the irr educi ble f lood lel'el.

The principles involved can be r ead ily und er stood

f rom the enclosed d iagr ams r elating to the Nigger Slough

basin, With var iations of d etail the same pr inciples a pply

to other lar ge ar eas, notably in the surround ings of the

cit y of Long Beach and in the Ballona Creek Valley.

Diagr am I is a pr ofile along the line of the Nigger

Slough drainage canal of the Flood Contr ol Distr ict.

The solid line shows the natur al surface of the ground.

The shad ed line indicates the a ppr oximate elevation of extreme high tid e. The d otted line shows the bottom of

the canal as pr o posed, and as constr ucted a t a tempor arily

r educed wid th, by the Flood Contr ol District, with a

gr adient rising at the r ate of only one foot to the mile

fr om tidewater .

The dot a nd d ash line shows the elevations of f lood

water in the canal computed by the engineer s of the Dis-

trict, as it would be if the canal we re completed as

planned and f or a flood d ischarge of only 1,050 second -

feet. W ith tlu imt allat ion o f sheet s , buildings) and ot her

impr ovement s ilt the tributary drainage ar ea a ver ' Y much

lar gu flood nm-o ff t han t his is absolutel y cer t ailt . 'We ar e

inf ormed that the City Drainage District De par tment has

com puted the d rainage ar ea above Main Str eet at 7+

squar e miles and the run-off as 2,000 second f eet, on the

assumption that 107"0 of the d rainage area wil l be builtu p as industrial, 50 7 " 0 as r esid ential, and 40 r o will r emain

in its pr esent cond ition. Sel'enty-four into 2,000 gives a

run-ofl' of only 27 second -f eet per sq uar e mile, the eq uiv-

alent of 1/2+ of an inch of rainfall per hour . While



. : .' "

