Charles White Park Rebuild Breaks Ground This Morning, A Milestone in Altadena Recovery

A groundbreaking ceremony is set for this morning on the $10.5 million reconstruction of Charles White Park, the five-acre Los Angeles County park in Altadena that was extensively damaged in the Eaton Fire nearly 21 months ago.

The Los Angeles County Department of Parks and Recreation plans to rebuild the park in three phases, with construction running from fall 2026 to fall 2027 and a grand opening projected for fall 2027, according to a department update dated July 21. In November 2025, Los Angeles County Supervisor Kathryn Barger’s office said groundbreaking was planned for spring 2026.

The project is funded with $5.5 million from the State of California and $5 million from The Walt Disney Company. The department lists fundraising for the park as complete.

The state money comes from Proposition 4 climate bond funds that the 2025 state budget allocated to the park. That budget set aside $21.7 million for two Altadena park projects: $5.5 million for Charles White Park and $16.2 million for the Eaton Canyon Natural Area and Nature Center. Assemblymember John Harabedian, D-Pasadena, secured that funding, according to the groundbreaking announcement.

“Getting this funding into the state budget was about making sure parks were part of the recovery conversation from the beginning,” Harabedian said in a statement.

Disney announced its contribution in November 2025 as part of a $15 million commitment to Los Angeles wildfire recovery. The company said volunteers from Walt Disney Imagineering had been working with county staff on site planning, landscape architecture and playground design for the park.

Under the county’s plan, the first phase includes pickleball courts with sports lighting, a terraced patio, picnic tables, a drinking fountain and accessible walkways. The second covers parkwide work, including a new playground, exercise stations, an outdoor classroom, a demonstration garden and civic art. The third includes a community building, a water play area and a new main entrance.

The Eaton Fire reached Altadena on January 7, 2025, and destroyed the park’s playground and other recreational facilities, according to the announcement.

The park was built in 1980 and is named for Charles White (1918–1979), the artist known for paintings, drawings, lithographs and murals depicting African American subjects, who lived in Altadena for the last two decades of his life. His son, artist Ian White, lives in Altadena and has taken part in planning the redesigned park, according to the announcement.

The groundbreaking ceremony is scheduled from 10 a.m. to noon today at Charles White Park, 77 Mountain View Street, Altadena. Park information: parks.lacounty.gov/charles-white-park.

“The goal was never simply to replace what was there before the fire,” Harabedian said. “It was to make sure Altadena has the public spaces it deserves as it rebuilds. Charles White Park will be part of that next chapter.”