Culver City Stairs

Baldwin Hills Scenic Overlook is a 57-acre (0.23 km2) California State Park is located just southwest of downtown Culver City. To some Los Angeles area residents, the site is more commonly known as the Culver City Stairs. This outdoor staircase is designed into the trails leading up to a view of the greater Los Angeles area.

Culver City Stairs
Stairway
Staircase, looking south/up (2013)
Staircase, looking south/up (2013)
DesignSafdie Rabines Architects
Steps282
Height300 ft (91 m)[1]
SurfaceConcrete[2]
LocationCulver City
Address6300 Hetzler Road, 90232
Culver City Stairs is located in the Los Angeles metropolitan area
Culver City Stairs
Culver City Stairs
Location in Los Angeles
Coordinates: 34°1′3″N 118°23′10″W

The park is being restored as a habitat with native California plants and is “home to a variety of snakes, small mammals, and birds.”[3]

In addition to the stairs, there is a switchback trail that crosses the stair landings at several points.[3] The paved road (for car drivers and bicyclists) up the visitor center parking lot has a parallel pedestrian stair case for most of the route.

The scenic overlook park is part of the larger Park to Playa Trail that connects the Baldwin Hills parklands to the beach.[4]

History

The land was “once the location of an oil field, with a drinking water reservoir at the top.”[3] The state of California purchased the property in 2000, then closed it to the public in the middle of 2006 to construct the trails (which include the staircase) and visitor center.[5] The visitor center was created by the San Diego-based Safdie Rabines Architects,[6] whose goal in designing the overlook was to “encompass non-traditional park demographics and environments.” The duo's work has graced Southern California educational and civic projects like UC San Diego’s Eleanor Roosevelt College, the student center at UCLA, and the Otay Mesa Library. The park reopened in April 2009 with the 282[7] unique, irregular steps made from recycled concrete found on the park.[8]

Details
Scaled chart showing steps measured in inches.

The tallest single step measures approximately 20 inches (51 cm) (located adjacent to the only intermediate landing without a curved bench for resting). The average step height is 10.5 inches (27 cm), and the shortest is 3.5 inches (8.9 cm). An information sign posted at the trail entrance near the intersection of Jefferson Blvd. and Hetzler Rd. states that the staircase is 715 feet (218 m). In the center of the landing between the 247th and 248th steps is a bronze marker stating the elevation, surrounded by two semi-circular engravings:

Step by step, your climb expands
the cityscape a thousandfold,
framing it ever more broadly with hillside and sky.

375
FEET ABOVE
SEA LEVEL

Concrete = cement + sand + aggregate + water
= sidewalks + freeways + buildings + waterways +
What would L.A. be without concrete?

Races

Beginning in 2014, Aztlan Athletics has held annual races up the stairs.[9] The current record from this officially timed race was set in 2015 by Leony Mendez at 2:09.[10]

Kelvin Martinez of Los Angeles, Ca. since 2018 has consistently been the leading presence at the staircase going up and down without stopping 10 to 13 times under 1:10:00 time frame.[11][12]

  • Visitor’s center with bathrooms
    Visitor’s center with bathrooms
  • Park to Playa Trail gate
    Park to Playa Trail gate
  • Overlook deck and view
    Overlook deck and view

See also

References
  1. "Baldwin Hills Scenic Overlook Trail in Los Angeles". Retrieved February 18, 2022.
  2. Wilson, Nick (July 25, 2011). "A Park a Day: Baldwin Hills Scenic Overlook, Culver City". LAist. Archived from the original on March 5, 2017. Retrieved December 2, 2016.
  3. Fleming, Charles (2015). "39". Secret Walks: A Walking Guide to the Hidden Trails of Los Angeles. Solana Beach, Calif.: Santa Monica Press. pp. 210–213. ISBN 978-1-59580-082-4.
  4. "Trails - Department of Parks and Recreation". trails.lacounty.gov. Retrieved June 28, 2022.
  5. "Architecture review: What should a big-city park look like?". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved April 23, 2009.
  6. History of Baldwin Hills Scenic Overlook
  7. "Park Info, California State Parks". Baldwin Hills Scenic Overlook Staff. Retrieved March 24, 2013.
  8. "Safdie Rabines Architects tread lightly with a master plan for a new state park above the Los Angeles suburbs". The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. Retrieved October 13, 2009.
  9. "Conquer The Overlook Stair Climb, Overall Finish List, September 06, 2014" (PDF). Retrieved August 29, 2015.
  10. "Conquer the Overlook Stair Climb, Overall Finish List, August 22, 2015". Retrieved August 29, 2015.
  11. "Leader of the staircase, August 08, 2021". Retrieved September 29, 2021.
  12. "The Overlook Stair Climb September 22, 2021". Retrieved August 29, 2015.
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