Leimert Park Garden Project

Green space, park access, and trees

South LA

Pilot or new project, program, or initiative (testing or implementing a new idea)

The Leimert Park Garden Project directly responds to the legacy of redlining and environmental racism in South LA. Leimert Park has major risks from air quality; SCLA-PUSH notes that communities in South LA are breathing some of the most polluted air in CA and in the country. This can be linked to land use patterns prioritizing manufacturing or energy production, by emitting harmful gases and particles, over green spaces. Leimert Park also has major risks from heat. The Urban Land Institute of LA notes that “oddly shaped parcels and pockets of open space offer opportunities for heat island reducing landscape and/or [gardens],” while the implementation of “green streets,” or expanding the tree canopy or thoughtful landscaping could also mitigate the community heat island effect and improve pedestrian experiences. Bringing new park land and habitat restoration to Leimert Park mitigates existing environmental and health challenges and promotes the rehabilitation of local ecosystems.

The Leimert Park Garden Project will transform defunct industrial spaces into a community hub offering recreational and educational opportunities that are grounded in a new park space. Grant funding from LA2050 will support PFGLA’s efforts to:
Rehabilitate and redevelop formerly industrial spaces with sustainable features, including the replanting of native plants, rainwater collection, and new trees that advance shade-equity and restore the local canopy.
Bringing economic opportunity to a long-marginalized community with high rates of poverty through a targeted workforce development initiative. We view the transformation of this space as a quality green-job training opportunity for marginalized youth and young adults. PFGLA will recruit and train young people, paid at $25/hour, and provide baseline training and hands-on job opportunities they need to enter in-demand green jobs. When the project is complete, we anticipate being able to provide additional job opportunities in event planning and staffing and offer small business pop-ups and vendor markets for local producers and artisans.
Create enrichment opportunities where none previously existed. The park will be open daily providing a much-needed safe, urban green space. We will also plan and host free community and educational programming including gardening & sustainability, and health & wellness programming (e.g., yoga sessions, meditation, or nutritional cooking demonstrations.

The Leimert Park Garden Project is a transformative, place-based solution to improving community infrastructure, building connections with local community-based organizations (including nonprofits, educational institutions, and small businesses), and serving as a resilience hub. We are pooling the efforts of community-based organizations, residents, private partners, and local governments to address environmental-justice-related issues that disproportionately impact BIPOC communities. When successfully rehabilitated, PFGLA will demonstrate the far-reaching impact to the health and well-being of marginalized communities of reclaiming small- to medium-size pieces of underutilized land in industrial, urban environments, which can be rehabilitated to protect the natural environment, improve community health by providing opportunities for recreation or gathering, and support local businesses.