Esperanza Elementary School in Westlake recently celebrated the completion of a significant campus overhaul, transforming what was once mostly asphalt into a much greener environment. The project removed approximately 30,000 square feet of pavement and introduced 35 new trees, boosting the school's green space from a meager 9% to a more substantial 37%.
Students like fourth-grader Landon Gonzalez, a member of the student council, have quickly taken to the new features. Gonzalez, who ran a 5K race last year and plans to do so again this spring, noted, "Now we have this bright blue track to get in shape." He added, "Actually, all the students are healthier because we’ve been running on the track." He also described the simple joy of his peers: "The kids of Esperanza love rolling down the hills. Think about it. We now have fields on Esperanza campus. Friends are sitting in the shade of sycamore trees, they are chitchatting about things."
Beyond the track, the Westlake school now boasts a new lawn for recreation and learning, designed with native plants and trees to offer much-needed shade and help reduce heat on the campus. The project also integrated stormwater capture features and upgraded basketball and handball courts with solar-reflective surfaces. Outdoor classroom areas have become popular with younger students for talking and games, while others have been spotted observing figeater beetles and butterflies visiting the flowering trees.
Principal Brad Rumble observed a noticeable change in the school's atmosphere. "There is something calming for all of us — students and staff — about being surrounded by so much nature on campus," Rumble said.
Liliana Guzman, another fourth-grader and student council member, recalled watching the lengthy construction process. "We couldn’t imagine Esperanza being a better place than it already was. But guess what? It turned into a masterpiece," she reflected, highlighting the new grass and shaded spots where asphalt once dominated. Malxux Gaspar, who teaches a Mayan culture class at Esperanza, also witnessed the transformation, acknowledging that while dust and closed windows were an issue during the work, she now enjoys walking through the new green spaces with students during breaks. "The kids, they come down, they chitchat, they rest and it’s just beautiful," Gaspar said.
The $4.5-million project was a joint effort between the Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) and the Los Angeles Neighborhood Land Trust, receiving funding from Cal Fire and the California Natural Resources Agency. The transformation, which took six years to complete, recently culminated in a ribbon-cutting ceremony.
This project at Esperanza Elementary serves as a practical example for LAUSD's broader ambition to achieve 30% green space across all district schools by 2035. According to LAUSD, similar greening projects are either planned or underway at several other schools across Westlake, Koreatown, and Pico Union. These efforts include replacing pavement with trees and landscaping, creating outdoor learning areas, and improving playgrounds at campuses such as Commonwealth Elementary, Hobart Early Education Center, Los Angeles Elementary, Hoover Elementary, Plasencia Elementary, Cochran Middle School, MacArthur Park Elementary for the Visual and Performing Arts, and 10th Street Elementary.
Tori Kjer, executive director of the Los Angeles Neighborhood Land Trust, pointed to Esperanza as a model for future transformations, stating, "We are pointing the direction towards changing the model for school campuses across LAUSD and other districts." Kjer emphasized the straightforward need: "It’s too hot for asphalt. Every child in LAUSD deserves access to grass to run on, trees to shade them, birds and butterflies to watch and wonder at." As for the immediate future, Landon Gonzalez already has plans, proposing to the cheering crowd, "Movie night right here on the lawn under the stars. How about that?"