(Photo of historic Reagan Meadow at right used with permission, click on image to enlarge)Click Here to See Public Comments
We now have a website:
New: click here for slide show of historic photos.
Update: Malibu Times prints our side of the story. Click here
Click here for recent fire photos.
SoCal Mountain Bikers Comment on the Reagan Meadow Join the forum here
Update: Sugar Daddy Gets Cold Feet. 3 million NOT raised at fund raiser. Acorn has changed it's online article. Read it HERE
or scroll to bottom of blog for excerpt.
Update: We love Zev, 3rd District Supervisor. Go to bottom for details.
(Zev does not support a specific location for the Reagan Equestrian Campground and RV Park)
Update: The Reagan Ranch to be considered for inclusion in the California Register of Historic Places. (See bottom of the blog for details)
Choosing the historic Reagan Meadow for the site of the new RV Park/Equestrian Campground in Malibu Creek State Park is an abomination. This facility with mar the view for miles along a state designated scenic drive: Mulholland Highway. The fire pits of this facility are a threat to public safety. This will likely be where the next Corral Canyon fire begins wiping out hundreds of homes. The concentration of animal waste at this site will lead to more fish kills in nearby historic Malibou Lake. Instead of subsidizing the life styles of a few well heeled special interest groups at a time when the parks can barely afford to remain open, I believe the state should consider restricting horses from some public trails to protect the Malibu Creek watershed. The location of this RV park contradicts the Park's own general plan by reducing the narrow wildlife corridor between Paramount Ranch and Malibu Creek State Park. This RV Park will destroy a historic site that will soon be placed on the National and California registries of historic places. The sale of this ranch was credited by Reagan himself for allowing him to run for office. (click for reference) Reagan himself supported the preservation of the Reagan Meadow. (click here for reference)
There are insufficient water resources to establish the shade trees depicted in this plan. The result will be a barren half paved field full of unsightly buildings, recreational vehicles, and dumpsters storing horse manure. Even if there are a few trees in a hundred years the scenic view will be ruined and the historic Reagan Meadow now enjoyed by all will be gone forever.
This facility is located within sight of the ridge line where the Corral Canyon fire started. It is immediately upwind of hundreds of homes in the densely treed historic community of Malibou Lake. The prevailing Santa Anna winds blowing from the fire pits at this facility pose a grave danger to hundreds of homes.
This facility is literally a few hundred yards uphill from Malibou Lake which feeds into Malibu Creek. Both these bodies of water already have water quality problems. We already dump enough bacteria on the beaches in Malibu to force closures. We should not encourage a large number of big animals to roam the hillsides defecating and urinating next to Malibu Creek.
Private R & R zoned properties are available for this land use. Express your opposition to this location by writing District Superintendent of the California State Parks Ron Schafer rscha@parks.ca.gov Email a copy of your opposition to Ruth Gerson at mailto:ruthgerson@aol.com (She is the primary backer and fund raiser for this proposal)
CONTACT US
Home Page Link For the Save the Reagan Meadow Foundation
Hey Ted,
ReplyDeleteI saw your letter to the editor of the Acorn and then I looked around and found out more info about the project. I also found your blog. In concept it looks like a decent proposal on the surface. But as you look into the concept or the idea it has major flaws. The eco system in the entire park can’t support the equestrian activity. Currently a horse owner could park their trailer and ride in the area, do you ever see any trailers parked there? No almost never, so support from other than just a few is small. Also last time I looked the state of California was 24 BILLION in the red and the state parks were taking a major hit as well. Something around 14 million from their budget this year and 21 million in 2010. Ca Park Budgets
So basically there is no money what so ever to build or support the project. The Malibu creek watershed is way too fragile to have a” Camp Ground”. On the Malibu canyon side of the park there is a camp ground that is historically not at capacity, recently there has been an increase of transient campers due to the poor economy. That camp ground also allows campers, trailers and horse trailers, yet it isn’t utilized. So the “we need the capacity” argument is almost a non factor.
