Show Your Support
Please show your support by signing this petition to urge UCLA Chancellor Gene Block to Save the Hannah Carter Japanese Garden!
Dear Chancellor Gene Block & the Regents of the University of California,

Please stop the sale of the Hannah Carter Japanese Garden! This 1-1/2 acre garden in Bel Air, located only one mile from campus, is considered one of the most notable Japanese Gardens in the United States and is a unique academic and cultural resource for UCLA and the public. Constructed between 1959 and 1961, the Hannah Carter Japanese Garden is among the largest and most significant residential Japanese-style gardens built in the United States in the immediate post-World War II period.


We urge you to work with the community and organizations that have joined the Coalition to help Save the Hannah Carter Japanese Garden including The Garden Conservancy, Los Angeles Conservancy, California Preservation Foundation, The California Garden and Landscape History Society, The Cultural Landscape Foundation, and the National Trust for Historic Preservation to help save this remarkable cultural resource.




Please also consider sending an email or personalized letter to the Chancellor and the Regents directly.


To help frame your letter, you can download a PDF or Word template for letters to the
UC Regents.

Click here to download template for a letter to the UCLA Chancellor.

Or simply review talking points to help create your own letter.

Please send a copy of your correspondence to
info@HannahCarterJapaneseGarden.com.

“This garden meant a great deal to our mother and Ed, and their decision to donate the garden to UCLA in 1964 was one that was made to preserve it forever and with the understanding that this priceless resource could never be sold and always be open to the public.”

Jim Caldwell, son of Hannah Carter

 

“The sale of these gardens would deprive the UCLA campus and our community of a unique educational resource…I do not support the sale of this cultural resource and, should it be sold, I will oppose any effort to develop the property or change its use to anything other than the beautiful cultural landmark it is today.”

Los Angeles City Councilmember Paul Koretz

 

“The Hannah Carter Japanese Garden at UCLA represents an important chapter in the 135-year history of Japanese gardens—and Asian culture—in North America and in Southern California. I urge those in charge to better study the Carter Garden, how it may better serve the UCLA campus community as well as the citizens of Southern California.”

Dr. Kendall H. Brown, Professor of Asian Art,

Department of Art, California State University, Long Beach

 

“In addition to its value as an irreplaceable art form, the Hannah Carter Japanese Garden also stands strong as a vital symbol of the strength of our multi-cultural society.  At a time when many Japanese gardens in North America are struggling to rebuild after neglect and misplaced judgment, the thoughtful preservation of the Hannah Carter Japanese Garden would serve as a model of the kind of vision and community spirit for which UCLA is known internationally.”

Diana L. Larowe, Executive Director, North American Japanese Garden Association

 

“Our company is a family business that was started under its present name after World War II and our family returned from an internment camp in Arizona. We are Japanese-Americans, and many of the original plants used in this garden came from our nursery…This garden truly represents the interest at the time to build cultural bridges between Japan, America and the Japanese Americans.”

Mary Ishihara Swanton, San Gabriel Nursery & Florist

 

“The Hannah Carter Japanese Garden has been both educational and inspirational to me and many others, which is exactly what Chancellor Young anticipated when he accepted the gift of the garden for UCLA…”

Pamela Palmer ASLA, President ARTECHO Architecture and Landscape Architecture


“This garden, a gift to the university from former Chair of the Regents of the University of California, Edward W. Carter, and his wife Hannah, has been a cherished asset of the community since 1965 and is visited regularly by students of garden history, landscape architects, and garden lovers from around the world.”

Antonia F. Adezio, President of the Garden Conservancy

 

“The garden has always seemed to me the best example of a Japanese-style garden that we have in Southern California…

 Judy M. Horton, President of

the California Garden and Landscape History Society

 

“The Hannah Carter garden is an authentic work of art, a unique resource, and a treasure beloved for decades by the members of our community. We are transported to Kyoto, appreciative of a 1000 year cultural tradition, and can admire the changes of the gardens with the seasons.”

 R. Michael Rich, Research Astronomer at UCLA, resident of Bel-Air

 

 

The following organizations and elected officials have shown their support to Save the Hannah Carter Japanese Garden. Sign the petition today and join them to help support our efforts to save this cultural treasure.

 

Los Angeles City Councilman Paul Koretz

The Garden Conservancy

Los Angeles Conservancy

California Preservation Foundation

California Garden and Landscape History Society

The Cultural Landscape Foundation

National Trust for Historic Preservation

North American Japanese Garden Association

American Public Gardens Association

American Society of Landscape Architects

(Partial List)