Restoration Begins At Fire-Damaged Farnsworth Park

ALTADENA, CA — Los Angeles County officials and donors broke ground Friday on a multiphase restoration of Charles S. Farnsworth Park in Altadena, which remains closed after sustaining extensive damage in the 2025 Eaton Fire.

Supervisor Kathryn Barger committed $1.2 million for a new Reflection Garden, while the Los Angeles Dodgers Foundation is contributing $1.4 million for two Dodgers Dreamfields and a STEM Trail, according to the county.

“Restoring Farnsworth Park is about renewing a beloved cornerstone of Altadena,” Barger said in a statement. “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.”

More than 200 community members, Dodgers pitchers Blake Snell and Emmett Sheehan, county leaders and elected officials attended the groundbreaking, county officials said. Participants included representatives from the county Parks Department, the San Gabriel and Lower Los Angeles Rivers and Mountains Conservancy and the Dodgers Foundation.

The project includes restoring power and water infrastructure, adding an accessible entrance and walkway, replacing a restroom and restoring amphitheater seating. Officials said the ballfields and STEM Trail will provide opportunities for youth and families to play and learn.

"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," Nichol McKenzie-Whiteman, chief executive officer of the Dodgers Foundation, said in a statement.

The nearly 15-acre park lost its historic William D. Davies Building, a utility building, offices, a playground, a picnic area and other amenities in the fire.

Only the Davies Building’s rock walls and chimneys remain. Plans to restore the historic structure could take years, officials said.

Mark Stanley, executive officer of the Rivers and Mountains Conservancy, said the park connects families with the surrounding foothills and forest.

“Farnsworth Park is one of our special places, where Altadena’s suburbs bump up against the foothills wildness,” Stanley said in a statement. "“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 park opened as Altadena Park in 1934. Its original 8.8 acres, including the Davies Building, were listed as a historic district on the National Register of Historic Places in 1997.

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