So basically, the need, environmental impact of the park, and any money what so ever to even pursue the project, makes it little more than a pipe dream of a select few. Ruth Gerson is spearheading the idea, but in all honesty, without sounding crass, she will never see any portion of the project ever initiated. The state is not going to be in the black anytime soon and the parks will be the very last place Sacramento send’s any new funds too. It could reasonably be decades before the parks get “new money”. Gerson states she wants to raise 2.5 million to fund the project. That little camp ground would cost 3 or 4 times that amount. The state needs 30 million to take down a dam, if the state parks had new cash for projects they have a long list of others that would far ahead of this one. An environmental impact study starts at close to a million dollars and without any trouble they would need two. There goes the budget.
Its good that you are aware and fighting the good fight, but in my honest opinion this project, in a different time, say 30 years ago could have been a real possibility, but now, NO WAY. No need, no money, and the impact to that fragile watershed doesn’t allow the project go past the spit ball stage. It would also be interesting to see what the turn out was at the 60 buck a person fundraiser.
It’s good to see you’re around and hope all is well.
Joe Dallacqua
Joe,
ReplyDeleteGreat Comment! Stop by sometime. I've misplaced your email. You're right about fragile. I assume you heard about the fish kill. I can't believe they are holding fundraisers for this when parks are threatened with closures.
Burned Out Homeowners Sue State Over Fire Losses
ReplyDeleteThis summer the Superior Court handed down a ruling in the case of Avedon v State of
California that should be of interest to homeowners in fire-prone areas of the Santa Monica
Mountains.
On the night of last November 24, with a strong Santa Ana wind blowing, two young couples
from Culver City started a small bonfire in a cave that was a popular party spot just over the
ridge south of Malibou Lake. Three men from Los Angeles came along and drove them out of
the cave and heaped more wood on the fire. The fire soon spread to the dry chaparral and burned
LVHF Sept 2009 Newsletter4.doc www.lvhf.org Page 7 of 14
almost 5,000 acres of Corral and Solstice Canyons downwind in Malibu, destroying or damaging
55 homes in the process.
Because the cave was just inside Malibu Creek State Park, the owners of the homes filed suit
against the State for maintaining an alleged “dangerous condition” of public property and an
alleged “nuisance”. The homeowners did not win their suit. The Court held that the cave was a
natural feature not created by the State and was not dangerous when used with normal care.
The Court also noted that Government Code 831.2 protects the State Of California from any
liability caused by a “natural condition of public property” — including the “natural condition”
of seasonally dry chaparral. The State is also not liable if a “dangerous condition” on public
property is caused by the action of a third party rather than by the State itself.
In other words, the Court found that the existence of a paved public road into natural parkland
and the normal use of that park by the public did not in and of itself create a “dangerous
condition” under the law. Instead, the legal responsibility for starting the Corral Canyon Fire
and destroying the 55 homes, lay not with the State, or with the legitimate users of state
parkland, but, rather, with the partygoers who started the illegal fire in the first place.
Unfortunately for those who lost their homes to this monumental act of thoughtlessness, it’s
likely to be quite a spell before the young men who started the Corral Canyon Fire will be free to
earn any money to compensate the victims of their carelessness.
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteTed,
ReplyDeleteComments? As in an email? Is there a place to vote?
I think the RV Park/Equestrian Campground is a horrible idea. MCSP is an incredible place where Southern Californians can get back to what is truly special about the west coast. God forbid such a development. Shame on those who support this kind of thoughtless "progress." From closing state parks to ruining them via commercial interests, we all need to pause and take a little cultural and personal inventory.
Here's to keeping Malibu Creek State Park protected from ANY such development!
Matt Copeland
Hi Ted,
ReplyDeleteThanks for calling this issue to my attention. I was not aware of the impending change.
I don't have time to delve into all the politics and issues that may be surrounding this case, but I think that any intrusion upon wild areas should be made slowly and with great caution.
As a California plein air painter, I observe whenever I paint out that the landscape that we revere as a source of creative inspiration is constantly being modified by human demands. Vast meadows studded with aged oak trees disappear, never to return. I grew up in the San Fernando Valley when it was a refuge of horse ranches and orange groves. I roamed the hills of Porter Ranch before they were subdivided and paved. Perhaps these early experiences led to my passion to preserve the landscape in artistic form.
