Also published on 9 November on Hey SoCal

Restoration work is set to start at Farnsworth Park, including two Dodgers Dreamfields. | Photo courtesy of Diandra Jay/Los Angeles County

Restoration efforts at Altadena’s Charles S. Farnsworth Park officially began with a groundbreaking ceremony Nov. 5 for two Dodgers Dreamfields. Approximately 200 community members, local leaders and elected officials attended, including Los Angeles County Supervisor Kathryn Barger, U.S. Rep. Judy Chu, D-Pasadena, the LA County Department of Parks and Recreation, Rivers and Mountains Conservancy, Los Angeles Dodgers Foundation.

Additional donors to the Farnsworth Park Restoration Project include the Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy, Los Angeles County Regional Park and Open Space District, Warner Bros. Discovery, Rotary Club of Pasadena, LA Philharmonic, Dick’s Sporting Goods Foundation, Los Angeles County Parks Foundation, and Los Angeles Clippers Foundation.

The nearly 15-acre Altadena landmark was severely damaged in the 2025 Eaton Fire, with only portions of the William D. Davies Memorial Building left standing. The restoration of the park’s utility infrastructure and key amenities such as an accessible entrance and walkway, replacing a destroyed restroom, restoring its amphitheater seating, and creating a new Reflection Garden and two Dodgers Dreamfields heralds the park’s next chapter.

“Restoring Farnsworth Park is about renewing a beloved cornerstone of Altadena,” Barger declared during the event. “Public and private partners have come together to make that renewal a reality, and I am proud to commit $1.2 million to close the funding gap for the park’s Reflection Garden — an anchor of peace for the community. For decades, this is where families gathered to celebrate, teams competed, and neighbors enjoyed theater and concerts. Together, we will make sure Farnsworth once again welcomes the community home.”

According to LA County Parks Director Norma E. García-González, she had often been asked when the popular destination would reopen after the Farnsworth Park’s closure.

“Generations of Altadena residents and visitors consider their Altadena parks as community landmarks,” Garcia-González said. “We are grateful to the many generous supporters and donors who make the restoration of all our county fire-damaged parks possible. The Los Angeles County Parks Foundation continues to fundraise so that Farnsworth and other Altadena county parks will reopen.”

Mark Stanley, executive officer of the San Gabriel and Lower Los Angeles Rivers and Mountains Conservancy, which is supporting Farnsworth’s comeback, said the park’s natural beauty is an entry point for families to the adjacent forest.

“Farnsworth Park is one of our special places, where Altadena’s suburbs bump up against the foothills wildness,” Stanley observed. “Families are embraced by stately pine trees, deodars, and oaks. And it’s here that the majestic San Gabriel Mountains meet us, reminding us of our responsibility to protect, restore, and preserve this precious park and its outdoor recreational opportunities.”

The Los Angeles Dodgers Foundation is partnering with LA County Parks to help restore recreation opportunities at Charles S. Farnsworth Park through a $1.4 million investment in Dodgers Dreamfields 69 and 70 and a new STEM Trail that blends baseball and science. Designed through community engagement and informed by local stakeholder input, the project will create new opportunities for youth and families to learn, play and connect as Altadena continues its recovery from the Eaton Fire.

“As Altadena continues to recover and rebuild, we are proud to partner with LA County Parks to help bring Farnsworth Park back to the community,” said Nichol McKenzie-Whiteman, chief executive officer of the Dodgers Foundation. “The two new Dodgers Dreamfields and STEM Trail will create opportunities for young people to play, learn and grow while supporting the restoration of a place that has meant so much to generations of Altadena families.”

Farnsworth first opened as Altadena Park in 1934 with the distinctive Davies Building, a dramatic Craftsman-style design built by Works Progress Administration workers. The striking lodge-like structure included hand-laid walls of river rock, open beam ceilings, and large rustic chandeliers. In 1973, the County acquired an additional 5.9 acres on the west side for the park’s current total of 14.7 acres. In 1997, the original 8.8-acre Charles S. Farnsworth Park — including the Davies Building — was listed as a historic district in the National Register of Historic Places.

Since the closure, LA County Parks officials have met with community members to gather input on restoration plans and to give updates on the recovery schedule. According to the department, future events in the coming years will mark milestone moments in the park’s full restoration — heartening news to a community that has lost so much.