Harvard-Westlake, a private preparatory school for grades 7-12 located in Studio City, is in the final stages of obtaining city approval for a controversial campus expansion proposal.
The proposal, formally called Harvard-Westlake River Park, involves a complete transformation of the 17-acre property currently home to the Weddington Golf & Tennis Club. It would replace existing facilities with new athletics facilities and a public park, serving both students and members of the community.
“I really think it’s a win-win,” said Terry Barnum, director of athletics at Harvard-Westlake.
Plans for River Park include two athletic fields with bleacher seating, a running track, a gymnasium complex, a swimming pool, eight tennis courts, 6 acres of public park, a walking path and an underground parking lot. It also involves the relandscaping of native trees and numerous other go-green initiatives to honor the open-air nature of the land.
And while the school intends to keep its established athletic facilities –the school currently has one field, a gym and a pool – the major desire for expansion stems from the athletic department’s current state of congestion.
With a student body population of approximately 1,600, it’s no surprise the current layout doesn’t allow for much flexibility. Barnum says the system the school uses now requires a rotation, forcing teams to practice late into the night.
Barnum said if approved, the proposal would open the door for Harvard-Westlake to create new teams, such as girls lacrosse and girls flag football, both of which the school currently doesn’t have space for.
“Expanding opportunities for all students, but in particular female athletes, is something that not only is important to me personally, but is one of the things that as a department at Harvard-Westlake we’re looking to do … and River Park is going to allow us to do that,” Barnum said.
Most opposition to the project comes from neighbors, who are citing environmental, noise and traffic concerns.
“This is a project that is, quite honestly, the least intrusive to the neighborhood,” Stuart Waldman, president of the Valley Industry and Commerce Association, said. Waldman said this project is relatively low-impact, and other potential usages could’ve been much worse, such as building commercial or multifamily properties.
As the Weddington golf course currently operates, members pay a monthly fee to use the facilities. River Park would increase public access as several acres of land would be designated open space for public use.
In order to ensure public access and engagement is met, Harvard-Westlake has established a multitude of community-wide partnerships. These include Friends of the Los Angeles River, the Fernandeño Tataviam Band of Mission Indians, Special Olympics of Southern California, and Angel City Sports.
“It is the school’s commitment to share this remarkable facility with schoolchildren from across L.A., community groups and local residents,” Richard Commons, president of Harvard-Westlake, said in a statement.
Harvard-Westlake first purchased the land in 2017 for $40 million, but promised to continue to operate it as a golf course and tennis facility while the proposal went through the city planning commission process. “That was our commitment to the community,” Barnum said.
However, as that commission process is currently underway, these next few weeks will be very telling as to what the future state of the park will look like.
There are two more public hearing on the horizon – although the dates have not yet been announced – as well as a few city council meetings. If approved, Harvard-Westlake would next proceed with the process of obtaining building permits in hopes of seeing the development come to fruition.