Exposition Park gets $352M for six acres of new green space and underground parking

With the 2024 Paris Olympics now in the rear view mirror, the State of California is preparing to spend big on upgrades to the home so several venues in the 2028 Los Angeles games: Exposition Park.

Earlier this month, Exposition Park announced the approval of $351.5 million in the state budget for the park in fiscal year 2024-2025. That money which will be used for the construction of nearly six acres of new park space and underground parking garage. The open space will span the southeast corner of the park at Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard and Figueroa Street, near BMO Stadium and the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum.

“California is committed to bringing more green spaces to more people than ever before – especially in places that have been historically left behind,” said California Governor Gavin Newsom in a news release. "When the world visits Los Angeles for the Olympics, they will see firsthand our vision for Outdoors for All realized with projects like this at Exposition Park. Not only are we replacing asphalt with greenery, we’re creating jobs and lifting communities."

The surrounding neighborhood currently has less than one acre of green space for every 1,000 residents, well below the city's median figure of 3.3 acres per 1,000 residents.

The state has already started soliciting requests for qualifications for design-build teams for the project. More information can be found at https://caleprocure.ca.gov/.

New park space along Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard was envisioned by the Exposition Park Master Plan, approved in October 2020, which was developed over four years by Torti-Gallas + Partners, AHBE | MIG, KPFF, Consensus, Sapphos, and Biederman Redevelopment Ventures. The City of Los Angeles has also planned investments on corridors surrounding the park, in an effort to ease access to the park for cyclists and pedestrians.

Ironically, the addition of new green space is a departure from the changes the state-owned, 152-acre park has seen over the past decade, such as the construction of LAFC's BMO Stadium, the Lucas Museum of Narrative Art, and the permanent home of the Space Shuttle Endeavor.

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• Exposition Park Master Plan (Urbanize LA)

• Exposition Park Announces Funding of $352 Million in Governor’s Budget for Key Infrastructure Project Ahead of Los Angeles 2028 Olympic and Paralympic Games (Exposition Park, h/t DTLA Weekly)