The fences on Whitsett Avenue have been up for two years, and they are coming down soon. At the Studio City Neighborhood Council's October 28 meeting, a Harvard-Westlake representative said River Park was about 99% complete. He said public amenities were expected to open around March 1, 2027, with community open houses planned. The school's own FAQ lists the hours. Those hours show who gets the old Weddington Golf & Tennis property and when. The park side will be open to anyone, every day, from 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. The sports side will be open in the parts of the day when Harvard-Westlake isn't using it.
Where the project stands this month
The opening was supposed to be this fall. In August, the student newspaper The Harvard-Westlake Chronicle reported that the date had moved to early 2027 while the school waited on its certificate of occupancy and final city inspections. Head of Upper School Beth Slattery told the Chronicle the holdup was in the permitting.
"Other than the permitting process, which isn't something we can control, things are on track."
The construction work matches that. The school's October 30 construction update lists metal bleachers going up on Field A and artificial turf being laid. Field and tennis-court lights were tested on October 19. The same update said the permitted work along Whitsett should be done by Saturday, October 31. After that, Valley Spring Lane and Whitsett would go back to normal traffic, and the construction fencing would move back to the edge of the property. That work also moved the Whitsett sidewalk farther onto school property. The school said the project would widen the public right of way, add landscaping and plant native oaks.
The part that's free every day
This is the part that matters most to the people who live closest. Harvard-Westlake's River Park FAQ says the six-acre park and clubhouse will be open to the public every day of the year, 7 a.m. to 9 p.m., at no charge. You'll be able to get in two ways:
- The main pedestrian and visitor entrance off Whitsett Avenue
- The Zev Yaroslavsky LA River Greenway, which runs along the river on the property's edge
The city's approval documents describe 5.4 acres of publicly accessible landscaped open space, with pathways that connect to the Greenway. The school describes walking and jogging paths, plazas, wooded areas, seating, the putting green and the clubhouse café. That café is Café Southwest, the clubhouse café from the Weddington years. The FAQ says it will come back in the remodeled clubhouse with a new kitchen and more seating.
The open park is the part of the site that stays outside the school's schedule. School President Rick Commons told the Chronicle the campus has "an interior area" behind "tasteful, not-too-dramatic fences and walls" for student activities, and the public won't have access to it. So the paths and lawns are the shared space, and the school's private area is fenced off inside them.
The part that runs on the school day
The athletic facilities work differently. Here is how the FAQ breaks down public access.
| Facility | Who can use it | When |
|---|---|---|
| Park, paths, clubhouse | Anyone, free | Daily, 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. |
| Eight tennis courts | Community members, when the school isn't using them | Generally 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. and 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. |
| Pool | Individual lap swimmers | Weekdays, 7 to 9 a.m., September through May |
| Field B and the track | Individuals | Weekdays, 7 a.m. to noon, September through May |
| Fields, pool, gym | Community groups, when the school isn't using them | No set public window |
The tennis courts close to the public from 3 to 6 p.m., which is after-school practice time. Harvard-Westlake's boys tennis team is getting its first home courts. Program head Bo Hardt told the Chronicle the team is "ranked third nationally." Lap swim and individual track time run on weekday mornings from September through May, which lines up with the academic year. The Chronicle also reported that the school's water polo and swim programs will now practice across two campuses. That gives a good idea of who will be in the pool in the afternoons.
For a Studio City resident, the best times for court or lane time are early mornings and evenings. The 3 to 6 p.m. stretch belongs to the school.
The city conditions behind those hours
The schedule comes from the conditions attached to the project's approval. The Los Angeles City Council unanimously approved River Park on November 14, 2023, as LAist reported. The approval documents in the city clerk's file set out the rules that shape a visit:
- Lights. Outdoor lighting has to be off by 8 p.m., except the tennis-court lights, which go off at 9 p.m. The school's FAQ adds that outdoor lighting is capped at 600 hours a year.
- Reservations, no fee. The city's response to the project appeals describes a reservation system for public use and says there is no fee for public use and access.
- Parking on site. Parking is capped at 403 spaces, 386 underground and 17 at surface level, and visitors are required to park on the property, not on the residential streets around it.
- Public events. City staff described up to five public special events per calendar year.
The 8 p.m. field-light cutoff is the same one the school said it used during October's light tests. Neighbors on Valley Spring can expect the field lights off by 8 p.m. and the tennis lights off by 9 p.m. from opening night on.
What the new hours replaced
The trade is clearest when you compare it with what was there before. City records describe the old Weddington site as a nine-hole, par-three golf course with a driving range, a putting green and 16 tennis courts. According to a city historic-cultural report, the golf course was built in 1955, and the McCallister family ran it from 1958 to 2008. In 2023, LAist reported a round on the nine-hole course cost $12 on weekdays and $15 on weekends.
The new campus keeps the clubhouse and putting green. Fields, a track, a gym and a pool replace the course and range, and eight tennis courts replace the old sixteen. Under the old setup, a round of golf cost money and anyone could book it. Under the new one, the paths and lawns are free every day, and courts and lanes are open in the hours outside the school schedule. Half as many tennis courts, shared with a top-ranked high school team, means fewer open courts at any given hour than the old club had.
The Greenway at the park's back gate
The park's second entrance opens onto a stretch of river where more changes are already in the works. The Mountains Recreation and Conservation Authority describes the Zev Yaroslavsky L.A. River Greenway Trail as a half-mile walking path on the north side of the river.
At the same October 28 meeting, the Neighborhood Council's draft minutes show two motions passing. One supports restoring, beautifying and connecting the Greenway, along with possibly naming the stretch between Whitsett and Laurel Canyon after Melanie Winter. The other seeks right-of-entry so volunteers can clean up and remove invasive species there. The same minutes report that the City Council approved the Riverwalk project on October 21, 2026. Its negotiated conditions include about $375,000 for Segment 8 Greenway improvements and $300,000 for Recreation and Parks Greenway work. The minutes say Riverwalk construction could start in 2027 and finish around 2033, depending on approvals or litigation. The council's October recap also mentions exploring new parkland parcels along Ventura Boulevard.
The River Park opening date is only an estimate. The free paths, the 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. gates and the court windows are written into the school's public commitments and the city's conditions, and they will apply on the first day the public is let in.
If you live near Whitsett or Valley Spring and want to know how a free six-acre park on your block affects what your home is worth, Emily Rose and the team at NewMarket Homes LA can walk you through it. Request a Free Home Valuation, and we'll include what we're seeing around River Park as it gets ready to open.
