Exposition Park is a in the south region of

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, largest city in the U.S. state, state of California and the List of United States cities by population, sec ...

, California, in the Exposition Park neighborhood. Established in 1872 as an agricultural fairground, the park includes the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum,

Banc of California Stadium Banc of California Stadium is a soccer-specific stadium in the Exposition Park neighborhood of Los Angeles, California. It is the home of Major League Soccer's Los Angeles FC and the National Women's Soccer League's Angel City FC. Opened on ...

, the

California Science Center The California Science Center (sometimes spelled California ScienCenter) is a state agency and museum located in Exposition Park, Los Angeles, next to the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County and the University of Southern California. ...

, the

Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County The Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County is the largest natural and historical museum in the western United States. Its collections include nearly 35 million specimens and artifacts and cover 4.5 billion years of history. This large col ...

, and the

California African American Museum The California African American Museum (CAAM) is a museum located in Exposition Park, Los Angeles, California, United States. The museum focuses on enrichment and education on the cultural heritage and history of African Americans with a focus o ...

. The

Lucas Museum of Narrative Art The Lucas Museum of Narrative Art is a museum founded by filmmaker George Lucas and his wife, businesswoman Mellody Hobson. Once completed, the museum will hold all forms of visual storytelling, including painting, photography, sculpture, illust ...

is under construction. Bounded by Exposition Boulevard to the north, South

Figueroa Street Figueroa Street is a major north-south street in Los Angeles County, California, spanning from the Los Angeles neighborhood of Wilmington north to Eagle Rock. A short, unconnected continuation of Figueroa Street runs just south of Marengo Driv ...

to the east, Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard to the south and

Vermont Avenue Vermont Avenue is one of the longest running north–south streets in City of Los Angeles and Los Angeles County, California. With a length of , is the third longest of the north–south thoroughfares in the region. For most of its length be ...

to the west, it is directly south of the main campus of the

University of Southern California , mottoeng = "Let whoever earns the palm bear it" , religious_affiliation = Nonsectarian—historically Methodist , established = , accreditation = WSCUC , type = Private research university , academic_affiliations = , endowment = $8.1 ...

. The park is public open space, managed by the Sixth District Agricultural Association.

Features

Exposition Park houses the following: * LA84 Foundation/John C. Argue Swim Stadium *

** Home of Los Angeles FC *

(under construction) * Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum ** Home of

USC Trojans football The USC Trojans football program represents University of Southern California in the sport of American football. The Trojans compete in the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) and the Pac-12 ...

** IMAX Theatre at California Science Center ** Space Shuttle ''Endeavour'' *

Exposition Park Rose Garden The Exposition Park Rose Garden is a historic sunken garden located in Exposition Park in Los Angeles, California. It has been called "one of the city's best-kept secrets". It was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1991. Estab ...

* Concrete hand and footprints signed by Ed Begley Jr. of '' St. Elsewhere'' and other actors from medical TV shows such as ''

Ben Casey ''Ben Casey'' is an American medical drama series that aired on ABC from 1961 to 1966. The show was known for its opening titles, which consisted of a hand drawing the symbols "♂, ♀, ✳, †, ∞" on a chalkboard, as cast member Sam Jaff ...

'' * EXPO Center (includes the LA84 Foundation/John C. Argue Swim Stadium) and the Soboroff Sports Field (soccer). Originally managed in 2006 by Bentley Management Group, the Soboroff Sports Field was demolished in 2018 to allow construction of the Lucas Museum of Narrative Art. * Science Center School and Amgen Center for Science Learning (formerly California National Guard Armory) Dana R

The cultural facilities mentioned above are operated by both the state and Los Angeles County.

Former venues

Los Angeles Memorial Sports Arena The Los Angeles Memorial Sports Arena was a multi-purpose arena at Exposition Park, in the University Park neighborhood of Los Angeles. It was located next to the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum and just south of the campus of the University of ...

History

The site served as an agricultural fairground from 1872 to 1910 (hence its original name, "Agricultural Park"). In 1880, John Edward, Ozro W. Childs, and former

California Governor The governor of California is the head of government of the U.S. state of California. The governor is the commander-in-chief of the California National Guard and the California State Guard. Established in the Constitution of California, the g ...

