Will Rogers Park Reopens After Face-Lift
Beverly Hills reopened Will Rogers Memorial Park on Tuesday after finishing a $1-million historic renovation of the small parcel of land across from the Beverly Hills Hotel.
After being closed since July 1996, the park reopened with new seating, traditional decomposed granite walkways instead of asphalt paths, a new irrigation system and revamped restroom facilities. Workers replaced the crumbling retaining walls and planted new shrubs and trees.
“The park was really in a state of disrepair,” said Steve Miller, director of the city’s Recreation and Parks Department. “It had seen better days. There was a collective decision in the city that we needed to do a historic renovation, get rid of elements from the 1950s and get back to the feeling and look that represent its heyday in the 1920s.”
The park was famous for attracting picnicking stars and celebrities during its early years, and has remained a popular local recreational spot.
The five-acre parcel of land was Beverly Hills’ first municipal park, donated to the city by the Beverly Hills Hotel in 1915. Local resident Will Rogers was dubbed the first honorary mayor of Beverly Hills in the park in 1926, and in 1952 the city renamed it after him.
The city’s renovation included the installation of two monument park signs and a bronze plaque commemorating Rogers’ life.
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