Take me out to the old ball park …

Robin Murez has finished the pocket park she dubbed “ball park” at the corner of South Venice Blvd, Mildred, and Ocean Ave. This little parklette became a 12-year obsession for the Murez Magic. It was a dangerous intersection that had become blind because of an illegal enclosure of City property.

“We went through a legal battle and a huge encampment,” wrote Robin. “Even the naysayers applauded this Venice Ball Park. It has all come together recently because of help from Taylor Bazley, Venice representative from the council office. He helped unsnarl the bureaucracy, get the palm trees trimmed and finally get the project done.

“It’s a contemporary ‘Ball Park’ with drought tolerant, no-mow grassy mounds, decomposed granite pathways, tall trimmed palm trees and giant mosaic balls, to climb or sit upon.

“The ‘Ball Park’also pays homage to the Venice Tigers, a professional minor league baseball team. Their ballpark, for a couple of years during prohibition, was just up the road on South Venice Blvd at Abbot Kinney Blvd.

“The imagery on the mosaic balls are favorite Venice things: Italian Architecture — the faces of the capitals on the columns along Windward; a camel — because we once had live camel rides in Venice; sea kelp and a sea anemone — as we have today.”