~~

~~~,~~,~ ~-,- -.1

bOTTOM f Y CAN AJ AS Pr R.rL ooOl awT.('Ol OI~TRlcT P LA " NJ

O~ / 9/1 .7i.OPI! IFoor ~Jl MILE .

I I4 ~ 6 7 Q 9

..I!PPROXlM AT£ CJ/~rANCE:5 IN MILE5 nON N£ARE~r PO/NT I N IIARlJOIi!?

70 ~MPf?NY LETTER OF

OLM5TfD LJROTltfR5 roSIIPcRJ'l50R5, L0511NUCLc5 OJIIHTYMIQYE2, /926

PLATE 6 5. Profile of Nigger Slough drainage basin, show-

ing assumed flood profile.

such an assumption may be entir ely reasona ble as a basis

for any immed iate constr uction, it seems unreasonable to

assume that after urban development shall have contin-

ued f or (say) two or thr ee generations there will not oc-cur , at rather f r eq uent intervals, a r un-off ver y greatly

exceed ing 27 second -f eet per sq uare mile. It would not be

sur prising if the maximum run-off in rainy year s should

in time grow to be five or ten times that f igure, and by

that time the r ight of way for the d rainage outlet fr om

the basin to the har bor will certainly have become walled -

in by innumer able industrial plants, an d w ill have been

crossed by many str eet and railroad embank ments, the

o penings thr ough which will tend to limit the possible

capacity of the channel and i ncr ease the gr adient of f lood

water discharge.

The down-str eam portion of the f lood pr of ile could be

consid erably lower ed by dr edging the bottom of the canal

below high tid e level, permitting tid ewater to ebb and

flow in the canal. This raises questions as to the probablesanitar y conditions which would ar ise in such a long, nar -

row, semi-stagnant tid al canal; but even if such a d ee p-

dr edged channel proved to be feasible without cr eating a

nuisance, it seems o bvious that limitations of cost upon the

depth and width of the channel, and upon the size of the

PLATE 66. Plan of Nigger Slough d rainage basin, showing

ar eas likely to be f looded .

numer ous street br idges across it will make it a matter of

v'er y gr eat, if not of insuper able, cost to lower the ultimate

flood prof ile in the neighborhood of Main Str eet to an

elevation a ppreciably lower than t hat assu med by theFlood Contr ol District when they figurtd on a chan-

nel 20 f eet wid e at the bottom for a run-off of less than

14 second-f eet per sq uar e mile-to say nothing of the

chance that f lood s may in time back u p to even higher

levels than the prof ile shown.

Diagram 2 shows the approximate extent of the land s

East o f Main Street which wou ld be put und er water by

flood s r ising to that profile. Their area is a pproximately

1,500 acr es.

If this and similar ar eas ar e not tak en f or par k r eser va-

tions, it seems to us that it is the clear duty o f the County

author ities, fir st, to d eter mine by painstaking engineering

studies the lowest elevations at which it will be practicable

to hold the f lood s in such low ar eas by provid ing reason-

able sizes of main drainage channels; second , to tak e suchste ps as ar e necessar y to ensur e the reser vation of rights of

way for such channels and f or their ultimate construction

at the pro per time (presuma bly at the general ex pense by

the Flo od Co ntro l District); t hir d, to d etermine at

what minimum elevations, in r elation to the pr os pective



contr olled flood levels, str eets can be establ ished and

houses er ected without cr eating cond itions prej udicial to

the pu blic health, saf ety and gener al welfare; and f inally,

to establish, und er pr oper enabling legislation, regulations

prohibiting the opening of new str eets not graded u p to

the minimum safe elevation and pr ohibiting the construc-tion of buildings exce pt at safe elevations, with proper

exceptions to allow for agricultural and other improve-

ments of a non-r esid ential char acter which could be in-

und ated without serious pr ej udice to t he pu blic welfar e.

Agricult ure and r ecreat i01~ are tlt e pr inci pal uses t o

wlt iclt suclt lou' land can pr o perl y be put witlt out tlte large

expense f or filling tltem u p t o a level sa f e f r om d isa.rt l" ouS

fiood in:;.

As the sur r ounding ar eas fill up with industr ial and r esi-

dential develo pments on higher ground it will be exped i-

ent and economical to acq uire consid er able areas of these

land s for the r ecr eation of the sur r ounding population,

and this can be done at t he price of agricultural land if ,

and only if, s peculator s ar e r estrained f rom d eveloping

and mark eting build ing lots on low land s without fir st

filling them sufficiently to mak e them permanently fit f or

human ha bitation.

It is interesting to note that somewhat compar able co n-

ditions have been encounter ed in some of the easter n sea-

boar d cities. In Boston and the Boston Metropolitan

District there ar e thousand s of acr es where the land is, or

originally was, at a bout the elevation of mean high tid e,

and ther efor e su b ject to fr eq uent, though usually ver y

shallow, inundation. In Boston f or a bout the last seventy

year s, and for various shorter period s in the sur rounding

territor y, no streets have been permitted to be opened at

elevations lower than the standard, computed to be saf e

f rom flooding in case of coincidence of a maximum high

tide with a heavy rain-storm, and n o d wellings or other

ordinar y urban structur es ar e permitted und er the build -

ing laws exce pt upon str eets at or above the standard mini-

mum elevations and when themselves constr ucted at such

elevations and in such manner as to make them safe and

sanitary in view o f t he pr edicta ble maximum water level.

Throughout the whole of the "Back Bay" r esidential

and business d istr ict of Boston, and on other areas totaling

many square miles in extent, all the str eets have been

filled six f eet or mor e above the natur al surf ace and any

basements extend ing below street grad e ar e r equired to be

water tight and provid ed with artificial dr ainage depend -

ing on pumps or e j ector s. In Boston and es pecially in the

sur r ounding metr opolitan district, a consid er a ble fraction

of the l ow land s sub j ect to inundation in their natur al"

state have been acq uir ed for park purposes at very reason-

able prices compared with values on adjoining upland s,

because such low land s cannot b e used f or building pur -

poses without the costly f illing necessar y to fit them for such use.

It is to be noted fur ther that the d anger s of uncon-

trolled pri,'ate d evelopment on land s too near sea level

to be economically capa ble of pr otection f r om inundation

are much mor e insiduous in the Los Angeles d istrict than

in easter n sea board cities because extreme fluctuations in

rainfall here make most of these l ow land s during drv

seasons much less unattr active for build ing operations than

in the East, wher e they ar e generally wa ter-soak ed a"

often as once or twice a month even though maximum

flood s may occur no mor e often than they do her e.

Park plans for the portion of Nigger Slough abOl-e

Main Str eet have been mad e on the assumption that the

land will be permanently su b j ect to flooding in wet

seasons up to levels a ppr oximately as high as the flood pro-

file originally assumed by the Flood Contr ol District,

frank ly r ecognizing that if these levels ar e not to be

gr eatly exceed ed the capacity of the outlet channel will in

time have to be enor mously incr eased beyond that pr o-

vid ed for in the Distr ict's original plans; but we can-

not t oo str ongly urge t he impor tance of pr omptly facing

the ultimat e engineering solution of tlt e whole problem

as aff ecting not mer ely the Nigger Slough Basin both in-

side and outsid e the Southwest Improvement Distr ict, but

also the other extensive low ar eas of the County where

subdivisions ar e steadily cr ee ping in to mak e untold

troubles for the future.

If the permanent deter mination of the economically

practicable water levels, during dr y weather and during

flood s, which can b e permanently ensur ed in the Nigger

Slough Basin is not made bef or e the park improvements

are actually installed in the ar ea between Normandie

Avenue and Main Str eet, these par k im pr ovements will

have to b e c onstructed on a gam ble, which will involve

either the expenditur e of a lot of money in constr uction

that may later prove to have been unnecessar y or else

taking a ser ious risk o f unsatisf actor y r esults and later

reconstr uctions, or both.

Respect f ull y submitted ,

OLMSTED BROTHER S.



APPENDIX NO. IV

Table of Comparat ive Powers, Duties, and Resour ces of Various M e"" o politan

A ge n cie s of Cal i forni a and El . rewltere



[ I 54 ] PARKS, PLAYGROUNDS AND BEACHES FOR THE Los ANGELES REGION

Los Angeles C ount y

F lood -Control Dist r ict

DI S TR I C T

( I) Date of Legislation

( 2) How established

( 3) Ar ea com prised

1915

Special Act

Par t of County

( 5) Vote r eq uir ed

GOVER N I NG BODY:

( 6) Consists of Boar d of Super visor s of

Los Angeles County

( 7) Term of Service

( 8) Ap pointed by

Count y S anit at ion

Dist r icts

1923

*Enabling Act

Cities and parts of

County

County Board of

Supervisor s unless

2% d emand election

*Ma jority

Board of Dir ector s, consist-

ing of Executive of

County and of each city

M et r o politan

W at er Dist ricts

1927

*Ena bling Act

Cities

Boar d of Dir ector s,

r e pr esenting each city

POW ER AN D DUT IE S:

( 9) Acquisition, d evelo pment and

control of land Yes Yes Yes

([0) Eminent domain Yes Yes Yes

([I) Sale of surplus land Yes Yes Yes

([2) Assessment of benef its

( 13) Police contr ol

R E S OU RCE S :(14) Per centage of assessed valuation

allowed in bond s Not limited Not limited 15%

PROGR E SS M A DE:

(17 ) In oper ation since 19 15.

Bond s issued and

author ized a bout

$40,000,000

Nine such d istricts in

Los Angeles County

Los Angeles and [[

other cities f ormed a

distr ict in 1928



Appendix No. IV [ 1 5 5 ]

PARK LEGISLATION I N OTHER STATES

(Boston) Westchester New Jer sey Chicago Illinois County Missouri

Metropolitan County County Park Sout h Park Forest Preser ve Public Reservat ion

Park District (New York) Districts District Distr ict Districts

( r)

( 2) Special Act S pecial *Ena bling Act S pecial *Ena bling Act *Ena bling Act

( 3) *Several Counties One County One County Local One County *Several Counties

( 4) Act Act Vote, in County Act *Petition of 500 * 5 % petition

of over 200,000 f or election

( 5) None None *Major ity None *Ma jority *Major ity

( 6) *Commission of *Board of S i x *Commission *Boar d of five *Boar d of five *Commission

f ive of five of .f ive

( 7)

5 years 3 years 5 years *4 years 5 years

( 8) *Gover nor County Board Pr esiding Jud ge Fir st f ive by Chairman of *Gover nor

of Su per visors of Supreme Governor , there- County Board

Court of Count)' af ter by Judge of Su pervisors

of Circuit Court

( 9) *Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes

(10) *Yes Thr ough Yes Yes Yes Yes

Su pervisors

( I I) *Yes Yes

(12) *Yes Yes Yes

( 13) *Yes Yes Yes Yes

( 14) Special Acts *s% a. $2,SOO,000 Was 5%; now a. To acq uir e "l. Y z of r %

b. $2,800,000 not limited 35,000 acres b. Ad d itional

c. $800,000 Y z of 1%

b. r %

(r 5) Not r eq uir ed Not r eq uired a. Not req uired Major ity a. Not r eq uired a. Not required

b. Major ity b. Major ity b. % votec. Not req uired

(r6) Annual Not limited Not limited r oc per $100 Not limited 20C per $100

Legislation

(I7 ) Large System Large system Essex and Union Finest small 35,000 acres of

Com pleted. being com pleted . Counties have par k s and some forest landsCost about Estimated cost, systems fairly lar ge ones acq uired ;

$25,000,000 $60,000,000 com plete; others com pleted now being

star ting extend ed

*Details suitable f or Los Angeles Parks are shown with a star. (*)



Shor e Land Rights in Cali f ornia: An Opinion S ubmitt ed t o the Cit izens' Committ ee

In 1928 b y O' M elveney , T uller & M yer s, Att or neys at La'IV

I. Shor e land r ights in gener aL _

II. Natur e of California's r ights _

III. Grants of t id eland s and of land s und er naviga ble

"'a tel'S in general . ~ _

A. Purposes for which grants may be mad e:

I. In ai d of navigation _

2. For purposes which do not interf er e with

na v j ga tion . . _

3- For purposes which may interf er e with

na v j ga tion . . .

IV. Agencies through which such land s have been

leased and conveyed into private hand s _

V. Title to submer ged and t id eland s cannot be per-

fected by ach-er se possession _

VI. The r es pective rights of the State, and incor po-

rated cities and towns, littoral or r i parian own-

er s, and the public:

I. The rights of the state in general _

(a) Title by ad verse possession _

(b) Title of the S ta te to tideland s within the

limits of incor porated cities and towns

has been conveyed to such cities and to\vns .. .. _

2. The rights of littor al pr oprietor s in and to

ti d e la n d s : _

(a) Enumeration of their rights:

(I) Right to passage over such land nec-

essary to access to naviga ble water s

(2) Littoral propr ietor s ar e entitled to

accr et io ns ad ded t o their land s _

(3) Littoral proprietor s possibly have

seashor e rights of an esthetic natur e

( b) Extent of the rights of littoral proprie-

tor s _

(1) R ights may be pr otected by in j unc-

tion wher e inter f er ed with by an

unlicensed individ ual or p rivate

co rpo r ati 0n _

PAGE

156

156

(2) \\Ther e the State or an incorpor ated

city o r town in car rying out some

pro ject in aid of navigation inter -

f eres with such rights, the propr ie-

tor will not be granted r elieL _

(3) Also, wher e pr ivate inter ests with

the permission of the State per form

cer tain acts in aid of n av igation

which interf er e with suc b r ights,

such proprietor s have no legal or

equitable r emed y _

(4 -) R ights of littoral pr o prietor s to en-

join acts of individuals not in aid

of navigation, but wit h the ex pr ess

permission of the State u pon tid e-

land s, has not yet been d etermined _

(5) The r ight o f a li ttor al proprietor to

enjoin as a nuisance acts on the

for eshore and tid elad ns by the

State, and individ uals with the

State's per mission, to r emove oil or

other miner als belonging to theState, has not yet been d etermined

The rights of the public in submerged and

tid eland s _ _

(a) The extent of t his r ight : _

(I) Includ es the r ight of navigation,

impr oving har bor s, and build ingwhar ves _

