LOS ANGELES (CNS) – Wilshire Boulevard through MacArthur Park will remain a pedestrian corridor Saturday as city officials continue hosting a two-day open streets event featuring World Cup watch parties, live entertainment and community activities.
The free event, “Park to Park 2026,” is hosted by Councilwoman Eunisses Hernandez in partnership with Metro and coincides with World Cup quarterfinal matches while promoting efforts to reconnect MacArthur Park, according to organizers.
Saturday’s activities will run from noon to 9 p.m. on Wilshire Boulevard between South Alvarado and South Hoover streets, featuring World Cup screenings at 2 p.m. and 6 p.m.
Organizers said the event will include live music, local vendors, family activities, youth soccer clinics, community and health resources, art activations and bicycle-friendly programming.
Scheduled performers include Plenazo Tribe at 12:30 p.m. and the Boogaloo Assassins at 4:30 p.m.
The event also serves as the latest milestone in the city’s “Reconnecting MacArthur Park” initiative, a proposal that could eventually lead to the closure of the stretch of Wilshire Boulevard that divides the park in two.
City officials recently announced the completion of the initiative’s first phase, which included evaluating multiple concepts for reconnecting the park and studying their impacts on traffic circulation, transit operations, safety, accessibility and neighborhood connectivity.
According to Hernandez’s office, more than 2,500 residents participated in surveys, workshops, focus groups and public meetings during the outreach process, with many calling for safer streets, improved park amenities, additional green space and better access for pedestrians, cyclists and transit riders.
The project is being developed in partnership with the Los Angeles Department of Transportation, Central City Neighborhood Partners and the Southern California Association of Governments.
Hernandez launched the initiative in 2023 with the goal of reuniting the north and south sides of MacArthur Park as a pedestrian-friendly public space.
Originally known as Westlake Park, MacArthur Park was designed as a unified public space before Wilshire Boulevard was extended through its center in 1934, creating separate northern and southern sections.
Following completion of the first phase of planning and community outreach, the project is expected to move into conceptual design and environmental review.
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