"Having the space itself and having a gated space designated for dogs is something that's rare in this part of the San Gabriel Valley," then-Mayor Sasha Renée Pérez told the Pasadena Star-News in June 2024. In the same interview she said she hoped the city would "start to break ground on this project before we get to the end of the year."
The groundbreaking hasn't happened. The project now sits with a state agency. The city expects that review to take 12 to 18 months, and its own update puts the finish somewhere between September 2027 and March 2028. Only after that does the project go back to the county for final clearance.
Until then, off-leash time for an Alhambra dog means a park in a neighboring city, under that city's rules, and on the city's own estimate that will hold for at least another year.
How the Opening Date Kept Moving
The site has stayed the same the whole time: Corto and Almansor streets, next to the Alhambra Golf Course and the YMCA. The date is what keeps changing. Here's how the city's expected timeline has shifted:
- Fall 2023. The city ran "Paw-Pup Dog Park" as a two-month temporary pilot on the site. It got more than 1,300 survey responses, and about 99% supported a permanent park.
- June 24, 2024. The City Council let staff put out a request for proposals to design the park. The mayor said she hoped to break ground by the end of 2024.
- September 2025. The project was framed as ready to build, pending agency sign-off. "We've awarded a contract to Horizon Construction, so we're ready to go," Macias told Around Alhambra, adding that the city still had "to meet a couple of conditions from LA County Public Health and CAL Recycle."
- October 2026. The city's strategic plan update says staff sent project documents to the Los Angeles County Local Enforcement Agency, which referred them to the California Department of Toxic Substances Control. The state review is expected to take 12 to 18 months, finishing between September 2027 and March 2028, and to cost $61,000.
In two years the timeline went from "before the end of 2024" to a review window that ends in March 2028. On paper, the park is about as finished as it gets without being built. The city's 2024 announcement listed synthetic turf, walking paths, a restroom, double fencing, benches, shade structures, trees and dog-play features. The mayor also described separate areas for large and small dogs. Design is no longer what stands between that plan and an open gate. Clearance is.
What Sits Under the Golf Course
The agencies involved make more sense once you know the site's history. A December 23, 2025 memo prepared for the city's planning staff says the area that's now the 18-hole Alhambra Golf Course "was formerly a landfill." It was known as the Crown City landfill. The City of Pasadena ran it until it sold the site to Alhambra, and it was used mostly for concrete, trees and other inert materials.
Per the same memo, a nine-hole course called the Almansor Golf Course was built in 1951. For years it sat next to the landfill and a dirt bike course. The memo says the area was converted to a golf course in 1981, replacing the municipal landfill.
That history matters to residents because the park was picked for its location. Pérez told the Star-News that earlier sites were too far from other amenities, hard to walk to, or too close to homes, and that neighbors had worried about noise and smells. The golf course edge avoided those problems. What it brings instead is decades of waste disposal under the surface, and the reviews are moving at the state's pace, not the city's.
Four Off-Leash Options Across City Lines
Until the state review is done, Alhambra's off-leash dog park doesn't exist inside city limits. The closest options are four designated off-leash parks run by four different agencies, and their posted rules differ in ways that matter before you load up the car.
| Park | Operator | Address | Posted hours | Rules worth knowing |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Garvey Paws Dog Park | City of Rosemead | 7933 Emerson Place, Rosemead | Daily 7 a.m. to dusk; Thursdays 9 a.m. to dusk | Separate large-dog and small-dog yards |
| South PAW-sadena Dog Park | City of South Pasadena | 650 Stoney Drive, South Pasadena | Not listed in city directory | Collar with valid license tag required; may close without notice for maintenance |
| Hermon Park in the Arroyo Seco Dog Park | City of Los Angeles Recreation and Parks | 5566 Via Marisol, Los Angeles | Sunrise to sunset daily | Dogs over four months must be vaccinated and licensed; commercial activity needs a permit |
| Alice's Dog Park at Viña Vieja Park | City of Pasadena | Viña Vieja Park, Pasadena | Not listed on rules page | Large-dog and small-dog areas, water, dog-waste stations |
Garvey Paws is the one to check if you have a small dog. Rosemead's city page describes separate yards for large and small dogs. It also lists a later opening time on Thursdays, which catches out anyone who shows up at 7 a.m. out of habit.
South PAW-sadena is described in South Pasadena's facilities directory as small and secluded, near the skate park and batting cages on Stoney Drive. It's also the strictest of the four about tags: the city's rules require a collar with a valid license tag, and the off-leash area can close without notice for maintenance.
Hermon Park in the Arroyo Seco is the only one of the four with a fixed sunrise-to-sunset schedule. Under LA Recreation and Parks rules, dogs over four months old must be vaccinated and licensed.
Alice's Dog Park comes with a Pasadena-specific condition. Pasadena's park rules name it as the off-leash area at Viña Vieja, with large and small dog areas, water and waste stations. Starting Friday, May 23, 2025, the city began enforcing leash requirements outside its designated off-leash areas. So the walk from the car to the gate is on leash, and so is a detour onto the rest of the park grounds.
Hours and maintenance closures can change at any of the four, so a quick call to the operating city before a long drive saves a wasted trip.
Closer to home, the Star-News photographed signs at Alhambra's Almansor Park in 2024 saying dogs weren't allowed in the park. That's the same park that gives its name to the street where the future dog park is planned.
Alhambra's Other Parks Are Running on City Clocks
The dog park's delay looks more unusual next to the city's other park and civic projects. Those are all still on dates the city sets, and the October 2026 update lists several moving along:
- Poppy Park. The old building has been demolished. Construction started September 27, 2026, and the city estimates completion in January 2027.
- Story Park. Irrigation and planting for the Serenity Circle project are done, and furniture and lights are still to come. An all-inclusive playground on the park's northern property is estimated for the end of 2026.
- Community Center, 612 West Shorb Street. The project reuses part of the former Shorb Medical Facility and adds new space for classrooms, meeting rooms, and fitness and recreation areas. Construction is ongoing, with tentative completion in April 2027.
- Main Street Green Street. The stormwater and streetscape project between Fremont Avenue and Hampden Terrace is under construction, with estimated completion in September 2027.
If those estimates hold, the new playground, the rebuilt Poppy Park and the community center will all open before the earliest date the state's review of the dog park is expected to finish. Then the project still has to go back to the county Local Enforcement Agency for final clearance before construction can begin.
For Alhambra dog owners, that makes 2027 a year of driving to Rosemead, South Pasadena, the Arroyo Seco or Pasadena, with a leash and a license tag ready for each city's rules.
A new park at Corto and Almansor will matter to the streets around the golf course, and Speranta Group keeps track of Alhambra's park and civic projects as their dates change. If you'd like to understand how projects like these could affect your own property, Speranta Group can walk you through it, starting with a free home valuation.
