A group has already filed one lawsuit against the conservancy over the parks plan, and may file one against the plan itself if it is approved.
By Jonathan Friedman / Assistant Editor
This Wednesday (Nov. 29) will most likely mark an end to the first part of a possible trilogy involving the proposal by the Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy to enhance three of its Malibu parks. The SMMC board will vote on the plan at a meeting in Beverly Hills. If the board approves the plan, which most observers expect will happen, the California Coastal Commission will review and vote on it sometime next year. The commission is the final legislative body from which the plan needs approval, but passage most likely will be followed by a lawsuit by local homeowners, and the ultimate say will come from the California courts.
The proposed plan calls for the enhancement of the conservancy-owned parkland at Ramirez Canyon, Escondido Canyon and Corral Canyon. It also includes the establishment of overnight camping grounds and the development of a trails system that would include the parks at Zuma/Trancas Canyon and Solstice Canyon.
According to the conservancy, the purpose of the plan, which is formally known as the Malibu Parks Public Access Enhancement Plan-Public Works Plan, is to increase the amount of public access to the parks. The plan calls for a sophisticated trail system, which would allow for biking and hiking through the parks. Along those trails would be grounds for overnight camping. A set number of camping sites are not specified.
According to the plan, flat terrain would be selected for the campsites to limit the amount of grading that would be needed. A biologist would determine what areas would be best for the sites.
Campfires would be prohibited in the parks, although some have questioned how that would be enforced, and whether people would actually be resistant to starting fires at night.
There would be daily programs at Ramirez Canyon Park “designed to provide access and recreation opportunities primarily for disadvantaged youths, physically challenged visitors, and seniors” seven days a week from 8 a.m. to dusk. Additionally, the park would be used for 16 special events per year, with no more than one per week, from March through October; 12 tours and/or small gatherings per months with a 60-person maximum and year-round outreach programs of up to 40 people.
Driving to Ramirez Canyon Park would be prohibited. Shuttles would take visitors to the park, with the SMMC saying there would be a maximum of 40 roundtrips per day.
Residents of the park areas have criticized the plan for what they say are the fire risks that it presents. They say Malibu is fire-prone and it is difficult for firefighters and other emergency responders to access the areas. But conservancy officials and the plan’s supporters say fire-risk issues have been addressed. Some people have accused the Malibu residents opposed to the plan of not wanting an increased amount of low-income children and people of color coming to the parks.
So far, a group consisting of Malibu residents and anti-tax organizations has already filed one lawsuit against the conservancy over the parks plan. They say the conservancy is illegally using Proposition 50 bond money for the project. Steve Amerikaner, a lawyer representing the Ramirez Canyon property owners, has also alluded to the possibility of a second lawsuit being filed against the plan itself if it were to be approved. He has challenged it on several grounds, including that it violates the Malibu Local Coastal Program (for several reasons, including that the Malibu city government has no say over the plan’s approval) and that the conservancy has not given enough time and opportunities for public input.
The Ramirez Canyon property owners also have filed a lawsuit against the conservancy over its use of the Ramirez Canyon property, donated in 1993 by Barbra Streisand, for its offices because it is zoned for open space. A Simi Valley judge is expected to hear that case next week.
The SMMC board meeting takes place at the Sooky Goldman Nature Center in Beverly Hills’ Franklin Canyon Park, located at 2600 Franklin Canyon Drive. The meeting begins at 7:30 p.m.