(2) R ight of f ishing _

(3) Right of hunting. _

(4-) The r ight of bathing is not f ully

established and is subject to the su-

perior right of navigation and

f ish e r y _

(~) Mod ern d ecisions seem to in-

dicate a tr end toward r ecogni-t ion o f such a r ight in the

p ubli c _

( b) However, there is no right in

the public to cross private

pr operty to r each the oeean _

159

159

3·

159

159

159

159

160

160



OPINIO N ON SHORE LAND RIGHTS IN

CALIFOR NIA

1. T he Stat e succeeded to Rights S imilar t o

T he Rights o f t he Ot her States in T id elands

W hen California W as Admit t ed t o t he Union.It is clear ly esta blished by statute that the State owns

the land " below tidewater and below ord inar y high-

water mark bord ering upon tid ewater wit hin the State"

(C. C. Sec. 670), and by the Constitution that the

owner ship of the State extend s out into the Pacific

Ocean "thr ee English miles" (Constitution, Art. XXI).

The cases clear ly hold that title to such land is in the

State. See:

Teschemacher v. Thom pson , 18 Cal. II, 79 Am. Dec.

151.

W ard v. M ul f ord, 32 Cal. 365.

Long Beach L. &W. C o. v. Richardson , 70 Cal. 206.

The United States acq uired title from Mexico to all

land s below navigable and tid ewater s in t he present

State of California by the treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo

in 184-8, with the exception of such su bmer ged land s as

had been pr eviously conveyed to pr ivate owner s by the

Spanish or Mexican governments.

War d v. M ul f ord, 32 Cal. 365.

After the admission of Calif ornia to the Union, it be-

came the owner of all land s within its bor d er s below navi-

ga ble and tid ewater s by vir tue of its sovereign character

and not by vir tue of dir ect grant from the general govern-

ment as in the case of other pu blic land s.

Oak land v. Oak land W ater F l' ont C o. , 118 Cal. 160.

W ar d v. M ulford , 32 Cal. 365.

Peo ple v. Davidson, 30 Cal. 393.

Gu y v. H el'mance, 5 Cal. 73.

Bu t this sover eign char acter of the State is qualif ied by the par amount right to control navigation which is

r eser ved t o the United States und er the commer ce

clause and other provisions of the Constitution of the

United States.

Gibson v. U. S ., 166 U. S. 269.

Since the title to such land is in the State, if ther e

be any authority to lease o r gr ant it, such authority must

be exer cised either by the State or some agency of the

State. However , it should be noted that the courts ar e

ver y r eticent in construing statutes to author ize sales of

tideland s. In Peo ple v. M o n-ill , 26 Cal. 3 36, it was

decid ed that und er the Acts of Apr il 2 I, 1858, and May

13, 186 I, regulating the sale of swam p and overf lowed

and tid eland s, the shor e of the ocean between ordinar y

high and low-water mar ks, and which was not suscep-tible of r eclamation, so as to be mad e usef ul for agr icul-

tur al pur poses, could not be entered and converted into

private owner shi p. Also the cour t in K imball v. M ac-

pherson , 4-6 Cal. 104-, came to the same conclusion as to

the Act o f M ar ch 28,1868. See also, F an-ish v. C oon ,

4-0 Cal. 33.

The matter is ver y well st at ed by Shaw, J. in the

opinion of the court in People v. Cali f ornia F ish C om-

pany , 166 Cal. 576, 591."The tid eland s em br aced in these statutes, und er the

gener ally accepted meaning o f that term, includ es theentir e sea beach f rom the Oregon lin e t o Mexico and shores of ever y bay, inlet, estuar y, and navigable str eam asfar up as tid ewater goes and until it meets the land s mad eswampy by the overflow and see page of fr esh water str eams. It is no t t o be assumed that the State, which is bound by the pu blic tr ust to protect and preserve thi~ public easement and use, should have intentionally a bdi-cated the trust as to all land not within the very limited ar eas of the r eser vations, and should have dir ected the saleof any and every other par t of t he land along the shor esand beaches to exclusive pr ivate use, to the d estr uction of the paramount pu blic easement, which it was its duty to pr otect and for the protection and r egulation of which itr eceived its title to such lands."

11. T he N ature of the St ate' s T it le to Tide

and Submerged Lands.That the State of Calif or nia hold s the title to such

land s su bject to the pu blic right of navigation, com-

mer ce and f isher y. In W e bel' v. St at e H ar bor C oml's.,

Mr . Justice Field in delivering the opjnion of t he cour t

said :"Upon the admission of Califor nia into the Union

u pon equal f ooting with the or iginal States, absolute pro p-erty in and d ominion over, all soils und er the tid ewater swithin her limits passed to the State, wit h the consequentright t o d is pose of the title to any part of said soils in suchmanner as she might d eem proper, sub ject only to the

par amount r ight of navigation over the water, so far assuch navigation might be r equir ed by the necessities of commer ce with for eign nations or among the severalStates, the r egulation of which was vested in the gener al

gover nment."This statement appear s t o b e a clearly cor r ect state-

ment of the law, unless ther e be vested pr ivate r ights

in such land s, subj ect to which the State hold s its title.

But if such r ights exist and ar e vested they would be

pr otected by the Fourteenth Amendment to the Federal

Constitution and similar provisions o f t he fund amental

law of the State. A per son may also, because he is a

mem ber of the pu blic, have rights in such land which

must be secur ed to him. But assuming that no such

pr ivate r ights in tid eland s have vested, the State and

f ed er al gover nment possessing all-sovereign power ,

would seem to have complete authority to dis pose of

such land as seems fit.

This view seems to be suppor ted by the court in one

of the earliest cases dealing with the State's disposition

of tideland s. In d ef ining the State's authority the cour t

used the f ollowing language:"She hold s the com plete sover eignty over her naviga ble

bays and r iver s, and although her ownership is by the lawof nations, and the common and civil law, attributed to



her for the purpose of pr eserving the public easement or right of navigation, there is nothing to pr event the exer-cise of her power , in certain cases to d estr oy the easement,in ord er to preserve the gener al good, which, when done,subjects the land to private pr o pr ietor shi p."

E ldridge v. C owell , 4- Cal. 80.

It is dif ficult to d iscover the basis of the followingstatement in W ard v. M ul f or d , 32 Cal. 365.

"The land which the State hold s by virtue of her sov-

er eignty, as i s well und er stood, is such as is cover ed by thef low and e b b of the neap or ordinar y tid es. Such land isheld by th e State in tr ust and for the benef it of the people.The right of the State is su bser vient to the public r ightsof navigation and fisher y, a nd theor etically, at least, the

State can mak e no d is position of them pr e j ud icial to theright of the public to use them for the purposes of navi-gation an d fisher y, a nd whatever dis position she doesmak e of them, her grantee tak es them upon the same termsu pon which she hold s them, and o f c our se subject t o t he

public rights a bove mentioned . But this r estr iction d oesnot pr event her f rom d is posing of them so as to ad vanceand pr omote the inter ests of navigation. On the contrar ysuch a dis position of them would be in k ee ping wit h the

purposes of the trust in which she hold s them. Nor of r e-claiming them fr om the sea, wher e it can be done without

pr e judice to the pu blic right of navigation, and applyingthem to other pur poses and uses."

But this doctrine has to a cer tain d egree at least been

incor por ated into our law by the Calif or nia Constitu-

tion of 1879, Article XV, Section 2, which provid es:"No individual, partner ship, or cor por ation, claiming

or possessing the fr ontage or tid al land s of a harbor, bay,inlet, estuar y, o r o ther navigable water in this State, shall be permitted to exclud e the right of way to such water whenever it is r eq uir ed for any public purpose, nor to d e-str oy or obstr uct the fr ee navigation of such water; and the legislatur e shall enact such laws as will give the mostli ber al constr uction to this pr ovision, so that access to thenavigable water s o f this State shall be always attaina ble"for the people thereof."

It has been held that the pr ovisions of this section

operate as a limitation upon the power o f the legislature

in the matter of the d is position of tid eland s and are

to be consid ered as incor por ated in any grant or patent

of such land s, and as a r esult the grantee must leave the

navigable w ater s open for pu blic use.

F or est ier v. J ohnson , 164- Cal. 24-.

In this case i t w as held that the phr ase "navigation"

- includ ed hunting and fishing as incid ental ther eto.

Fur thermor e, this section of the pr esent organic law

d e prives the legislature of the power to d is pose of the

tid eland s fronting upon navigable water s so as to entitle

the gr antee to d estroy or inter fer e with the public ease-

ment for navigation, and it to that extent r e peals all laws

which theretofore may have purported to authorize such

al ienation.Peo ple v. C ali f or nia F ish C o., 166 Cal. 576, 587.

"The pr ovisions of the constitution ar e mandatory and prohibitor y. They ar e bind ing u pon ever y d e partment of the State gover nment, legislative, executive, and jud icial.(Ar t. I, Sec. 2 2.) All pr evious laws inconsistent therewith

ceased to be effective upon the adoption ther eof . (Ar t.XXII, Sec.!.) The effect of the section above q uoted isthat, no matter what ef f ect a subseq uent sale of tid eland s

may have to pass title to the soil of the tid al land s of anaviga ble bay such as that of San Pedr o or Wilmington, itcannot be ef f ect ive to give the patentee a right to d estroy,o bstruct, or in j ur iously aff ect the public r ight of naviga-tion in the waters ther eof . S ince tlte adoption of that con-

st itution in 1879, if not before , grants of suclt land s b y the

S tate carr y , at most , onl y tlte t it le to tlte soil sub ject t o tlte

public right of navigation."

T he Code Sect ion Dealing with Tideland s

A ppear s t o be a M ere Stat ement o f the Com-

mon Law:

Civil Cod e, Section 670. Proper ty of the State. The

State is the owner of a ll land below tid ewater, and below

ordinar y high-water mark, bordering upon tidewater

within the State; of all land below the water of a navi-

gable lak e or str eam; of all pr o per ty lawfully appr o pri-

ated by it to its own use; of all pr o per ty ded icated to the

State; and of all property of which there is no other owner .

III. Grants o f T id elands and o f LandJ

Und er N avigable Wat er s.

Any gr ants of such lands to private interests within

two miles of an incor por ated city or town, whether

d etr imental to the public easement or not, is prohibited

wher e "fr onting on the water s of any har bor , estuary,

bay, or inlet used for the pur poses of navigation."-

C onst it ut ion 1879, A I ·t . XV, Sec. 3.

However, the State, through its legislative authority

may valid ly lease such land s with pr oper r estr ictions of

time and proper r egar d to pu blic use.

Smt Ped ro R. R. C o. [I. H amilt on, 161 Cal. 610.K o yer v. Miner, 172 Cal. 4-4-8.

Further more, gr ants of such land s mav be mad e to

munici palities where such gr ant is for a p'urpose in har-

mony with the trusts upon which the State was invested

with title to the same.

C im pher v. C ity o f Oak land , 162 Cal. 87.

C ity o f Los Angeles v. Pacific C oast Steamship C o.,

4-5 Cal. App. IS.C ity o f Long Beach v. Lisenly , 175 Cal. 575.

Also, such munici palities may in turn mak e valid leases

of such land s for "all purposes which shall not interfere

with navigation o r co mmerce but for no pur pose which

would inter f er e with navigation or commerce."

Oak land v. Larue W hatf etc. C o. , 179 Cal. 2°7.

Mor eover, the Constitution of 1879, Art. XV, Sec. 2, provid es that no rights shall be obtained by pr ivate inter -

ests w hich shall curtail the pu blic easement of navigation

or access to naviga ble water s, in and to tid eland s on a

har bor , bay, inlet, estuar y or other navigable water in

this State.



[ 160 ] PAR K S, PLAYGR OU NDS AND BEACHES FOR THE Los ANGELES REGION

A. PUR POSES FOR WHICH GR ANTS MAY BE MADE.

I. In Aid of Navigation.

Oak land v. Oakland HI ater F 1' 01# C o. , I 18 Cal. 160,

18 3.Here the power of the State to gr ant such land s in aid

of navigation was thus stated:

"** * ** the State might alienate irr evoca bly parcels of its submerged land s of r easonable extent f or the er ectionof dock s, pier s, and other aid s to commer ce. It was f ur ther conced ed to be a pr o per exercise of the power o f the Stateto esta blish harbor lines and to authorize the r eclamationof mud flats and shoals wher e that could be done withoutd etriment to the public r ights. The filling u p of suchland s, it was said, was often an im pr ovement of naviga-tion and ther ef or e land s susce ptible of r eclamation may

be alienated irrevoca bly."

K oyer v. M iner , 172 Cal. 448.

Her e the city of San Pedro mad e a lease of tid eland s

to d efendant in consider ation of his build ing a sea-wall

in front of it which clearly was in aid of navigation. The

court said:"The State had the undoubted r ight to mak e the lease

in q uestion in or d er to pr ocur e the er ection of a sea-wallwith d ock s and slips and the improvements to be mad e toobtain pu blic access to d ee p water, the better to fit the har - bor f or navigation."

See also, Peo ple v. K er ber , 152 Cal. 73 I.

2. Gr ants of Such Land s for Pur poses Which Do Not

Inter fer e With Navigation. .

E 1c1r id ge v. C owell, 4 Cal. 80.

In the plan and sur vey of the city of San· Francisco

lots and str eets extend ed into tid eland s so as to r each f ar

enough into the water f or the convenience of shi p ping.

Def end ant f illed u p this tid eland to the line fixed by the _

city.

Held that d efendant had a good title to such land by

grant fr om the State. This may have been in aid of navi-

gation but cer tainly d id not interfer e ther ewith.

W ard v. M ulford , 32 Cal. 365.This d ecision u pheld a gr ant of salt mar sh land which

