Griffith Observatory

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Seen from a nearby (trail to Mt. Hollywood) hillside is the front of the planetarium, the lawn and parking lot, and road leading down from the Griffith Observatory. Los Feliz, East Hollywood, Hollywood and greater Los Angeles is visible in the distance. In 1896, Griffith J. Griffith donated over 3000 acres of Rancho Los Felis to the City of Los Angeles to create a public park in his name. He then offered the city $100,000 for an observatory to be built on the top of Mount Hollywood in 1912. Designed by architects John C. Austin and Frederick M. Ashley, Griffith Observatory (2800 East Observatory Road) was completed in 1935. Griffith Observatory was declared Los Angeles Historic-Cultural Monument 168 in 1976. The Department of Recreation and Parks hired project architect Hardy Holzman Pfeiffer Associates (now Pfeiffer Partners, Inc.) and associate architect Levin & Associates Architects to design a major renovation and expansion project for the observatory, which was completed in 2006.