This beloved Altadena park is reopening on Saturday after Eaton Fire damage

Four months after the Eaton Fire devastated Altadena, normalcy is still a long, long way off, but the county hopes to provide one beacon of joy and hope: As of Saturday, Loma Alta Park, at 3330 North Lincoln Avenue, will be the first public park to reopen for the Altadena community.

The park, which was dedicated back in 1954 and more recently has been the home of the Altadena Farmers’ Market, was damaged in the Eaton Fire and cut off from public access. The park restoration efforts received funding from local heavy hitters including the Los Angeles Dodgers Foundation and the Los Angeles Clippers, as well as a $2.4 million grant from the FireAid benefit concert to help rebuild and expand the playgrounds. When it reopens, it will be a “super park” with expanded and enhanced offerings, according to the Department of Parks and Recreation.

The reopening event on Saturday will feature a day of free family-friendly activities and picnicking. The celebration kicks off at 9:30am with a performance by Bob Baker Marionettes, as well as arts and crafts for kids. At 10:30am, Mickey and Minnie Mouse will be on hand to help with the ribbon-cutting for the playground, and immediately afterward is a pool party.

There will also be an open house for Alta CHAT, a new gathering area that will offer local-favorite Bevel Coffee, a refurbished gym dubbed L.A. Clippers Court, a new computer and tech room, satellite locations of the Altadena library and senior center and more.

At noon, Dodgers pitcher Evan Phillips and host Kirsten Watson will help to unveil two new Dodgers Dreamfields, where the Central Altadena Little League will be able to resume playing home games. Youth baseball, softball and basketball clinics will follow at 12:30pm. An Altadena community picnic, DJ set and concert (with yet-to-be announced talent) will round out the community-centric afternoon.

Leading up to the reopening, hundreds of volunteers showed up over the past several weekends to help plant trees, landscape and paint murals. However, the decision to restore and reopen the park was met with mixed reactions and some controversy, especially from locals who’ve been directly impacted by the fire and are still displaced from their homes.

Several people had shared their concerns on a Facebook post from County Supervisor Kathryn Barger promoting an Earth Day series of volunteer days, with many questioning the city’s priorities and the choice to reopen a park instead of helping residents directly. They also expressed serious concerns about the safety of the soil, park and surrounding area for children. It’s worth noting, though, that Director of L.A. County Parks Norma E. García-Gonzalez assured people that prior to volunteering, the park already had been “thoroughly cleaned and vacuumed of ash,” according to LAist, adding that soil testing had been done, “and the results were good.” (You can see the results from recent soil testing here.)

Going forward, the park will be open daily from 6:30am to 9pm. Consult the official park website for updated pool hours.