New project to expand the Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area

Written by

LA gets a bad rap for not having enough parks and open space. But a campaign is underway to protect more of the open space we do have. The National Park Service is considering expanding the Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area to include land in what’s called the Rim of the Valley Corridor–stretching from the Conejo and Simi Valleys to the La Crescenta Valley.

The first in a series of public meetings hosted by the National Park Service about the proposal is being held in La Crescenta tonight.

One of the issues that’s still up in the air is how much land to protect? Proposals range from 173 thousand acres to more than 300 thousand. LA Congressman Adam Schiff–who’s been a driving force behind this–says that what he’s hearing from the public so far is that bigger is better.

“This is some of the most rare ecosystem in the world,” says Schiff, “we have mountain lions like P-22 that can come down from 50 to 100 miles away and make it all the way to Griffith Park. We also have bears, we have bobcats and countless species that make this their home. But that won’t be the case if we cut these wildlife quarters to pieces.”

Schiff says that the proposal has gotten almost unanimous support and that it’s easier to expand it now, than to try to come back later and do it.

Listen below:

The meeting starts tonight at 7 at the La Crescenta Public Library.  You can get more info about it and the proposal at the National Park Service’s website.