The City of Los Angeles is in the process of finalizing its long overdue Park Needs Assessment (PNA), and released the draft report on September 2, 2025. The draft report and a link to make comments may be found at https://needs.parks.lacity.gov/ Once on that page, go to the bottom – where you can read and download the entire draft report in addition to making comments, either on specific pages or the entire document. The final date for comments will be approximately 10/15/25 so do not wait!
The City’s Department of Recreation and Parks (RAP) controls over 15,000 acres of parkland, with approximately 45% of that in our San Fernando Valley area. According to RAP “…there are at least one million trees growing in the City’s 15,000 acres of parkland, spread amongst developed urban parks and growing naturally in coastal and inland areas. This “Urban Forest” is a great asset to the City of Los Angeles. Forested urban parks are a functional and attractive environment for residents and visitors. Natural areas provide shelter for wildlife and offer an escape for park visitors into the semi-wilderness.”
City parks in our SFV host hundreds of wildlife species, migratory and resident alike, and provide crucial bird habitat. Pocket parks, golf courses and natural-turf sports fields, in addition to designated wildlife areas, provide sustenance for our wild friends. The birds don’t care what we think the areas are for as long as we don’t pave or poison them! Our Sepulveda Basin Wildlife Reserve is a venue for frequent bird walks, native plant restoration projects, and educational field trips. Many other SFV parks also have nature and birding activities.
Sadly, our City park system has fallen into disrepair, a victim of significant underfunding for the past 15 years or so, with the bill for deferred maintenance approaching $2 billion. All levels of RAP are understaffed, including maintenance and Park Rangers. Our own Sepulveda Basin has fallen victim to depredations inflicted by encampments, illegal dumping, fires, vandalism, and simple unaddressed wear and tear. The City of Los Angeles is embarrassingly low in park spending per resident – near the bottom compared with the 100 largest cities in the United States.
A recent article in the Los Angeles Times by Steve Lopez outlines some of the causes and possible solutions to our City’s park problems (September 5, 2025 “Here’s your Chance to weigh in on how to save neglected, but vital, L.A. Parks). The bottom line is our parks need more funding. A lot more funding. Whether you comment in detail or in general, please comment!