was cover ed and uncover ed by the e bb and flow of the

tid e and which was of no possi ble use f or navigation, but

could be mad e valuable for agricultur e or other purposes

if r eclaimed.

Oaklmtd v. Oakland W at e1' F ront C o. , 118 Cal. 160,

185.Here Beatty, C. ]., after a car ef ul r eview of the

author ities thus stated the principal adopted by the Su-

preme Cour t:

"A gr ant by the State of California, ther ef or e, of mud flats and shoals between high and low tid e on the mar ginof the bay of San Fr ancisco cannot be held to be in excessof the legislative power , in the a bsence of any pr oof thatsuch gr ant has seriously impair ed the power of succeed ing

legislatur es to r egulate, impr ove, or d evelop the publicrights of navigation or f isher y. * * * "This statement a p pear s to give the legislatur e too exten-

sive power s in view of Constitution of 1879, Art. XV,

~ec. 2, and to that extent is not corr ect. See Peo ple v.

C ali f ornia F ish C o. , 166 Cal. 576, which hold s that the

legislatur e now d oes not possess the power to dis pose of

tid eland s fronting upon naviga ble water s so as t o entitle

the gr antee to destr oy or int erfer e with the public ease-

ment o f navigat ion.

3. Gr ants for Purposes Which May Inter fer e With

Navigation.Su bseq uent to 1879 when our pr esent Constitution was

adopted gr ants f or such purposes would seem to be invalid .

Art. XV., Sees. I, 2 and 3.

However, pr ior to the adoption of this Constitutional

pr ovision such grants a ppear to have been valid , subj ect to

r evocation u pon payment of the fair value of the im-

provements mad e. The rule is stated in Oak land v.

Oakiand W ate1'F 1" Ont C o., 118 Cal. 160, 183.

" No gr ant of land s cover ed by naviga ble water s can bemad e ' Which 'Will impair t he po' W er of a subsequent legis-lat ure to r egulate the en jo yment of the public 1·igltt."

The more swee ping statement in H lar d v. M ul f or d , 32

Cal. 372, is couched in such language as to pr actically

admit its inaccur acy."The right of the State is su bser vient to the public r ight

of navigation and fishery, and theor eticall y , at least , theState can mak e no d isposition of them pr e j ud icial to theright of the public to use them f or the purposes of navi-gation and fishery."

The ,unlimited power of the legislatur e to gr ant tide-

land s pr ior to the year 1879 when the pr esent Consti-

tution was adopted was rather clear ly enunciated in the

ear ly case of E ld r idge v. C owell , 4 Cal. 80, wher e the

cour t says:

" * * * there is nothing to prevent the exercise of her power, in cer tain cases, to d estr oy the easement, in or d er to pr eserve the general good , which, when done, subjectsthe land to private pr o prietor ship."

I V . Agencies Through Which Such Land s H ave Been Leased and Conve yed I nto Privat e

H ands.In the fir st place all titles to such land s acquir ed und er

Mexican rule would be pr otected . Also wher e the

United States has confirmed the title to land in this State

acq uir ed f rom Mexico, during Mexican rule, and which

the State would other wise have owned by virtue of its

sover eignty, the State has no power to convey.

W ar d v. M ul f ord , 32 Cal. 365.

The legislatur e by statute has conveyed to incorpor ated

cities and towns the tid eland s within its bor der s. Stat-

utes, 185I,P. 309.

San F rancisco v. St rmt t , 84 Cal. 124.

Statutes 1852, p. 181.

C impher v. Oak lmtd , 162 Cal. 87.

Patt 01t v. C it y of Los Angeles , 169 Cal. 52 I.

Peo ple v. C al. F ish C o. , 166 Cal. 576.Ther e ar e many other cases d ealing with these legisla-

tive gr ants of tid eland s t o the d iffer ent cities of the

State. Also, ther e have been s pecial commissions a p-

pointed to convey certain s pecified tr acts of tid eland s,



as f or instance, the commission ap pointed to examine and

mak e sales of the inter est of the State of property within

the water -line of San Francisco.

Guy et al., v. H enna/ t ee, 5 Cal. 73.

The great bulk of the State gr ants, however , have

been made by the State Boar d o f T id eland Commission-er s cr eated by the Statutes and a bolished by Amend ments

1875-6, page 15, and after February 4, 1876, by the

Sur veyor -General who at present is the officer who

makes such gr ants of tideland s. See Act. 8418, Gen.

Laws 1923, Vol. 2, Stat. 1923, p. 677 as to swam p and

tid elands. Cha pter 303, Statutes 192 I, appr oved Jan-

uary 25, 1921, d eals with Oil and Gas Permits and

Leases. See Amend ment approved June I, 1923.

Also, the diff er ent cities to which such land s have

been granted may mak e valid leases of such land s.

S an Ped,' o R. R. C o. v. H amilt o?z, 161 Cal. 610.

K oy er v. M iner , 172 Cal. 448.

Oaklmzd v. Larue V V hat f etc. C o., 179 Cal. 2°7.

Fr anchises f or whar ves, chutes and pier s ar e gr anted

by the board s of su pervisor s of the sever al counties, u pon

a ppr oval of t he Railr oad Commission.Pol. Cod e, Cha pter V, Sec. 2906, et. seq .

Within their corpor ate limits the municipal author i-

ties of any incor porated city or town, exce pt San Fr an-

cisco, may gr ant authority to construct whan-es, chutes

and pier s instead of t he board of super visor s.

Pol. Cod e, Sec. 2920.

V . T itle to Submerged and T id eland s Can-

not be Perf ect ed by Ad verse Possession.

Parish v. C oon , 40 Cal. 33.

The location of such land s with school warrants held

to not amount to such a color of title as would form the

basis of a claim by ad ver se possession.

Land &W at er C o. v. Richardson , 70 Cal. 206.

The plaintif f was in possession of a r anch lying imme-diately in front of the ocean, using the land as a "seasid e

resor t." They had a hotel on the u pland and on the

beach a bath-house and benches f or the patr ons. They

considered themselves in possession of all the beach and

on several occasions had their em ployees or d er of r

"camper s" and r emove structur es er ected bv other per -

sons.

Held that it d id not appear that plaintiff was in pos-

session o f the beach so that it could not maintain an

action of forci ble entr y and d etainer .

People v. K erber , 152 Cal. 731.

This' was an action und er Pol. Code 2578 to recover

possession of tid eland s of the bay of San Diego. Defen-

d ant plead ed the t en year s statute of limitation on the

theor y that it had o btained title by ad ver se possession.

The tid eland involved was back of the harbor I ine as

f ixed by the Har bor Commissioner s, but the wall had

never been built. The cour t rever sed the jud gment

which had been for d efendant on the gr ound that title

to such land could not be gained by ad ver se pos3ession.

The cour t thr ough Shaw, J., said :

"Tid eland s of this char acter vest in and belong to the

State by virtue of its sover eignty * * * and when such tid e-land s ar e situated in a navigable bay and constitute a par tof the water front thereof, as is the case here, they consti-

tute pr o perty d evoted to a pu blic use, of which private per sons cannot obtain title by pr escri ption, found ed uponad ver se occu pancy for the pr escr i bed per iod. * * * Thisis the settled rule in this State with r es pect to all propertiesso d evoted to pu blic use, and tid eland s, und er lying water sf orming par t of the water s o f a navigable bay used f or navigation, ar e not, in this r espect, to be d istinguished f rom pro per ty used f or other public pur poses."

Cimpher v. City o f Oakland, 162 Cal. 87.

To the same ef fect. This d ecision was more sq uarely

based on Constitution 1879, Ar t. XV, Sec. 3.

Patt on v. Los Angeles , 169 Cal. 521.

Held that no char acter or per iod of ad ver se possession

can terminate or af f ect the pu blic easement of navigation

and f isher y. Her e by the. constr uction of railroad em-

bankments in fr ont of plaintiff's land under license from

the State, the land pr eviously tideland was divested of that char acter istic. The court r efused to ado pt the

theor y of plaintiff that by adver se possession plaintiff

had procur ed the j us privatum of the State and when the

easement for navigation was d estroyed by the er ection of

the embankment plaintiff had the whole f ee ther ein.

Also see:

Peo ple v. Banning , 169 Cal. 542.

V I. T he Res pect ive Rights of the St ate} and

I ncorporated Cities and Towns} Littor al or

Riparian Owners and the Public.

I. The rights of the State in gener al are f ully d ealt

with und er main heading No. II.

(a) Title by ad ver se possession cannot be per fected

against the State. See main heading No. V.( b) As alr ead y ind icated the title o f t he State to

tideland s situated within t he limits of incor por ated

cities and towns have been conveyed to such cities and

towns.

2. The r ights of littoral proprietor s in and to tide-

land s.

(a) Enumer ation of their rights.

(1 ) Such owner s and possessor s have a r ight of

passage over such land which is a necessar y incid ent

to their right of access to navigable water s.

E ld,'idge v. C owell , 4 Cal. 80.

S an F r ancisco S av. Union v. R.G. R. Petr oleum C o. ,

144 Cal. 134·

H enr y Dalt on &S ons Co. v. Oakland , 168 Cal. 463.

l' Veber v. H at'bor C ommissionel' S, 18 Wall. 57.(2) Littor al pr o pr ietor s ar e entitled to the accre-

tions add ed to thei r land .

Dana v. J ackson St . W . C o. , 3 I Cal. I18, 120.

F Vr ight v. Seymour , 69 Cal. 122, 126, 10 Pac. 323.



S t r and I mpr oveme11t C o. v. Long Beach , 173 Cal.

765.

Her e the court in constr uing Section 10 I 4 of the

Civil Code held that it did not abrogate the common

law rule of accretion along the ocean shor e. The cour t

r efused to follow the contr ar y decision of the United

States Circuit Cour t of Appeals in West er n Pac. R y.

Co. v. S o. Pac. C o., 151 Fed . 376, 397.

It should be r emem ber ed, however, that a riparian

or littoral pro pr ietor has no vested r ight in f utur e

accr etions.

C ohen v. U . S . , 162 Fed . 364, 370.

Similarly the title to futur e accretions may not be

quieted .

T a ylor v. U1~d erhill , 40 Cal. 471.

The doctr ine of accretion ap pear s to be limited to

gains made little by little, " by small and imper ce ptible

d egr ees."

Dana v. J ackson Str eet W harf C o. , 31 Cal. 118.

The court indicated that add itions due to d r iving

piles in tid eland s did not accr ue to t he littor al pro-

prietor .

"This shows d ecisively that in cases of purpr esture,

the r ight of entry is not in the adjacent land -owner butin the cr own."

In Patt on v. Los A1~geles , 169 Cal. 521, it was

held that land located in the city of Los Angeles and

bor dering on the navigable bay could not benefit by

an accretion to the mainland caused by the erection

of an em bank ment lead ing from the u pland by the

Southern Pacif ic Railr oad along the line o f its road

leading from the mainland across a part of the bay.

The cour t said , in holding that the city still owned

the r eclaimed land ,

"that it was once tid eland and that this being so, it wasr eser ved f rom sale, and was not aliena ble by any State

officer und er any law, during the time when the alleged accr etions occur r ed, and , t her efor e, no ar tificial embankment, mad e by third persons, or mad e or suf f ered by State officers or agents, nor any accr etion to the ad - jacent upland caused ther e by, could o perate to divestthe State of its title to the tid eland so r eser ved."

(3) It is po ssible that littoral pr o prietors have cer -

tain rights in the seashor e o f a p ur ely aesthetic natur e,

although this is dou bt'ful. However, the existence of

such a r ight has been intimated in at least one Su preme

Court d ecision.

S. F . Sav. U nion fJ. R.G. R. Pet. C o., 144 Cal. 134.

This action was brought to o btain an in junction

and to have abated as a nuisance a platf or m con-

str ucted by d ef end ant in front of plaintiff 's land on

the seashore below the or dinar y high tide. Plaintiff

is the littor al pr o prietor . Defend ant evid ently was

pr epar ing to bo re f or oil.

The cour t quoted with ap proval the language of

the jud ge below d efining the r ights of the littor al

pro pr ietor in tid eland s and seashor e.

"Fr om time immemor ial the sea has been tr eated as 3

vast waste not susce pti ble of occupation or private and individual owner shi p, exce pt as her ein indicated. Na-tions, gover nments and peo ples have all been of one ac-

cor d in tr eating it as exempt f rom appr o pr iation byind ividuals. The occu pation by d ef end ants is in d isr e-

gard of this univer sally conced ed cond ition. U pon thestrength of univer sal custom, conduct and tacit consentand und erstand ing ind ividuals and communities haveacquir ed pr o perties and rights, and have located land ;, built homes and . cities along the seashor e, because notalone f or its commercial ad vantages, but f or the per -manent and ind estr ucti ble beauty of the environment.Unlik e the location of the inter ior, wher e the incid entsof private owner shi p may permit encr oachments byway o f u nsightly and d isagr eea ble str uctur es, the pros-

pect of ocean view is sacred fr om individual obstruc-tion and contamination. So thor oughly has ,his beenund er stood and acted upon by the whole wor ld that noobstruction-not even whar ves and dock s-not built bythe a butting owner s have ever been attem pted , exce pt

und er license and contr ol o f the State. * * * This policyand mod e of d ealing had inur ed to the pr o perty-owner

a butting ther eon as an additional pr o perty right whichthough not involved in this case * * * I think is explan-atory, if not the f ound ation of the principle enunciated by the cour ts that the a butting landowner has pr opertyin the sea by way of access ther eto."

( b) Extent of the rights of littor al pro pr ietor s.

(I) Where an ind ividual or a pr ivate corpor ation

without any license or per mit f rom the State or any of

its agencies, inter feres with the r ights of littor al pr o-

pr ietor s, such propr ietor s may have their rights as

such pro prietor s pr otected by inj unction.

S. F. S av. U nion v. R.G.R. Pet . C o. , 144 Cal. 134.

(2) Where the State or an incor por ated city or

town in carr ying out some pr oj ect in aid of navigation

inter feres with such right such pr o prietor will not be

gr anted r elief by the cour ts.People v. C al. F ish C o. , 166 Cal. 576.

Henry Dalton & Som C o. v. Oak land , 168 Cal.

463.Her e plaintiff had for many year s load ed small

