Late one morning on a sun-drenched November day, I was exploring the western edge of MacArthur Park when I came upon a social worker who was looking for a client. We got to talking about the tree-shaded, grassy slopes; the Levitt bandstand that hosts summer concerts; the soccer field where youngsters still gather; and the lovely view across the lake toward the once-grand Westlake Theatre building and the downtown L.A.
skyline. “It’s a beautiful oasis in the middle of the city,” Willard Beasley said. That’s the thing that breaks your heart.
There’s so much potential in the 35-acre expanse that dates to the 1880s and was once a symbol of municipal pride, as well as a setting for Charlie Chaplin and Buster Keaton movies and for a stunt in which escape artist Harry Houdini jumped into the lake in chains. But the history is checkered and the beauty is blemished. Blight runs through the park and bleeds into surrounding streets, with homeless encampments in every direction.
Similar issues run deep in other parts of Los Angeles, but the Westlake neighborhood is also burdened by gang activity and a fentanyl crisis on vivid public display. I asked Beasley if he thought the park could be rescued. “Yes,” he said.
“But it’s going to take a lot of work.” Several times in the past few decades, when park conditions deteriorated, restoration efforts were launched by assorted teams of residents, merchants, public officials, law enforcement agencies and nonprofit saviors. Mo.
