Landmark re-opens at Dunsmore Park

Residents, local dignitaries and Glendale Parks and Recreation department staff gathered at Dunsmore Park last Saturday morning to celebrate the re-opening of a La Crescenta landmark, the Dunsmore Park Community Center.

The center was closed for about one year during an extensive $980,000 remodel of the 3,000-square-foot facility.

The project, which was paid for by the city of Glendale’s capital improvement project fund, was much more extensive than originally planned and involved replacing floors and roof, taking out a drop-down ceiling and restoring the original, taller ceilings, and removing mold, lead and asbestos. But that wasn’t the worst part, said Adrine Golnazarian, project manager for the Parks and Recreation department.

“The mold and everything — we knew about; and we tented for termites, but when we got into the project we discovered that about 40 feet on the side of the building was on rotted wood siding, so we had to pour a whole new concrete foundation,” Golnazarian said, adding, “Everyone used to wonder why the building was shifting and starting to lean; well, we found out why.”

New lighting and air conditioning also was added, which makes it almost like a new building, only it retains the historical elements, which made it such a treasure, she said.

Historical Society of the Crescenta Valley President Mike Lawler was on hand to receive one of several plaques awarded to folks who helped bring about and see through the project. Lawler said the center is historically significant because it’s one of only two remaining structures that were the area’s renowned sanitariums. The other remaining facility is the Rockhaven property on Honolulu Avenue.

The community center structure was originally developed in the 1930s as a tubercular sanitarium. In 1946, the property was purchased by Milton Hofert, who was a bit of an eccentric, Lawler said.

“Hofert spent the 11 years he owned [the property] building these incredible rock walls, it’s just gorgeous,” Lawler said, adding that after Hofert built the walls, he just walked away from the project. “It’s hard to understand how he could do that,” Lawler added.

In 1957, the property was purchased by the city of Glendale for $103,000.

Three years later, the baseball fields were added, as were playground equipment, picnic facilities, pedestrian walkways, parking areas and landscaping.

Pat Huber, a longtime La Crescenta resident, attended the ribbon cutting event and ceremony on Saturday because the building is so important to the community, she said.

Huber was a Girl Scout leader in the 1960s and held many of her Scout meetings at the facility. “I think it’s great that the city has restored the building so nicely,” she said. “We’re very fortunate to have such a wonderful property in our community.”