John G. Downey persuaded the State of California to purchase in Los Angeles to foster agriculture in the Southland. Farmers sold their harvest and arces on the grounds, while horses, dogs, and even camels competed on a racetrack where a

rose garden A rose garden or rosarium is a garden or park, often open to the public, used to present and grow various types of garden roses, and sometimes rose species. Most often it is a section of a larger garden. Designs vary tremendously and roses m ...

now sits and blooms. In 1909, a group of civic-minded individuals led by former Pasadena Mayor

Horace Dobbins Horace M. Dobbins (August 29, 1868 – September 21, 1962) was a Philadelphia-born businessman and politician who served as Mayor of Pasadena, California, United States in 1900-1901. Horace Dobbins was known for building the California Cyclewa ...

set about reforming the park, removing the racetrack and other activities and replacing them with gardens and museums. At the

2028 Summer Olympics The 2028 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXXIV Olympiad, also known as Los Angeles 2028 or LA28) is an upcoming international multi-sport event scheduled to take place from July 14 to July 30, 2028, in and around Los Angeles, Cali ...

, the Coliseum will host

Athletics Athletics may refer to: Sports * Sport of athletics, a collection of sporting events that involve competitive running, jumping, throwing, and walking ** Track and field, a sub-category of the above sport * Athletics (physical culture), competi ...

as well as the main closing ceremony. The Banc of California Stadium will be one of the soccer venues.

Public transportation

Along the northern edge of the park, the

Metro E Line The Metro E Line is a planned bus rapid transit route in Minneapolis, St. Paul, and Edina. The route will operate from Southdale Center Transit Center in Edina, Minnesota to Westgate station in St. Paul. Running mostly on France Avenue, Hennepi ...

light rail line serves the park with its Expo Park/USC Station. On the northeast, (Flower Street and 37th Street), the Metro J Line bus rapid transit serves Exposition Park & USC at its

37th Street/USC 37th Street/USC station is a busway station located in Los Angeles, California. It is situated between the LATTC/Ortho Institute and Slauson stations on the J Line, a bus rapid transit route which runs between El Monte, Downtown Los Angel ...

Station on the

Harbor Transitway The Harbor Transitway (also known as the I-110 Express Lanes) is a shared-use express bus corridor (known as a busway or transitway) and high occupancy toll (HOT) lanes running in the median of Interstate 110 (Harbor Freeway) between Downtown ...

. The J Line station is located on the freeway median level of the 1-110 freeway.

Department of Public Safety

The Exposition Park Department of Public Safety provides law enforcement and security services to the Park. DPS officers are California

peace officer A law enforcement officer (LEO), or peace officer in North American English, is a public-sector employee whose duties primarily involve the enforcement of laws. The phrase can include campaign disclosure specialists, local police officers, prose ...

s sworn under section 830.7 of the California Penal Code and have peace officer powers of arrest while on duty. Since 2014, the DPS has been managed under contract by the

California Highway Patrol The California Highway Patrol (CHP) is a state law enforcement agency of the U.S. state of California. The CHP has primary patrol jurisdiction over all California highways and roads and streets outside city limits, and can exercise law enforcem ...

, who provide management, leadership, training, and policy development for the DPS. The Chief of the Department is CHP Captain David Dashiell.

References

External links

Official website
— ''Exposition Park''.
University Park Family
— ''an online newspaper and social network focused on the neighborhoods around USC and Exposition Park, and the surrounding areas''.
Leimert Park Beat
— ''a collaborative online community focused nearby Leimert Park: "The Soul of Los Angeles and the African American cultural center of the city"''. {{coord, 34.014659, -118.287177, display=t, type:landmark Parks in Los Angeles Exposition Park (Los Angeles neighborhood) Landmarks in Los Angeles Tourist attractions in Los Angeles Museums in Los Angeles Neighborhoods in Los Angeles Olympic Parks California Natural Resources Agency South Los Angeles Venues of the 1932 Summer Olympics Venues of the 1984 Summer Olympics Venues of the 2028 Summer Olympics