Ernest E. Debs Regional Park, Nature reserve in northeastern Los Angeles, California, US
Ernest E. Debs Regional Park is a 282-acre open space nature reserve and regional park in the Montecito Hills of central-northeast Los Angeles, California. It holds native California walnut and interior live oak woodlands, with several miles of hiking and cycling trails. Trails lead to viewpoints over the Arroyo Seco, the San Gabriel Mountains and Downtown Los Angeles.
Los Angeles acquired the land for Rose Hill Park between 1949 and 1963, leaving it undeveloped open space. In 1968 the city leased it to Los Angeles County for twenty-five years on condition that a regional park be built. When the land returned to the city in 1994, the county had spent $900,000 on improvements and renamed the park after Ernest E. Debs, a deceased county supervisor.
The Audubon Center inside the park runs nature education programs that are open to school groups and families. Visitors can sometimes watch volunteers working on native plant restoration along the trails.
The park can be entered from Griffin Avenue or Monterey Road, and both entry points have parking areas nearby. Trails vary in length and steepness, so it helps to choose your route before you start walking.
The Audubon Center on the grounds is one of the earliest certified carbon-neutral buildings in the US, completed at a time when green architecture was still rare. The building uses rainwater collection and solar power, features that are visible during a visit to the center.
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