It was once the nation’s largest trash heap. Now it’ll be an inspirational L.A. County park.

AUGUST 18, 2022—Andrew Campa, Los Angeles Times

Standing atop Nike Hill, Victor Moreno brushed sweat from his brow and dust from his eyes.

The three-mile run on a sun-drenched afternoon had been a challenge, but the payoff was worth it: From the 1,160-foot-high spot in the Puente Hills, he was treated to a glorious 360-degree vista. Los Angeles’ skyscrapers jutting into the sky to the west, the grandeur of the San Gabriel Mountains to the north. To the east was the seemingly endless Inland Empire, with Orange County’s suburbs spread to the south.

But what really mattered to Moreno, 32, was the chance to introduce his 12-year-old daughter, Janae — who was on her first climb — to some things many city dwellers never see: darting lizards, hopping rabbits and diving birds of prey. For years the partially paved trail has been a refuge for Moreno, a place to unwind and, more recently, unmask. The Hacienda Heights resident said he’s looking forward to his daughter making memories there.

Much of the natural space surrounding the trail for decades was part of the nation’s largest trash heap — the Puente Hills Landfill, which held one-third of Los Angeles County’s garbage. Now it is set to become the first regional park the county has created in 30 years.

“It’s hard to find this view anywhere in Los Angeles,” Moreno said. “We’re lucky to have this and to pass this on to the next generation.”

The L.A. County Board of Supervisors recently approved $28.25 million to begin work on planning and construction of the Puente Hills Regional Park, carved from 142 acres of the former 1,356-acre landfill.

“It has been six years since the Puente Hills Landfill Park Master Plan was completed, and nine years since the landfill closed. Our communities have waited far too long for this park,” Supervisor Hilda Solis, who grew up in La Puente and represents the area where the park will be located, said after the funding motion passed.

Phase I construction will include an interim bike skills course, children’s play zone, picnic area, stair climbs, open space and a parking lot. A grassland section will host performances, kite flying, concerts and other events.

“We see this park as a restoration of land that was unusable and unsuitable for the community,” said Norma Edith García-González, director of the Los Angeles County Department of Parks and Recreation.

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