boats in f r ont of his proper ty. The city of Oak land

now thr eatens to er ect a sea-wall in front of plaintiff's

land and thus cut o f f plaintiff 's access to d ee p water .

Plaintiff sought to enjoin the erection of the wall.

The injunction was r ef used and the court d istin-

guished S. F . Sav. U. v. R.G.R. Pet . C o. , 144 Cal. 137,

on the gr ou nd that ther e the obstr uction was er ected

by a private individ ual and not in aid of the pu blic

easement of navigation and f isher y.

(3) Also, wher e pr ivate inter ests with permission

of the State per f orm certain acts in aid of navigation,

but which inter fer e with the r ights of littoral pro-

pr ietor s, such pr o prietor s have no legal o r eq uitable

r emed y.

K o yer v. Miner , 172 Cal. 448.

Def end ant was er ecting a sea-wall m consid er ation



of r eCelVIng a 50 year s lease to the land r eclaimed

und er contract with the city.

(4) Our Su preme Cour t has not yet d etermined

what are the r ights of littor al proprietor s to enjoin

acts of individuals not in aid of navigation but with

the ex pr ess per mission of the State u pon tideland s.

In Dalton &S orts C o. v. Oak land , 168 Cal. 463, 468,the co"urt indicated, however , that befor e the littor al

pr o prietor could be compelled to su bmit to an inter -

f erence with his right of access to naviga ble water ,

this inter fer ence must b e in aid of navigation. The

cour t said :"If such impr ovement have the ef f ect of cutting of f

access over said tid eland s fr om the u pland lot of the

plaintiff , it is no ground of com plaint because, as pointed out, i t had no r ight as an upland owner to thef ree and unobstructed access to naviga ble water s over said tid eland s as against the r ight of the State to at anytime d evote them to the impr ovement of the harbor of Oak land in aid o f the public easement of navigation and

C01n1Jtet'ce * * * "(5) Another und ecid ed question is the right of

the littoral propr ietor to en join as a nuisance acts onthe for eshore and tid eland s by the State and ind ivid -

uals with the State's permission to remove oil or other

minerals belonging to the State.*

Cha pter 303, Statutes 192 I.

See also, Amend ment a pproved June I, 1923.

Boone et al., v. K ingsbury, Surveyor -General, No.

S. F. 12707, 12708, 12728, 12729, 1273° and

12743 now bef or e the Su pr eme Cour t.*

3. The r ights of the pu bl ic in submer ged and tide-

land s.

It is well settled that the public has lar ge rights in

submer ged and tid eland s. In fact it has been ear ly

r ecognized that title to such land was in the State f or the

expr ess pur pose of c ar r ying out the pu blic tr ust and pro-

tecting the rights of the pu blic. The rule was thus wellstated in one of the ear liest Califor nia cases d ealing with

tid eland s.

E ld ridge v. C owell , 4 Cal. 80.

" * * * her owner shi p is, by the law of nations, and thecommon and civil law, attr i buted to her f or the purposeof pr eser ving the public easement, or r ight of naviga-

tion * * *nSee also Guy &Others v. H er mance,s Cal. 79.

Mor eover , this pu blic r ight was recognized and se-

cur ed by Ar ticle XV of the Calif or nia Constitution of

1879. But pr ior to this constitutional pr otection the

State thr ough its legislature had the power to abandon

and d estroy the pu blic trust. This is made a ppar ent by

the d ecision of S an F l" ancisco v. Shaut, 84 Cal. 124,

where the cour t held that the inter est of the city and

county of San Fr ancisco in its beach and water -lot· pro p-er ty is a legal estate f or ninety-nine year s und er Statutes

of 185 I, p. 309, and the r ight of the city for that ter m

is as a bsolute a title, and as fr ee f rom public trust as if

*This question has since been determined: 77 Cal. Dec. 94.

held by a private proprietor, and may be extinguished by

ad ver se possession, und er the statute of limitation.

See to the same effect, H olladay v. F r isbie , 15 Cal.

63 I, holding that the inter est of the city may be sold

und er execution. Field, C. ]., s peak ing for the cour t

said :

"In that pr o perty the inter est of the city is a bsolute,q ualif ied by no conditions and subj ect to no s pecific uses.It is ther efor e a l eviable inter est, subject to sale und er exe-

cution * * * "K nudson v. K earney , 171 Cal. 250.

W ard r '. M ul f ord , 32 Cal. 365.

Also, wher e the legislatur e by improving the water-

fr ont r end er s cer tain tid eland inaccessi ble and useless

f or navigation, it may ir r evoca bly and absolutely alienate

such land fr ee f r om any pu blic trust, under the pr esent

Consti tution.

Peo ple v. C al. F ish C o. , 166 Cal. 576.

Other wise, it would seem that the legislature has no

power to cur tail or d estroy the pu blic easement or r ight

of navigation.

Peo ple v. C al. F ish C o. , supr a.(a) The extent of this pu blic right of navigation.

(I) This right or easement clear ly includ es what

is commonly und er stood by the term navigation. This

includes the r ight to b uild o r author ize the build ing

of whar ves, chut es and pier s. See Cha pter V of Pol.

Code. Also, of im pr oving har bor s, and ex pending

pu blic money ther efor .

H enry Dalt on & Sor t s C o. v. Oakland , 168 Cal.

463.City o f Long Beach v. Lisenly, 175 Cal. 575.

The city may issue its bond s for impr oving a har bor

within its limits.

Weber v. H arbor C ommissioner s, 18 Wall. 57.

Held that a littor al pr opr ietor cou ld not enjoin the

Har bor Commissioner s f r om erecting a sea-wall in

f r ont of plaintiff 's land, and a wharf he had erected

out f r om his land.

Pr imar ily, of cour se, the public has the right to

pr o pel shi ps over naviga ble water s, and tid eland s may

be used f or that pur pose. The cour t in People v.

K er bel· , 152 Cal. 73 I, said that

"for all practical pur poses the bay is o pen to n avigationto the actual shor e line of high tide over the land in

question * * * "(2) It has been r e peatedly stated that the pu blic

easement or right includ es the r ight of f ishing.

F or estiel· v. J ohnson , 164 Cal. 24.

(3) The easement, also, has been held to includ e

the hunting of wild game.

F or est ier v. J ohnson, 164 Cal. 24.

Her e the plaintiff claims title fr om the State und er a sale of the land as ti deland , a patent being issued to

him. Def end ants claim that as citizens of the State

they have the right to go upon the premises for the

pur pose of hunting, fishing and navigation. The



land involved was k nown as Fly's Bay: and was a sid e

channel of Napa River . The court found that at

mean tid e the whole of the premises is used by vessels

of small burd en f or the purpose of navigation and

hunting. Held that the plaintif f could not exclud e

the pu blic. The court said in r egard to hunting that

"the author ities d o not d esignate the hunting of wild game as an o b ject for the pr ot~ction and pr omotion of which the State hold s title to a~d dominion over thetid eland s and naviga ble wat~r s. Ne"ertheless, it is a privilege which is incid ental to the public right of nav-

igation."

(4-) The cor r ect view would seem to be that this

easement or r ight includ es the pu blic right to use the

tideland s for the pur pose of bath ing. The cour ts,

however , have not always been unanimous in d eclar-

ing such a r ight. It has been indicated by the Supr eme

Court of Calif or nia that even wher e tid eland has

been granted to a city f or the purpose of pu blic

bathing that such pu blic r ight is su b ject to the su pe-

rior r ight of public navigation and f isher y.

Sant a Cru z. f l.S o. Pac. R. R. C o. , 163 Cal. 538.

Held that the Act of Mar ch 21, 1872, pr ovid ingthat

"all of the tid eland s within the corpor ate limits of said town, between the line of high and low tid e, ar e her e byd ed icated as public ground s, and the title ther eto isgr anted to the town of Santa Cr uz in tr ust f or the use

of the public * * * but nothing her ein contained shall inany manner be constr ued so as to prevent· the constr uc-

tion * * * of whar ves over, in and thr o·ugh said lanus by authority of the laws of the State of Calif ornia, or

the f ree use ther eof f or fishing purposes"

was enacted in r ecognition of the fact that Santa Cr uz

has always been a summer r esor t, es pecially adapted to

sea bathing and other s por ts and it was its pur pose to

d ed icate the tid eland s to such public uses, su bj ect to

the use f or navigation and f isher y. But the city's

title is, ther efor e, subject to the paramount r ights of navigation and fisher y. An in junction was r ef used

against the im pr ovement of the whar f so as to inter -

f er e with the use of the beach f or bathing and other

lik e s por ts and uses.

"The pr inci pal thing com plained of is th~ thr eat-ened act of the a p pellants in f illing in the s pace und er the wharf so as to prevent the use of that par t of the

bgach for pleasur e gr ound s. It may be conced ed that if the appellants should place any o bstr uction u pon the

beach that was not a ppr opr iate f or beach pur poses and was not useful in aid of navigation, the city, havingchar ge of the subordinate tr ust, r elating to that land ,would have the right to r emove it or cause its r emoval,on the ground that it was an unnecessar y pur pr estur eupon that particular pu blic use. This is the extent of

the r ight and power - of the city. It is not claimed or as-ser ted that the filling in of this s pace is unnecessar y tothe use or pr eser v~ti0nof the whar f , or that it o bstr uctsor pr events the use of the beach f or other pur posesmor e than is necessar y f or the pur poses of navigation.

It a p pear s to be an a ppr opr iate method of str engthen-ing the str uctur e. Hence it f ollows that the city hasshown no right to inter f er e with such impr ovement of the wharf ."

The early cases which ind icate that there is no

pu blic r ight of bathing in the ocean are r eally not in

point as they go on another ground , namely, that of

cr eating a nuisance in a pu blic place. Re x. v. C r und en , 2 Cam p bell's R e por ts 89 (1809).

Reg. f l. Reed &Others , 12 Cox Cr . L. Cases I.

Br inckman v. M atle y (19°4-) L. R . 2 Ch. Div. 3 13.

In an ear ly Pennsylvania case it was indicated that

if such a r ight exists it is a qualif ied right. This case

also, was com plicated by pr o blems of negligence.

H lmt v. Gl'aham , 15 Pa. Su per ior Ct. 4-2.

"The r ight to bathe in a pu blic str eam is not an a b-solute r ight. It ·is qualif ied by fi.xed r ules as thosewhich d eter mine the pr ivilege. It is permitted only atcertain places, and is of the same character as the r ightto use or tak e water fr om the str eam."

In T i ff an y v. T own o f O yst el' Bay , 182 N. Y. Supp.

738, plaintif f , a littoral proprietor filled in the f or e-

shor e in fr ont of his pr operty. The cour t in another

action held that the title to the for eshor e and this

r eclaimed land belonged to the town. Plaintif f then

of f er ed to r emove the fill. The town contracted to

have bath-houses er ected on this f illed in s pace and

plaintiff sought an in junction on the theor y that it

in j ur es his r i parian right of access t o navigable water s.

The inj unction was gr anted on a ppeal to the A p pel-

late Division. The cour t said :

"A public bath-house incid entally raises anothel'question. The public has no r ight to pass over the f or e-shor e in England to bathe in the sea. Brinckman ' V .

M atle y ('904) L. R . 2 Ch. 3' 3. The pu blic r ight to bathe, save at d esignated places, is d oubtf ul in this coun-tr y. Hunt ' V . Gr aham , '5 Pa. Super. Ct. 42."

The mor e mod er n decisions seem to indicate a t r end

toward recognizing such a right in the pu blic. TheSu pr eme Cour t of Florida in Brick ell v. T l'ammell ,

82 So. (Fla.) 221, says:

"The r ights of the peo ple of the States in the navig-a ble waters and the land s ther eund er , includ ing theshor e or s pace b etween high and low water mar k , r elateto navigation, commer ce, fishing, bathing, and other easements allowed by law."

And in Bames v. M idlmtd R. T er minal C o., ' 85

N. E. ( N. Y.) 1093, there was a like hold ing. Her e

both plaintif f and d ef endant wer e littoral pr o prietor s.

Plaintif f alleged that d ef end ant by the er ection of

cer tain pier s and build ings extending out from his

land obstructed " the rights of the pu blic in the f or e-

shor e. The in junction was gr anted on a p peal. The

cour t said :

"The same r easons which und er lie the d ecision in theBr ook haven case as to the r ights of littor al and r i pa-rian owners a pply with even gr eater for ce to the r ightsof the pu blic to use the f or eshore upon the mar gin of our tid ewater s f or fishing, bathing, and boating, to all



• of which the r ight of p assage may be said to be a nec-essary incid ent."

The injunctio n w as modified in Barnes v. M id land

Railr oad T er minal C o., I 12 N. E. 926, but the r ule

as above stated was in no res pect limited.

(b) However, ther e is no right in the pu blic to

cross pr ivate property to reach th e o cean.

Bolso Land C o. v. Burdick ., 151 Cal. 254-.

In this case plaintiff sought an injunction to r estr ain

d efendants crossing its land to r each a navigable bay.

The in j unction was gr anted . The cour t here squar ely

held that the pu blic has no right to invad e and cross

pr ivate lan d in o r der to r each navigable water .

F. A. H ilm C o. v. C ity o f Santa Cru z, 170 Cal.

436.Action by plaintif f to q uiet title to beach between

ordinary or mean high tide and extr aordinar y high-

tid e line. This was about 200 f eet wide and cover ed

with sand . N ex t t o the tid eland this was not built

upon, but back of that the city had constr ucted a paved

r oad and park. The city was held to have pr ocured

title to the latter par t by adver se user, but not the

sand y por tion next to the or dinar y high-tide line.

Held that the State did not get title to t his strip as

tideland and so its grant to the city was invalid . Also,

although the public had long used this strip in con-

j unction with the tideland beach below, it was held not to be ded icated to the pu blic use, nor was title

obtained by the city by means of ad ver se user . The

court said:

"But where land is uninclosed and uncultivated , the

fact that the public has been in the ha bit of going u ponthe l and will ordinarily be attr ibuted to a license on the

