 |
 |
 |
                 |
|
HILLTOP PARK Hilltop Park, 2351 Dawson, 3.2 acres, elevation 335'. Hilltop Park has unique artwork and spectacular 360° views. There are two covered picnic shelters available to rent, two uncovered picnic tables, and two bbqs. Weddings are allowed by PERMIT ONLY, dawn to dusk, with a maximum attendance of 75. Application must be completed at least ten business days prior to event date. Restrooms on site are available 7 a.m. – 9 p.m. Contact the Community Services Department (526) 989-7330 for more information. History of Hilltop Park Dedicated: February 6, 1999 What was once a hill devoid of vegetation but full of oil wells is now the home of Signal Hill’s premier Hilltop Park. This 3.2-acre park has magnificent views of the Pacific coastline from Huntington Beach, across Long Beach to the Palos Verdes Peninsula. Catalina Island is visible many days of the year, as well as downtown Los Angeles, the Hollywood sign and the Santa Monica Mountains. Designed by Jon Cicchetti, landscape architect of Long Beach, the park incorporates the early history of the hill through the craftsman style architecture and stone walls of past hilltop mansions in the construction of the viewing wall, picnic shelters and restroom building. The Park was funded by Developer Impact Fees at a cost of $414,000 and completes another part of the City’s Park Master Plan designed by Signal Hill residents. The park sits atop a 1.2 million-gallon water reservoir. Water Reservoir A long-term goal became a reality with the dedication of the Hilltop Reservoir. The highest of three reservoirs serving the City of Signal Hill, this reservoir and pump station is beneath Hilltop Park. The 1.2 million-gallon tank is 100 feet in diameter and has a water depth of 21.5 feet. The best way to invision the size of the tank is to walk from semi-circular wall to wall at the viewing area of the park – that is roughly the diameter of the reservoir. The reservoir and pump station design began in 1995 by Robert Bein, William Frost and Associates of Irvine, and was built by Schuler Engineering Corporation of Upland beginning in February of 1997. The Hilltop Reservoir is one of two new reservoirs built to serve the residents of Signal Hill. The other reservoir is 1.3 million gallons and is located on Temple Avenue. Both of these water reservoirs were funded through a $10 million bond approved in November of 1996. Costs for constructing the two reservoir projects total $6.5 million (Hilltop $2.6 and Temple $3.9) with remaining costs for pipeline construction, engineering and design costs. With the completion of these reservoirs the City of Signal Hill has provided water storage capacity to handle not only its current residents and businesses but also future growth. Art Piece The team of Jon Cicchetti, T.W. Weir and Craig Stone created the City’s second public art piece commissioned in 1998. The art piece is comprised of several components which symbolize aspects of Signal Hill’s past and present. Three freestanding walls with windows frame three of the most spectacular views from the park – Huntington Beach surf, downtown Long Beach and the Queen Mary, and downtown Los Angeles – creating an “outdoor gallery”. Informational panels located on each side of the windows explain what the viewer is seeing. The center mist tower sends a cloud-like water mist each hour, which is reminiscent of the Indian smoke signals believed to have been used to communicate with tribes on Palos Verdes and Catalina. The mist tower is surrounded by a rock which appears to have crashed and embedded itself into the earth creating a ripple in the ground as shown by an etched treatment to the concrete, grass squiggles and other border treatments to give the impression of motion. The tower emanating from within the rock also symbolizes the historical oil gushing from the earth with the top translating into water from the underground reservoir bursting forth with mist. Millennial Brick Project is through the Friends of Signal Hill Library.    |
|
 |
