There is a proposal to rename Glen Alla Park to Bill Rosendahl Del Rey park. At the park there is new universal playground.
Bill Rosendahl, the late City Councilman for CD 11, may have a park named after him. At a Recreation and Park (RAP) Facility and Repair Maintenance Commission Task Force meeting on April 1, commissioners listened as Glen Alla Park was proposed for renaming.
Located in West Los Angeles, the park is about 4.8 acres, with tennis and basketball courts, a children’s play area, a restroom building, a dog park and a picnic area.
The park was named administratively for its geographical location, at the intersection of Glencoe Avenue and Alla Road. The park had never gone through a community-driven naming process.
Recreation and Parks received a motion from the Del Rey Neighborhood Council that supported the renaming of Glen Alla Park to “Del Rey Park” with the potential addition of a memorium name so long as the Del Rey name is included.
Representatives from RAP gave a presentation at the Culver-Slauson/Glen Alla Park Advisory Board meeting on March 17 to gauge community support for the proposed name and to discuss other potential names.
One of the suggestions that came up during that meeting was to name it after Rosendahl, who served on the City Council from 2005 to 2013. Other suggested names included Del Rey Park, Del Rey Community Park, Bill Rosendahl Del Rey Park, and Bill Rosendahl Del Rey Community Park.
Rec and Parks Planning Maintenance and Construction Superintendent Darryl Ford said, “The item came up during the RAP meeting and at the meeting there was no consensus of the name.
“Staff feels that some additional community outreach does need to be done before identifying an official name to move to the board for your consideration,” Ford said.
The dog park at Glen Alla Park opened in July 2020.
Recreation and Park Board Commissioner Joseph Halper noted that the honor would be well-deserved and said, “I knew Bill Rosendahl. He was my councilman and a close friend. I’m so delighted to see this recognition on the part of the community for the park.”
Halper added, “I would ask that this be put on a full agenda for the full commission for approval.”
Rosendahl was the City’s first openly LGBTQ+ Councilmember and a vocal proponent for the community.
Former L.A. City Councilman Bill Rosendahl
Born on May 15, 1945, he grew up in Englewood, New Jersey with his German Catholic immigrant parents and seven siblings. As a teen, he became involved in the Civil Rights Movement and later was an organizer of Robert F. Kennedy’s presidential primary campaign.
In the 1970s, Rosendahl moved with his family to California and eventually settled in Venice Beach. He worked as an executive at several cable TV companies. Along with his managerial duties, he hosted a public affairs show that featured interviews with local and national politicians before running for office in 2005.
He also used the platform of his cable television news show to educate and inform the public about important, often unheralded causes that were near to his heart: the fight against HIV/AIDS, LGBT issues, the homeless and other disenfranchised communities. As a Councilman, Rosendahl prominently opposed the overdevelopment of Council District 11 and advocated for more public transportation to ease congested Westside roadways.
He also oversaw the successful interment of the remains of Gabrielino-Tongva tribespeople found during the Playa Vista reconstruction project.
Rosendahl was diagnosed with cancer in 2012 and passed away in 2016 in his Mar Vista home.
The photo of Glen Alla Park (below) was posted on Twitter on April 5, 2021. This park is considered being renamed in honor of Bill Rosendahl:
Alla Dog Park Open but WTF. Anyone know why the homeless are being allowed to setup shelter anywhere they like with no objections from the city/police?
Each tennis court is filled with junk, homeless, drunks, drugs, trash, etc. Looks like one man was assembling a bike with various parts like it was a stolen bike junk yard. Another man was drunk and was throwing objects like chairs over the fence onto the walkway.
I saw many tents set up permanently along the sidewalks as well. What is being done about this? Parks should be safe for young children and families.