Nature Center to Be Named for Dana May Be Downsized

A controversial 6,500-square-foot nature center in Friendship Park, to be named after retiring Los Angeles County Supervisor Deane Dana, may be a little smaller than planned.

Newly elected county Supervisor Don Knabe, an aide to Dana for 17 years, said he is considering downsizing the $4.4-million nature center--but he hasn’t specified by how much.

That is good news for the Friends of Friendship Park, an organization formed two years ago to stop construction of a nature center. The organization of mostly Palos Verdes Peninsula residents filed a lawsuit seeking to thwart plans to build the center, which they think would be a eyesore.

A Los Angeles Superior Court judge heard their arguments in April but has not made a decision. The judge’s delay leaves the Friends of Friendship Park optimistic. “It was in our interest not to have it resolved prior to the time the new supervisor [takes] office” on Dec. 2, said the group’s attorney, Jan Chatten-Brown.

The 123-acre park straddles the border between San Pedro and Rancho Palos Verdes. The center would have an institutional kitchen, banquet room, exhibit space for Dana’s memorabilia and a 66-car parking lot.