par t o f the owner rather than to his intent to d edicate(13 eyc. 484). This is mor e par ticularly true wher ethe use by the public is not over a d efi.nite and s pecified line, but extend s over the entire sur face of the tract

(IJ eye. 484). It wi ll not be pr esumed , fr om mer efailure to ob ject, that the owner of such land so used intend s to cr eate in the public a r ight which would

practically d estr oy his own r ight to use any part of the pro per ty."



E xt r acts fr om a Re por t M ad e in 1924 by the Los Angeles Superint end ent o f Par k s,

Wit h Recommend at ions S imilar t o Those o f This Re por t

DURI NG the per iod of near ly fifteen year s in

which I have been associated with the Los Angeles

Park Depar tment, I have from time to time given con-

siderable thought and attention to the need of a com-

prehensive par k system.

Fifteen year s ago the city cover ed an ar ea of 85 sq uar e

miles, with a population of 300,000 and a park ar ea of

4,000 acres, consid erably over the acce pted ar ea of one

acre to ever y 100 inhabitants. The system was only par -

tially developed. The bound aries of the city had just

embraced Grif f ith Park , which was so f ar f rom the center

of population and without any means of tr ans portation

·that no attempt had been mad e to d evelop it and ver y few

peo ple patronized it; but ad equate provision in par k ar ea

had been made at that time.

Today (1924) the city cover s an area of 415 sq uar e

miles, with a population of over 1,000,000, while the

par k area has increased less than 1,000 acr es. I t is true

that the present park ar ea o f 5,000 acr es is extensively

d evelo ped and portions of it used to the point of abuse,

but ther e ar e large ar eas of the city closely built up and

thickly populated that have no provision f or park s, and

the present par k ar ea is less than one-half acre per 100

inhabitants, and poor ly d istributed.

The city ought to make provision for the futur e popu-

lation by securing an ad ditional 45,000 acr es of land f or

park purposes before the pr ice becomes excessive, and

befor e other permanent im pr ovements occupy the land .

Ther e is an immediate need of 5,000 acr es additional

par k land to accommod ate the present po pulation.

In July, 1925, the method of pr oviding money for

park maintenance will be changed. Instead of ind ef inite

amounts ap propriated by the City Council, the new char -

ter pr ovid es a d ir ect levy of 7c per hund red dollar s assessed

valuation. Und er this plan the Park Board can intelli-gently estimate and for ecast ex pend itures, and they can

outline a policy of park d evelopment year s in ad vance.

Und er the 7c rate the Par k De par tment will r eceive about

$1,000,000 annually or near ly $ 1 per ca pita, almost 40

per cent more than the pr esent allowance. The cost of

pr oviding all f orms of par k service f or the past fiscal year

was 57c per ca pita. O n account of the incr ease in la bor er s'

wages gr anted this year by the bud get committee of the

City Council, the per ca pita cost will be about 60c.

Sever al attem pts have been mad e by f ormer park boar d s

to carr y out a program of park ex pansion, notably the

effor t to acquir e the Ar r oyo Seco and the Silver Lak e

Park ways, which was star ted in 1910. This was the fir st

attem pt in Los Angeles to create a parkway along a d rain-

age channel from the mountains to the sea. Evid ently the

tax payer s within the assessment ar eas did not realize the

necessity or advantage of acq uiring this valuable ad dition

to the park s, for both proj ects wer e protested out a fter

several year s s pent in negotiations.

In 1914 a movement was started to esta blish a compr e-

hensive system of park s and boulevard s. This was intended

to pr ovide: mountain and beach reser vations; par kways

and s pecial ar eas classed as rural or countr y park s; together

with a system of neigh borhood parks that would pr ovid e

the same ser vice in each r ad ial mile, giving each four

sq uar e miles a park; the system to be link ed up by s pecially

improved and tr af f ic-regulated streets to f orm a boulevar d

chain ar ound and through the city. Sur veys wer e made,

numer ous ma ps wer e drawn, a com pr ehensive re por t was

pr e par ed , and ste ps wer e being tak en to secur e by legisla-

tion an ad equate park law und er which to function. And

then Amer ica went to war , and for several year s park

proj ects wer e of minor consideration.

In 1920 the Los Angeles Planning Commission was

cr eated as an official ad visory bod y, and , af ter a year 's

stud y and investigation of o ur civic problems, d ecid ed that

in or der to adeq uately meet the situation the political

bound ar ies of Los Angeles would have to be ignor ed and

co-operation br ought about through the County gover n-

ment, with the r esult that R egional Planning Confer encewas called by the County Boar d of Super visor s in 1921.

Committees of five wer e appointed to investigate and re-

port on each physical civic pr oblem, and were selected

f r om the northeast, nor thwest, southeast, southwest, and



centr al districts of the County, the central d istrict repre-

scnti.ng the City of Los Angeles. I was accord ed the ver y

gr eat cour tesy of being selected to ser ve on the Park s and

Boulevar d s Committee r e pr esenting the Centr al District.

After eight months' f ield stud y and investigation, to-

gether with the pr e par ation of a ma p, the Park s and Boule-

vard s Committee su bmitted their r ecommend ations in thefor m of a r e port so brief that 1 will r epeat it:

Sec. 1. That all par k ways and pleasur e boulevard s beesta blished as se parate f eatur es f r om tr af fic highways.

Sec. 2. That all par kways and pleasur e boulevard swhen located along r iver channels, arr oyos, canyons, and the sea coast be established so as to pass under all other lines of tr af fic, and when located on r idges and mountaincr ests that they be esta blished so as to pass over all other lines of tr af fic by brid ge or viaduct. Briefly, no gr ad ecr ossings should be per mitted to exist.

Sec. 3. That park ways and pleasur e boulevard s whenesta blished along channel enbankments can be beautified economically, artistically, and with gr eat scenic eff ect atlow cost; and as a utility they provid e easy means of con-str uction for trunk sewer s and storm dr ains, and a r apid means of trans portation in case of flood -contr ol work .

Sec. 4. That par kways and pleasur e boulevards whenesta blished along rid ges and mountain cr ests should belocated so as to r each the most ad vantageous view points,and as a utility they will pr ove extr emely valuable in

pr o\'iding r a pid means' of trans portation in case of f or estf ir es.

Sec. 5. That as a further consider ation these park waysand pleasur e boulevard s serve to link up all beach reserva-tions to be established , these r eser vations to be f or the fulluse of the pu blic and not contr olled by private parties.

Sec. 6. We r ecommend that picnic par k s and camps beestablished throughout the d istrict.

Sec. 7. We r ecommend that all principal drainage chan-nels be acquir ed and controlled by the community for thehig-hest public use.

Sec. 8. That patents to land in th~ f or est r eser vations bed iscour aged . .

As a r esult o f the conclusions and r ecommendations of the var ious committees of the R egional Planning Conf er-

ence, the Boar d o f S u per visor s, in 1921, established as an

ad\Tisor y bod v the Los Angeles County Regional Plan-

ning Commission, who in their fir st report laid par ticular

str ess on the entir elv inad eq uate provision for local park s

sup plving neigh borhood s in the City of Los Angeles . ...

Dur ing the past four year s the City Planning Commis-

sion has been endeavoring to solve the pr oblem, and

has now reached the point where, assisted by the County

Regional Planning Commission, the legal machiner y is

being built u p to permit the esta blishment of a metro poli-

tan par k distr ict. ...

Und er the jurisd iction of a metropolitan par k com-

mission, it will be possi ble to secur e park ter r itor y lying

outsid e the boundaries of municipalities within the metr o- politan ar ea, and the activities of the commission will be

financed by a mill tax f or acq uisition and maintenance of

such proper ties. The ultimate area of the park system will

be gover ned by the amount of IlJoney a\'ailable f or main-

tenance, the size of each par k, ill1d th e r elative ser vice

demand ed by the locality, together with the ty pe of im-

pr ovement introduced .

R ef erring to the pr ice of par k land , it may be inter -

esting to estimate what it will cost Los Angeles to acquir e

immed iately the park land necessar y to provid e f or alimited increase in po pulation.

The 415 square mile ar ea of the city contains 265,600

acr es, which, su bd ivided into 5 lots per acr e, will mak e

1,300,000 lots, exclusive of str eets, the assessed valuation

amounting to $1,368,000,000. The City Planning Com-

mission, af ter an exhaustive stud y of the problem, esti-

mates that a d istrict bond issue amounting to about 2

per cent of the assessed valuation would be the pr oper

ratio of expend itur e for park pur chase. The 2 per cent

ratio would wor k out alik e on high and low priced pr o p-

erty, as the same pr o rate ar ea can be secur ed in each case.

Two per cent of the assessed valuation amounts to $27,-

360,000. Assuming that r ecently subdivid ed pr o perty,

selected wher e least desira ble for residence purposes, can

be secur ed f or $1,000 per lot o r $ 5,000 per acre, and out-

lying acr eage in and ar ound the dr ainage channels can be

secured at $ [,000 per acr e, a fair average p;ice would be

$3,000 per acre, with variations in pr ice accord ing to lo-

cation and surround ings. A 30-year district bond issue of

$27,000,000 would secur e a p pr oximately 9,000 acr es of

par k land -the eq uivalent of 90 park s of 100 acr es each,

or 180 park s of 50 acres each, or any modification of that

amount to suit the ind ivid ual case. The 415 squar e mile

ar ea of the city, divid ed into sections of 4 squar e miles

each, mak e 104 neigh borhood park districts; and 9,000

acr es provides the eq uivalent of 86.5 acr es for each neigh-

borhood par k requir ed, leaving the s pecial ar eas , par kways ,

and l' egional parks to be acq uir ed by the Metr o politan

Par k Comm ission. Add ing 9,000 acr es to the existi ng 5,000

will pr ovide 14,000 acr es of par k land , or an allowance

of par k ar ea consid era bly over one acr e to e~'er y 100 in-habitants. To payoff the 2 per cent bond issue in 30 year s

would r equire an average tax annually of 12.YzCper $100

assessed valuation f or sinking fund and inter est at 6 per

cent-ver y easy ter ms on which to acq uir e adequate s pace

for neigh borhood park s. Ther e is no case on recor d wher e

an ex penditur e for par k purposes ever d e pr eciated the

value of the pr o perty assessed . If r eal estate su bd ivider ;;

k ee p on cutting up the acr eage into lots without mak ing

ad eq uate pr ovision for par k s, and the people who ulti-

mately pur chase and occu py the subdivisions per sistently

r ef use to meet the cost of acquiring the necessar y terri-

tor y, then some d rastic legislation will have to be enacted

for the protection of the individual and to secure the wel-

far e, health, and safety of the community.

Ver y res pectfully,

FR ANK SHE ARER,

Super intend ent o f Parks.



IN X



Accessibility, athletic f ield s, 8 I, 1 15; local park s, 657;

school playgr ound s, 47

Acquisitions, by the County, 103-137 passim 117 -120 ,128; o bstacles, 103-137 paSJim , 114-117; r ecommen-

d ations (Q.V.)

Act of legislatur e, proposed, 36

Ad ministr ation, functions, 3, 7,10,35,36,53, A pp. IV;

centr alization, "7,35,53,58; r egional, 10, 35; over -

la p ping, 1-4, 3 1,35,36,42,47,53; units, 7,35,36,

58

jurisdiction, 1-4,31,35,36

Ado be houses, historic, 125, 126, 127

Adults, recr eation f or , 6

Age gr oups, 2 I, 22,47, 53, 54, 8 I

Agencies, power s need ed, 16; local, 43; beach, 64; cen-

tr al ized, 36; commer cial, 3; overla pping, 1-4, 31, 35,

42,47, 53; table of comparative power s, duties, and

r esour ces of various metro politan agencies of Calif or -nia and elsewher e, A p p. IV

Agr icultur e, r evenue, 4 I

Alamitos Bay and Channel, 69, 80, 123

Alondr a Park , 8 I, 98, I17

Alondr a-Del R ey Parkway, 120

Alond r a-Palos Verd es Parkway, 118

Altad ena Par k way, 136

Amusement Zone, 69, 79

Anaheim Landing, 123

Angeles Mountain R oad , 136

Angeles National For est, 10,85,9°,93,97; r ecom-

mend ed acq uisitions in, 93

Antelope Valley, 86, 90

Apartment house (see M ulti ple D zvellings)

Ap pendices, 141Ar eas, Los Angeles R egion, 3,19,31,51,95,96; local

park s, '6, 16, 31,47, 5 I, 53, 54, 57; r egional par k s, 10,

17,31,53,67,68,81,89,94,96,138; Los Angeles

City, 48; Angeles For est, 93; par k ways, 14, 17, 50,

96,138; school units, 47,54, A p p. I; need ed , 16, 53,

54,8 1 ,8 5 ,94,96 (and see Acquisit iort S); subdivid ed,

16; centr al ur ban, 96; beaches, 96; comparison with

other regions, 3 I, 8 I, 95, 96; pro portion to popula-

tion, 6,10,16,31,53,54; administrative, 7,16,54;

f our ty pical neighborhood s, 57; r ecommendations;

local park s, playground s, and s pecial units, 52-56;

beaches and shor e fronts, 67-80; regional athletic

field s, 81, 83,100,102,115,117,122,128; lar ge

r e;ser vations in mountains, canyons, d eserts, and island s,

89-93; pleasurcway park s, parkways, and r elated lar ge

par k s and r eser vations, 33-34., 67-68, 96, 100- I02

Arizona Avenue (Santa Monica), 68, 75

Ar naz Tr act, 1 14

Arr oyo Seco, 50, 82, 85, 92, 96,128,136,137

Arroyo Seco and Palos Ver d es Loo p Chain of Par k ways,

98

Ar r oyo Seco Par k and Park way, 128Ar royo Seco to Angeles Mountain R oad Par k way, 136

Ar r oyo Seq uit Par k, 68, 70

Ar tesia Avenue, 132

Ascot Tr ack , 128

Assessed valuation, 40- 57

Assessment of benef its, 38

Association (see C o-o peration)

Athletic f ield s, 7, 9, 17, 8 1-83; ar eas recommend ed (iee

Ar eas); cost (see C ost)

Atlantic City, 61, 63

Aud itoriums, r elation to par k s, 5

Automobile Clu b of Souther n California, 92

Automobile travel, along beaches, 8,62,72,74,78,1°3;

in wild distr icts, II, 85, 88, 91; in pleasuring park s,

13, 72, 85, 9 I, 95; contr act with f or mer mod es, 13,

