By SARAH SHMERLING | Editor-in-Chief
After five years on the city of Los Angeles Board of Recreation and Park Commissioners—and a decades-long career in public service—Highlands resident Joe Halper has retired.
“I want to first thank Joe for his dedication to the department and to acknowledge him for championing the department’s goal of increasing accessibility to parks and other recreational open space to all residents throughout the city,” Board President Sylvia Patsaouras shared during an April 6 meeting of the commissioners.
In a letter addressed to Mayor Karen Bass dated February 12, Halper announced his upcoming resignation, effective April 16, at the age of 93, citing that with the “normal diminishments of aging,” he believed “this extraordinary organization deserves to have its leadership to be at the apex of their powers.”
The Board is comprised of five commissioners who serve on a voluntary basis, with each member appointed by the mayor of LA, subject to approval from City Council, for a five-year term. The Board is charged with adopting the annual department budget as well as creating staffing positions to allow RAP to carry out “the powers and duties imposed by the City Charter.”
“Commissioner Halper is somebody who really understood the park system—that people enjoy parks on a very tangible, personal level,” Board Vice President Lynn Alvarez said during the meeting, “and brought his passion and heart and commitment to every single meeting to every single item.”
The commissioners attends two regular meetings each month on the first and third Thursday, which recently returned to in-person after meeting virtually through the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as special meetings on an as-needed basis. Halper was also a member of one of the Board’s two committees: The Commission Task Force on Facility Repair and Maintenance.
Over the course of his career, Halper dedicated more than 40 years to public service, including as head of the New York City Recreation Department. In Los Angeles, Halper previously served on the West Los Angeles Planning Commission for nearly seven years.
When he first was sworn into the RAP Board of Commissioners at the age of 88, Halper shared that his first task was to visit as many parks as possible to understand the needs and issues, noting that some need money, others water and others visitors.
Halper was an adjunct faculty member at Columbia and New York universities, according to his biography, instructing undergraduates and graduates in park and recreation administration. He co-authored two text books, as well as a number of articles in professional journals in the field.
Halper received international recognition when receiving a Knighthood, the Royal Order of the North Star for civic merit from Sweden. He was also recognized by the LA County Board of Supervisors for “saving millions of dollars and preserving service levels after the passage of Proposition 13 tax loss.”
For the 1984 LA Olympic Games, Halper was designated the LA County representative by the Board of Supervisors. He was also appointed as a Consultant to the President’s Council on Physical Fitness and Sports, serving through the administration of five presidents.
“The Los Angeles City Department of Recreation and Parks along with the Mayor hereby extend their sincere appreciation and gratitude to Joseph Halper for his five years of dedicated service to the City of Los Angeles, and express their commendations for his vision, leadership and genuine commitment to the Department of Recreation and Parks,” read a citation from the city addressed to Halper. “Here we wish him continued health, happiness and success upon the occasion of his retirement.”
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