28,39; num ber of car s, 12, 13,72; eff ect on d ensity

of po pulation, 21, 28, 52; ef f ect on r ecreation, 39, 52,

62,72,74,85,95

Azusa, 92, 133

Bailey Canyon, 135

Baldwin Hills, scenic drives, 25,96,97

Bald win Hills Par kway, 116, 117, 133

Ballona Cr eek , mar shes and lagoon, 68, 77, 8 I, I16;

proposed mole and pleasur e bay, 77; chain of par k -

ways, 98

Ballona Cr eek Parkway, 115

Barley Flats, 92

Bay (see Pleasure Bay)

Beaches, public vs. private contr ol, 7-9, 35, 59-64, 123,

App. V (legal o pinion) ; r ecommend ations, 63-80, 67-68 (summar y), 100-102; cost, 16, 59, 62-64, 80

(summar y); d esirable f eatur es, 7, 62-80; com parison

with other r egions, 6 I, 63, 67; classification, 68; use,

8, 9, 23, 35,60-64, 1°3; ar eas, 68; available, 8, 9, 16,

4.8,59-64, agencies of control, 64; zoning, 64; access

by r ail, 29; d emand for, 59, 61-64; construction on

tid eland s, 64, 65; pr oposed har bor s, 73, 77; clu bs and

amusement park s, 75; Los Angeles City, 48

Bel-Air, 68, .74

Benedict Canyon, 1 1 4

Bever ly Boulevar d , 117

Beverly Hills, 22, 55,98, 114

Bever ly Hills Park way, 114

Big Pines R ecr eation Camp and R oad, 8 5, 90, 91, 92

Big Rock Cr eek, 85Bir d R ef uge, 116, 123

Bix by Par k , 53

Bixby R anch Par kway and R eser vation, 122

Blue Ridge, 93



Bolsa Chica, 69, 80, 123; Gun Club land s, 123

Bolsa Chica Park R eser vation, Bir d R efuge and Beach,

123

Bond s, pr oposed, 37, 38, 57

Boston, park s, 32-34, 81,115; park ways, 95, 96,125;

Fr anklin Field, 81; administration, 36; manuf ac-

tur es, 40Boulevard s, 13,95,96

Brand Par k , 96, 137

Br ea Canyon R oad , 130, 131

Breakwarer s, 17,67,79, 103

Broad way (Santa Monica), 68, 75

Brooklyn (N. Y.), Pros pect Park, 81, III

Brook side Park (Pasad ena), 53, 81, 82, 128

Build ing permit house count, 22

Budget, contr ol, 36; estimate, 42

Bull Creek, 1°9Burbank, 51Business (see C ommer cial)

Cabrillo, 60

Calabasas Park way, 108, II3

Calif ornia (see St at e)

Calif or nia Avenue, 68, 75

California Botanical Gard ens, 5 I

Cam p High Sierra, 93

Camp Oak s Flat, 93

Camp R ad f or d, 93 ,

Cam p Seeley, 93

Canyons, as r egional areas, 7, 10, 17, 85 -94; encroach-

ment on, 23, 24, 88

recommendations, 85-94

Carbon Beach, 68, 71

Car li!1es and railways, 28-29

Car-mile basis of travel, 13

Castaic Valley, 89

CastelJammare Beach, 68, 73, 74

Castle R ock, 73Center s f or recr eation (see UI / it .' )

Cham ber of Commer ce, Los Angeles City, 76

Chatsworth Chain of Parkways, 98

Chatsworth Par kway, 1°9

Chatsworth R eser voir Park, 108

Chattanooga Mission R idge, R oad, and Lookout Moun-

tain Highway, 25Chavez R avine, 128

Chicago, park r esources, 23, 32, 33,67,81,95,97; par k

ar eas, 33, 3 4-, 97; manuf actur er s, 4-0

Childr en, r ecr eation provision for, 6, 47, 53 , 54-, 81;

per cen tages of , 2 I

City Hall Park, 56

Clar emont, 132

Cleveland , par k ar eas, 33, 34, 95Climate, relation to housing, 22; to recr eation, 22, 23,

34, 39, 5 9; to automobiles, 23, 39; to ser vice r adius,

52Coal Canyon Point, 71

Coal Creek, 106

Coast Chain of Par k ways, 97

Coast R oad (see Palos Verd es)

Cold brook Camp, 92

Cold Creek, 106

Commer cial r ecr eation enterpr ises, 3, 63, 7 ')

Comparison with other regions (see Parks)Coney Island, 6 I

Congestion, 6, 12, 13, 14, 16,20,65

Consolid ation of par k s, 55

Co-operation of pu blic agencies, 6, 16, 35, 38, 42, 47,

50, 53, 55 (see also Admi7 t ist l" at ion , Agencies)

Corr al Beach, 68, 71

Cost, complete system, 36 (r esume), 14, 16, 17,37-42;

local r ecr eation, 57 (summar y), 54-, 55, 57, 58;

beaches and shor e points, 80 (summar y), 59,62,66,

80,103; r eigonal athletic f ield s, 83,138; lar ge r eser -

vations; 93; pleasureway park s and r elated large park s,

137 (summary), 96; pleasure bay, 17; drainage ba-

sins, 93-94,138; camps, 94; connecting road s, 88, 94,

138Tax rate (see T axation); assessed valuation, 40,57;

assessment of benefits, 38; development in relation to

acquisition, 58, 138; maintenance, 42, 56; distribu-

tion in time, 17; in districts, 58; justification of pro-

posed expenditur es, 39-43; modif ying f actor s, 37, 38,

42,53,54,55,56,58,94,13°; comparison with other

r egions, 17; pleasur e tr avel, II, 13, 14

Countr y Clubs, 3, 51,75

County (see LO f Angeles C ount y)

Coyote Pass, 127

Cr isis of Los Angeles R egion, 5, 13-14; co;t o f d elay, 3 8,

40,42, 66

Cross traff ic, 13, 88, 117, 128

Cr ystal Lak e, 85, 92

Culver connection, 114-

Cul"er Park R esen-ation, 114

Cul"er R ecr eation Field , 81, 82,115,116Dalton vVash, 132, 133

Del Re y , 68,76,77,98,1°3,120

Del Rey Park and Bird R efuge, 116, 120,123

Densi ty (see Po pulat ion)

Deserts as r egional ar eas, 7, 10, 17,26,81-83,85,86,91,

96Detached small park units, 6

Detroit park resour ces, 23, 32, 34-; manuf actur er s, 40

Devil's Canyon ~oad, 92

Devil's Gate Dam, 128

Dexter Canyon Park , I 10

Diamon d Bar R anch, 131

Distribution of local park s paces, 31, 33, 34,47,48,53,

55

Districts (see U nits)Dominguez R anch Parkway, 122

Dr ainage (see F lood C 01ttr ol)

Dr y Canyon, 108

Duluth scenic drives, 26



Dume Park , 68, 70, 105

Dume Point, 70, 71, 104-

Dume Canyon Chain of Park ways, 98, 100, 103, 104-

East Bay Municipal Utilities Distr ict , 36

East Beach, 7 I

East Puente Hills Par k way and R eser vation, 13 I

East San Gabr iel Gor ge, 92

Eaton Canyon Wash, 81, 82,97,134-,135,136

Eaton Wash Parkway, 134-

Eber le Economic Ser vice, 2 I

Fr ank lin Canyon R eser voir R eser vations, 98, I13, 114-

Fr iction of distance, 2 I

Functions, par k -system, 1-4-, 6, 16, 3 I, 35, 4-7, 53, 96

(and see Parks)

Gage, Gover nor Henr y T., 127

Games (see Spor ts)

Ganesha Par k way, 131

Gard ena Valley Par k and Park way R eser vation, 98, 120,

121 (design)

Geor gina Avenue, 68, 75

Gifts as off sets of cost, 37, 38, 54-, 56,94-, 130

Glendale Park way, 24-, 137

Glendora, 86

Glendor a-San Dimas Parkway, 132

Glendor a-Azusa Parkway, 133

Goat Butte, 106

Gr ad e Crossings (see C mss T1oa ffic)

Grapevine Canyon, 89

Griffith Par k, 10,81,82,96,97,113,117,129 (recom-

mend ations), 137

Har bor im provement, 34-, 65, 66, 67, 76, 77, 79; d is-

tr ict, 59,60; Los Angeles, 69, 79; pr o posed , 76, 77

(see also Pleasure Bay)

Harbor City, 120

Hazard Park ,s 3, 55

Health, r elation to par k s, 3, + , 6

Hear st pr ivate road, 72Hermosa Beach, 69, 77

High-tid e line (see T id elands)

Highways, r elation to r ecr eation, 3, 23, 26,60, 80, 92,

103, 136; recommendations, 27, 63, 80 (and see

St ate)

Echo Park ,s 3

Ed ison Power Lines, I10, 134-, 136

Ed ucation (see S chools)

Elizabeth Lake Canyon, 90

El Segund o Beach, 69, 77, 97, 120

Elysian Par k, area, 96; scenic d rives, 24-, 97, 98, 117,

128,129; Chavez R avine, 81, 82

Enabling Act, 3 6

Encinal Beach, 68, 70

Escondid o Beach, 68, 71Estimates (see C ost)

Euclid Avenue School, 55

Escor pion Park, 108

Expend itur es (see C ost)

Ex position Boulevar d , I16

Exposition Par k par kway extension, 98, 117

Facilities, local, 6, 4-7, 57; over la pping, 6, 4-7; r egional,

5,7,14-; relation to age and income, 21, 22; to (and see Park s) -

Fed eral Government (see U nited St ates)

Fir ehouses,s

Financial (see C ost, Polic y)

Flood , control, 14-, IS, 16,34-,4-8,69,79; Control Dis-

trict, 120; relation to pleasur eway par k s, 16, 95, I10,

112,115,120,124-; San Gabriel River, 123, 125,

133; Los Angeles R iver , 125; Lett er on Nigger

Slough and other land s lying below possible d r ainage

levels, Ap p. III

For est Service, 92, 93, 94-

Four ty pical neigh borhood s, 56-57

Hillcrest Countr y Club, I1 4 -

Hilltop Chain of Park ways, 97

Historic sites, 125, 126, 127

Hollywood Countr y Club, 114-

Hollywood -Palos Verd es Par k way CA. & F. No. 15), 118

Hollywood scenic d rives, 2 4 -

Hor se Canyon, 93

Housing, in Los Angeles City, 22; causes of house ty pes,

22; zoning r estr ictions, 29; r elation to park s, 53;

house count, 22

Huntington Estate, 5 I

Huntington Palisad es Beach, 68, 74 -

Hy perion Beach and U pland s, 68, 69, 77

Hy per ion Sewer Farm, 120

Illustrations (see List o f Plat es)

Income grou ps in Los Angeles City, 21

I nd ustr iaJ ar eas, 33, 34-; gr owth comparison, 4-°; park s

for, 56

Inglewood Park way, I 16, 117

Inglewood Cemeter y, I17In-Town Park way, 116, 117

Inyo National Forest, 93

Iron Canyon, 92

Island s as recr eational units, 10, 17,67,96; Santa Cata-

lina, 87, 93; San Clemente, 87,93

Jur isdiction (see Ad ministr ation) -

K agel Canyon, I 10

K ansas City, park ar ea, 32-34-; parkways, 95

La Cienega Boulevard, I14-, II5

La Habra Connection, 130

Lancaster , 91

Land (see Par k s)

Land scape (S cenic Resour ces)

Lar ge r eservations (see Par k s)

Las Flores Beach Delta and Canyon, 68, 7 I,72Las Vir genes Canyon R oad , 106

Latigo R oad, 7 I

Laur el Canyon R oad , I14-



La Ver ne Par kway, 131, 132

Legal opinion on shor eland rights in California,

Ap p. V (see also Beaches)

Legislation, recommend ed r emed ial, 14-, 29, (zoning),

35,36, (enabling act), 4-3

Length of park and park way system, 138

Lick Pier , 68, 75, 76Lie br e Mountain, 85, 86, 90

Lighthouse Caf e Point, 68, 7 4 -

Limekiln Canyon, 109

Lincoln-Arr oyo Seco Parkway, 128

Lincoln Park, 53, 81, 82, 97, 127, 128

Lincoln Park and R ecr eation Ground s, 128

Lippincott, 1919 report by, J. B., 92

List of Plates

Little Dalton Canyon, 85, 92, 93

Little Pine Flats, 92 "-

Live Oak Cr eek, 132

Live Oak Par k and Parkway, 132

Local Park s (see "Local Recreation Facilities" und er

Parks)

Locai recreation units (see "Local Recr eat ion F acilit ies" und er Parks)

Loma Alta Dr ive, 136

Long Beach, par k areas, 4-8, 50, 53, 56; beach f r ontage,

59,60,69,79; water land s, 81, 82,122; air port, 122;

access by r ail, 29; child r en, 21; multiple dwellings, 21

Long Beach R ecr eation Par k, 123, 125

Los Alamitos, 123 (see also Alamit os)

Los Angeles Aqueduct, 90

Los Angeles City, scenic r esour ces, 24-, 86; par k area com-

par ed with other cities, 31-32; pr os per ity, 4-1-4-2;

d r ift towar d multiple dwellings, 21; percentage of

children, 21; income groups, 21; zoning r egulations,

29; manufactur er s, 4-°; r ecr eation center s, 4-8, 53, 54-,

85, 93; consolid ation of park s,s 5; beach clu bs f ront-

age, 68, 75; harbor, 69; Cham ber of Commer ce, 76;De partment of Playground s and R ecreation, 4-8, 61 ;

Park Department

Los Angeles Countr y Club, 114-

Los Angeles County, metropolitan par t, I; unincor po-

rated part, 78; seacoast, 23, 68, 77; mountain and d es-

er t r eser vations, 85, 86,91,92; park acq uisitions, 93,

117,120,126,132,133; road building, 94-,110,

118, 130, 133; r elation' to adjoining counties, 123,

130, 132.; automobile r egistr ation, 13

Los Angeles County Far m, 125, 126

Los Angeles Har bor , 69, 79 (and see Harbor)

Los Angeles R egion, d escr i bed, I, 4-, 10, 12, 17, 19, 20,

22, 52, (map of classif ied use), 78; radius, 14-, 20;

water land s, 17; school ground s, 4-7, Ap p. I; existing

par k s and playgr ound s, 17, 4-8, 51, 96, 129, A pp. II; beaches, 59-8o; shor tage of r ecr eation f acilities, 4-, 20,

23-2~ 31-34-,96; causes of park need s, 4-, 19,25-28,

35; ur gent need of parkways and large par k s,s, 4-0, 86,

95, 96, 138; r a pid growth,s, 20, 28, 4-1; po pulation,

19-22; development by automobile, 39, 85, 95; park

extension to other counties, 87, 123; scenic resour ces,

23-28,85,86; in jurious land su bdivision, 29, 31,4-2,

55, 126; disa ppointment of tour ists, 25-28, 39; fir st

r eal parkway, 118; f our ty pical neigh bor hood s, 56-57;

com parison with other r egions, 4-, 5, 12, 20, 25, 28, 32,

33,38-39,4-°-4-3,61,67,95Los Angeles River, 79,113,114-,122,125,128,13°

Los Angeles River Parkway, 129

Los Cerritos Park way, 122

Love joy Buttes, 91Love joy Joshua Tr ees R eser vation, 91

Lower Arrovo Park, 128

Lower Los .Angeles R iver Park way, 125

Lower Mali bu Coast Par kway, 103

Lower Rio Hond o P'lr kway, 126

Lower San Gabriel R iver Park way, 123, 125

Lower To panga Canyon and Clif f s, 1°7

Lower Tujunga Parkway, I13Lugo Ranch House, 127

Maintenance, 38,4-2, 56

Malaga Park , 5 I

Malibu Beach Canyon, Park and Lak e, 68,71,1°3,1°5,

106

Manchester Playground and School, 55

Manhattan Island, 33,69,77

Manufacturer s, com parison with other cities, 4-0

Mar shall Cr eek , 132

Mesa Dr ive, 116, 117

Metropolitan Agencies, ta ble of comparative power s, du-

ties, and resources in Calif ornia and elsewher e, App. IV

Mileage of par kways, 100-102

Millard Canyon, 136

Mines Field, 120

Minneapolis, 32-34-

Mission Canyon, 109

Mole (see H ar bor)

Monr ovia Golf Ground s Site, 135Monrovia Par k, 53

Monrovia Par k way, 134-

Monrovia-Mount Olivet Park way, 134-

Monte bello Hills scenic d r ives, 23, 97,126,127

Monte bello Parkway, 127

Mountains, r ecr eation ar eas, 7, 10, II, 17, d 9, 4-8, 85-

94-, (r ecommend ations), 96, 97; scenic value, 23, 24-,

25,85-94-

Mountain Chain of Par kways, 97

Mount Wilson, 92, 135

Mount Olivet, 134-

Mount Ru bio Park way, 136

Mulholland Highway, 106, 107

Mulholland Par k way, 113

Mulholland Str eet, I 10Mulholland -Tujunga Park way, 114-

Multiple d wellings, 22, 29,53,56

Municipal par k s, 4-7-58

Munici pal Pier , 79



Museums, relation to park s, 5

National (see U nit ed Stat es)

Neenach, 86; Joshua Trees R eservation, 90

Neighborhood s, stud y of four ty pical, 56-57

Neighborhood units (see U nits)

Newhal l, tunnel, 86, 89, 97; parkway, 89,97, 109

Newhall, Chatswor th & Topanga Canyon Chain of Par k-ways, 98

New Jer sey, 36,63 New Or leans, 4 -0

New York R egion, population d ensity, 20; E-arkar ea, 33,

34-; beaches, 61; administr ation, 36; manuf actur ers,

4-0; Westchester County, 39,95

Nicolas Beach, 68, 70

Nigger Slough, 16, 97, 98, 120,121 (d esign), 122;

copy of letter on Nigger Slough and other land s lying

below possible dr ainage levels, A pp. III

Oakgr ove Canyon, 86, 90

Oak Gr ove Park , 128

Oakwood Cemeter y, 1°9

Off sets to maintenance (see Gifts)

Oil, r evenue, 4-1; wells, 122, 130

Old To panga and Dr y Canyon Park way and Cliff s, 108

Olive View Sanatorium, 110

Ontario scenic drives, 28

Oak land scenic d rives, 25

Obstr uctive building, 24-, 25, 28

Opinion on shor eland rights in California, App. V

Orange County, 123

Out-of -door life in Los Angeles R egion, I, 12, 20, 23,

28, 37, 54-,97Over lapping (see Ad ministl' at ion , Agencies, F unctions)

Owens Valley, 86

Pacific Electric Railway, I15, I16

Pacific Palisad es, 68, 74-

Pacoima Park way and Wash R eservation, I 10, I12

Palmd ale, 85

Palmer Canyon Flood Basin, 132

Palos Verdes, beach frontage, 29, 60, 69, 70, 78, 79;

park areas, 32, 51, 55,98,117,118; policy, 55,70

Palos Verdes Coast Road, I18, 120, 122

Par is policy compar ed, 39-4-0

Park er R anch Road , 73

Park s, gener al consid erations, Cha p. I, 19, 35,4-3,4-7,52,

54-,56; compar ison with other r egions, 12, 17,31-32,

39, 55,6 I; crisis in Los Angeles Region, 5, 13, 14-,38,

4-°,4-2,4-3,54-,55,59,66,81,94-,97; shor tage in

Los Angeles R egion, 4-,31-34-,4-0,4-3, 59; analysis of

use classes, 52- 5 6

List of existing par ks, playgr ound s and other public

and q uasi-pu blic open s paces in the Los Angeles R e-

gion, App. II; extracts from r e port of park su perin-

tend ent of Los Angeles City for 1924-, App. VI; legal

opinion on shor eland rights, Ap p. V; power s, duties

and r esour ces of metropolitan agencies, App. IV; lands

below dr ainage levels, Ap p. Ill; relation to other d e-

partments, 1-4-, 3 I, 4-7 (see also Administ ration ,

Agencies , Schools); income gr ou ps, 21 ; modes of tr avel

(see Tr avel); obstacles, 55, 59, I17, 124-; in j ur ious

s peculation (see Speculat ion); local r ecr eation f a cili-

ties, 6, 4-7, 69, 79; consolid ation, 55; historic sites,

125,126,127; land for, 31, 54--55; municipal, 4-7-

58; estimated expend itur es (see C ost); r ecommenda-

tions (see Recommendations); r egional recreation fa-

cilities, 7, 9,10, II, 59,81,85,95,100; beaches, 59;

pleasur e bay, 17, 65, 77; athletic f ield s, 8 I;large res-

ervations in mountains, canyons, d eser ts, and island s,

85, 89, 94- (summar y); park ways, 89; pleasur eway

par ks, 95; list of pr oposed park ways and r elated lar ge

park s, 100-102; estimated ex penditur es (see C ost );

r ecommendations (see Recommendations)

See also Age Gr oups, Agencies, Ad minist l' at ion , Area ,

C I ~ildren , Climate , C ost , Distribut ion , F acilities, Func-

tions, I ndustr ial Areas, Legislat ion , M ult i ple Dwell-

ings, Park S yst em , Parkwa ys , Pla ygt ' ounds , Polic y , Po p-

ulat ion , Recommendat ions , S cenic Resour ces, S chools,

Speculat ion , S ubdivision , T t' avel , T y pes, U nit s ,

Par k Superintend ent's r e por t 1924-, 4-, A pp. VI

Par k System, d escr i ption of completed, 4-0, 4-2, 5 I, 87,

96, 97, Thr ee easterly-westerly chains and six north-

erly-souther ly chains, 97; Iist of proposed park ways

and r elated large park s, 100-102, 1°3; outlets at

county bound aries, 87, 1°9; gener al plan, 96

Par kway, f ir st r eal, in Los Angeles R egion, (Los Angeles

to Palos Verd es), 98, I18; ty pical section of , 99, I18;

d efinition of , 11-13; area, 14-, 17,33,34-; list, 100-

102; d etailed r ecommend ations, 1°3

Pasad ena, multi ple build ings, 21; childr en, 2 I; par k

ar eas, 32, 50, 51, 53, 56, 81,128; Depar .tment of

Park s and R ecr eation, 50; Br ook sid e Park , 53, 81, 82,

128; Arroyo Seco, 82, 92, 128, 136; scenic drives,

86, 134-

Paseo d el Mar (San Pedro), 78, 79

Payton Avenue, 112

Peavine Canyon, 114-

Pena Canyon Beach, 68, 72

Per ca pita, relative to area, 16, 20, 58, 95; r elative to

cost, 20, 4-0, 57- 58; beach s pace, 6 I

Per shing Squar e, 56

Per sonnel policy, 36

Philadel phia, 32, 4-0

Pico Boulevard , I1 4 -

Pioneer communities, 4-, 5

Pio Pico Adobe House, I 25

Playa d el R ey, 60, 64-, 66, 67

Playground & R ecr eation Association of America, 3 I

Playground s, 6, 16, 28, 31, 34-, 4-7, 58 (r ecommen-

d ations)

Plaza, 56

Pleasure Bay, 17 (cost), 65, 66, 67, 77, 103, 116

Pleasur eway Park, as r egional ty pe, 7, II, 13, 17, 95-

138; ar ea, 33, 34-; coast drives, 65-80; mountain and

d esert drives, 85-94-; com parison with other r egions,



95; fir st one in Los Angeles R egion, I i8; r ecommen-

d ations, 100-102,103

Pleasur eways connecting park s; recommend ations, 100-

102

Point Dume, 65, 70

Point Fer min, 69, 78, 79, 93

Point Vicente Lighthouse, 69, 78Police r egulation of floodways, 14, 15; of beach use, 63-

64, A pp. V

Policy, 1,4,5,7,14,15,19,34-38,39-4°,42,47,58,

66, 116, 126

r egional athletic f ield s, 9, 81-83, IIS; beaches, 9, 35,

59-80,66, I 16; f lood ways, 14, 16, 34, I 15; highways,

27,63,80; wild distr icts, II;

local co-operation, 35, 47, 52, 56; justif ication of,

39-42, 54, 66, 126, 138; irr e par a ble absence of , 26,

31,34,4-3,55Pomona, 97, 131

Pomona Basin R eser vation, 13J

Pomona Par kway, 131

Po pulation of Los Angeles R egion; I, 16, 19, 20,47, 54,

57,95; r a pid incr ease, 4, 6,14,19,28,34,95,96;

r atio to park facili ties, 4, 12, 20, 3 1-34, 52- 54; d en-

sity, 20, 21, 29,47, 52-53,95; tr end, 14, 20, 21;

zoning, 29; four ty pical neigh borhood s, 57

Por tland (Maine), par kways, 95

Portland (Or egon), Ter williger Boulevar d and the Co-

lum bia Highway, 26; par k area, 32, 95

Potr er o Countr y Clu b, I17

Pr ivate clu bs, r elation to r ecr eation, 3, 32,63

Private recr eational enterpr ises, I, 32; obstruction of

beaches,s 9; beach r ights, 57, 62

Pr omoter s, II

Pr o perty rights in beaches, 8, 9, A pp. V; uses in 23 cities,

29

Pu blic improvements,s; pu blic r ights in beaches, 59,

103, A pp. V

Public res ponsi bility for r ecreation f acilities, I, 3Pudd ingstone R eser voir Par k , 131

Puente Hills scenic drives, 25,'97, 130, 13 I, 134

Radius of r ecr eation ser vice, 6, 9,13,21,33,34,47,52,

54; Los Angeles R egion, 14, 52; urban area, 19, 52;

af lected by d ensity of population, 20; house count in

Los Angeles, 22; school playground s, 47, 52, 54; f r ic-

tion of d istance, 2 I

R ailways and car lines, 28-29

Ramir ez Beach and Canyon, 68, 70, 71,104,105

R ancho Cienega Recreation Field , 81, 82, 116

R ancho EI Cone jo, 106 .

R atio of park facilities to population, 4, 13

R ecommend ations, (see also C ost) complete plan (sum-

mar y), 16, 37; legislation, 36, 37; financing (see

C ost ); local recreation facilities, 47-58, 52 (r esume); beaches and shor e front f acilities, 59-80, 67 (sum-

mar y); pleasur e- bay, 66, 77, 116; regional athletic

field s, 81-83; lar ge r eser vations in mountains, can-

yons, deser ts, and island s, 85-94, 89 (summar y), 93

(Angeles Forest); pleasureway par k s, parkways, and

r elated large par k s, 95-138, 96 (r esume), 100-102

(summar y); d etailed r ecommend ations; local r ecr ea-

tion f acilities, playground s, r ecr eation par k s, and s pe-

cial units, 47 et seq.; beaches and shore points, 70 et

seq.; r egional athletic field s, 82-83; lar ge r eser vations,

89 et seq.; pleasur eway par k s, parkways, and r elated large park s, 103 et seq.

R ecr eation, conditions, 35,47, 53; in various cities (Q.V.) (See also Areas, Agencies, Beaches, Park s , Play-

grounds, Policy); necessity, 5, 6; child r en's play, 6,

8 I;cost, 42; youths' play, 81; indoor amusement, 6.

R ecreation park s (see Pm-k s)

R ed Box, 92

R ed ond o beach frontage, 59, 69, 78, 1 18

R egional park f acilities,S, 7,14,35,47; im por tance, 9;

. ex periments in other cities, 12; policy, 35, 36; main-

tenance costs, 4 2; r elation to local f acil ities, 47, 58, 59

R egional Planning Commission, 127

R en tal val ues, 4, 5

R e por t of Los Angeles Park Su per intend ent 1924, 4,

Ap p. VI

R eser voir par k s, 8 I

R es ponsi bility of public f or park s, 3, 3 6

R id ge R oute, 89, 9 0

Right-of -Way, 65

R ights in shor eland s of Califor nia, legal o pinion on,

A pp. V

R io Hondo and Eaton Wash Chain of Par k ways, 97, 125,

126, 127, 134

R ipar ian land s (see Beaches)

R iver -side scenic drives, 28

R ock Cr eek and R ock Cr eek Par k way, 91, 92

R od eo Canyon, 131

R osamond Lak e, 86,91

R oxbur y Playgr ound, 55

R oyal Palms Beach, 69, 79; golf cour se, 122

R u bio Canyon, 136Russell Valley Park , 105

Sadd le Peak Par k way and R eser vation, 106

San Antonio Cone Reser vation, 132

San Bernar d ino County, 132

San Bernard ino Mountains, 116

San Ber nard ino ational For est, 93

San Clemente Island, 87, 93

Sandber g's, 90

San Dimas, 92, 131, 13 2

San Dimas Cone R eser vation, 132

San Fer nando Mission Parkway, I 12, 113

San Fernando Par kway, 110

San Fernand o R eser voir Par k , 1°9

San Fernand o Valley, athletic field , 81; r oad f r om, 89,

98, 108; upper por tion, 109, 110

San Fr ancisco, scenic dr ives, 25; par k ar ea, 32

San Ga briel R iver, golf gr ound s, 134; mouth, 123; mis-

cellaneous, 85, 9 3, 97, 122, 124, 127, 133



San Gabr iel Valley athletic field, 8 I; d am, 85; moun-

tains, 86, I 16; r eser voir, 92, 93; chain of park ways, 97

San Gabr iel Wash R eser vation, 13 3

San Jacinto Mountains, 87

San Jose Hills, 131

San Pedr o, 22, 60, 78; access by r ail, 29; beach, 69, 79;

park r eser vation, I 18San Pedro Par kway, 120

San Pedr o Hills R eser vation, 122

Santa Anita Canyon Par k and Parkway, 13:;

Santa Catal ina Island , 87

Santa Clara River Valley, 89

Santa Fe R ailway, I 17

Santa Monica beach fr ontage, 29, 49, 5~, 60, 64-80; ac-

cess by rail, 29; park ar eas, 49, 50, 75; school ar eas,

49; airpor t, 49; beach use, 61, 64-80; beach clu bs

f rontage, 68,74,75; pr o posed harbor , 73

Santa Monica Boulevar d , I 14

Santa Monica Canyon beach, park and pier , 74, 75

Santa Monica Mountains, 97, 98, 100

Santa Ynez Beach and Canyon, 68, 74

Saugus, 86, 93

Sawmill Mountain, 86, 90

Sawtelle, 5 I

Scenic r esour ces, 23-28,4°, 53, 54, 59,65; obstacles to

enjoyment of, 23-31, 88; value, 24-28; mountain

road s, 85-94; northern Los Angeles County, 85;

d eser ts and mountains, 85-94; chains of par k ways, 97

et seq.

Schools, list of Los Angeles R egion school ground s of

over five acr es, App. I; r elation of schools to r ecr eation,

3,5,6,16,35,47,53,54,55; to local units, 6, 7,16,

34,47,53,54,55; ar ea, 16,47,55; App. I; num ber ,16; eq uitable d istribution, 47, 55; four ty pical neigh-

bor hood s, 57

Seattle, scenic drives, 26, 95; park area, 32

Selig Zoo, 128

Sepulved a Par ~way, 98, 120Seq uit Beach, 68, 70

Sewer De par tment, 77

Shor e-front r oad s and par k areas r ecommend ed , 100-102

(summary), 103 et seq. (detailed)

Shoreland ri ghts in California, legal opinion on, Ap p. V

Shores (see Beaches)

Shor tage of park s (see Park s)

Sierr a Canyon, 105, 106

Sierra Madr e Golf Ground s Site, 135

Sier r a Mad re Park way, 135

Signal Hill, 97, 122

Signal Hill Park and Park way, 122

Silver Lake, I 17

Soledad Canyon, 89

Southern Califor nia, tr avel en joyment in, 14, 28Southern Califor nia Telephone Com pany house count, 22

Southern Pacif ic Railway, 89

South Gate R ecreation Gr ound s, 81, 82,125

Spad ra Valley,·I3I

S peculation ver sus par k s,S, 10, I I, 29, 42, 55, 59, 64,

66; land mark et conditions, I I, IS, 42, 55, 64, 66,

1°3; sharp pr actice, 14; in jur ious encr oachments, 29-

3 1,42, 55, 59-64, 66, 103

Spor ts, 6, 10, 34, 53, 54, 8 I

Standard Oil Company beach, 69, 77

State Division of Highways, 64,85,94-State Highways, 64-, 65, 67,71/74-,78,92,1°3,136

(a11d see H ighzvays)

State Par k s, 87, J 25

St. James Park, 56, I17

St. Louis park ar ea, 32; manufactur es, 4-0

Storm water, 14- (see also F lood C r!11t ml)

Stough Park, 5 I

Str eet car s, 28-29

Str eets (see Highwa ys)

Su bdivision of land destructive of mountain tr acts, 10,

II, 1°5; d estructive of tr ees, 26; areas, 33, 34-, 52,

55; vacant lots, 4-2; o bstructive, 123, 124-, 126; loss of

local park s, 3 I

Summar y (see Recommend at ions and C ost s)

Sunland, I I I

Superintend ent of Park s, extr acts fr om 1924- r e por t, A p p.

VISycamore Grove, 128

Taxation incidence, 7, 5 7; r ate, 14-, 38,4-2, 57; of f sets,

38; maintenance, 4-2; assessment of benefit, 38; as-

sessed valuation, 4-0, 57; taxation vs. s peculation,s;

proposed legislation, 37, 38

Te~minal Island , 60, 69, 79

Ter r ace Park, 56

Thomson Cr eek, I 32

Tid eland s, legal as pect, 9, 59, 103, A p p. V, 59; en-

cr oachments, 62-64-,66 (and see Beaches)

To panga Canyon, 59; Beach Canyon, etc., 68, 72, 73,

106,107,108,113

Topanga Chain of Par k ways, 98

Topanga-M ulholland Par k way, 106Torr ance Beach, 69, 78

Tourists, o bstacles to en joyment, 23-26; par k s to attract,

39; example of Par is, 39; economic value, "39,4°

Traff ic (see T r avel)

Tr ans por tation policy, 34-, 64-, 8 I

Tr avel com bined with pleasur e, f unctions, 12, 13, 64,

78,85; mod es, 13,28-29,38; distance, 14-,28,85,

96; obstacles, 23, 59,64-,96; in mountains, 88; along

beaches, 103

Trees, need for, 13, 26, 96, 124; destr uction of , 26;

use in parkways, 99, I 16, I I 8, 121

Trip pet R anch, 107

Triunf o, 97, 98, 105, 106

Triunf o Canyon Par k way and Cliff s, 106

Tujunga Canyon, 8, 5, 86Tu j unga Par kway, 114-, 136; Tui unga Valley Par k , I 10;

Tujunga Valley and BalJona Chain of Parkways, 98;

Tujunga Wash, III, 112, 130, 137

Tuna Canyon Beach and R oad, 68, 72, 106



Turnbull Ridge Park way, 130

Turnbull Canyon Road, 130

Ty pes of par k s, local, 52, 55, 57; regional, 7,59,81,85,

95Union Pacific R ailroad, 122

United States, beach f r ontage, 78; for est service, 33, 85,

92, 93, 94-, 104-, 105, 129, 136; Angeles NationalForest, 10,85,9°,93,97; recommend ed acq uisitions

in, 93; lighthouse, 70-93, 1°5; park policy, 10

Units, recr eation, local, 53, 54-, 55, 56; r egional, 10; r e-

lation to schools, 6, 4-7, 54-; consolidation, 53, 54-, 55;

administr ative, 7, 35, 36, 58

Univer sal City, 1!4-, 130

Univer sity of Southern Ca] ifornia, I17

U pper Los Angeles River Park way, 130

U pper Malibu Coast Park way, 104-

Upper Rio Hondo Par kway, 134-

U pper San Ga briel River Park way, 134-

Ur ban ar ea incr ease, 19, 37

Vancouver par k r esour ces, 23

Van, Nuys, 112, 113

Venice beach f r ontage, 59, 60, 62, 66, 68 , 76; har bor

l 7 6 77 I 16 Ch b f C 7 6

Vincent Gulch, 85,92,93

Walnut Creek, I3 I

War m S prings, 90

Washington, D. C., 56

Water conservation pr oblem, 15,34-; water shed ar eas, 10,

33

West Beach, 69, 79Westchester County, N. Y., compar ison of policy, 39,95

Westlake Park, 53

West Puente Hills Par kway, 130, I3 I

Westwood Pu blic Golf Cour se, 114-

White's Point Beach, 69, 79

Whiting's Wood s, 136

Whiting's Wood s and Br and Park R eser vation, 137

Whitnall Highway, I 12, I 13

Whittier Narr ows, 81, 82, 123, 124-, 1 26 , 130, 133,

134-

Whittier Narr ows R ecr eation Par k and Dr ainage Basin,

127Wilmington, 29, 120

Wilshire Boulevar d , 114-

Wilsona Valley, 86

W k Mill R d 130 134

Documents

1930 Parks Playgrounds Beaches Los Angeles Region