The area around Malibu Creek State Park remains pristine and should not be developed in a hasty way that causes a visual blight. Using fire pits in such a fragile area is fraught with opportunities for disaster. Today, I live in La Canada Flintridge, flash point of the Station Fire, and I know only too well how quickly a spark can turn into devastation, potentially scarring the landscape for decades. It would be horrifying to think of that happening to the area around Malibu Creek through human carelessness. And we know that no matter how well intentioned, mistakes do happen and people don't always heed guidelines for fire safety.
May the beautiful open spaces treasured by California painters and their patrons remain in their natural state for years to come.
Karen Winters
Member, Allied Artists of the Santa Monica Mountains and Seashore
Thanks Ted. Count me in. I will reply tomorrow when I have time to give it thought.
ReplyDeleteBrian
Sent from my BlackBerry® smartphone with SprintSpeed
I am a Malibou Lake resident vacationing at the moment out of the country. I had the opportunity to check email from my hotel, and felt the need to write immediately to express my concerns over the proposed equestrian center at Reagan Ranch for the following reasons:
ReplyDelete1 - We at Malibou Lake are continually vigilant about fire danger, and often need to evaluate whether to evacuate or stay and watch the helicopters refill their water tanks from our lake so that fires can be fought in our surrounds. More people in the area, especially non-residents, and especially young people who like to party and have fun, means more likelihood of carelessness vis-a-vis fire danger. We are already a high fire risk zone, and do not need additional visitors in the area engaging in high risk behavior right in our own backyards. One need only to look at the history of fires over the past few years to see that hikers and others who venture into the Malibu mountains have little respect for observing safety requirements and fire regulations.
2 - An equestrian center would create more pedestrian traffic...and thus make what is now a relatively quiet and undisturbed area much more exposed to public access. That translates into more of everything: more trash, more noise, more horseflies.
3 - We like to hike in that area because it is one of the few remaining natural places where we can go for complete solitude. That is why many of us moved to our beloved and secluded Malibou Lake area. We would lose that opportunity.
4 - Haphazard picnicking and drinking will create more trash for the area. We already have regular or quarterly clean-up days in which Malibou Lake residents volunteer to pick up trash created mostly by passers-by who have little appreciation for maintaining the beauty of our neighborhood. We have a passion for the health and beauty of our community that would not be shared with others who are visiting for just an hour or a weekend.
5 - Vehicular traffic will increase with the addition of an equestrian center and exacerbate the difficulties that homeowners already have in maintaining a relatively quiet and safe neighborhood for residents
For the above mentioned reasons, I respectfully request that this initiative be stopped at once.
KH
From The ACORN
ReplyDeleteMounting opposition
Colleen Holmes, president of Cornell Preservation Organization, said that while she supports the campground, she hopes it will be scaled back. She believes 75 campsites are too many and hopes the plan for individual fire pits is nixed in favor of one large one.
Holmes fears the campground might lead to more wildfires.
“God knows, we’re dry,” Holmes said.
And after the campground is built, opponents fear the increased animal waste will find its way into Malibu Creek
An Internet blog, www.savethemeadow .blogspot.com, features letters from people who are against the campground.
“This facility will mar the view for miles along a designated scenic highway,” one person wrote. “The fire pits of this facility are also a threat to public safety and will likely be the place the next Corral Canyon fire begins, wiping out hundreds of homes. The concentration of animal waste at this site will pollute an already polluted Malibu Creek watershed.”
Schafer, the state park superintendent, carries a different opinion.
“We will keep bad things from running into the creek,” he said.
The impact of horse waste will be minimized by installing landscape elements on the grounds designed to remove silt and pollutants from water runoff.
Los Angeles County Supervisor Zev Yaroslavsky said horses are part of the culture of the Santa Monica Mountains and that the project is compatible with the environment.
“I am confident that it will be done right,” said Yaroslavsky, who pledged to try to make the campground “happen sooner rather than later.”
Ted,
ReplyDeleteI will do my part - and get my opposition contacts rolling. Loved the website.
Thanks for all that you are doing!
Dayle
Ted,
ReplyDeleteThanks for heading this up. I dread the idea of this thing actually seeing the light of day.
I have to ask, as you seem to be the knowledgeable one on this, how is it that the state can't pay its bills, threatens to close parks and this is still on the priority list for them? I find this baffling. Between that and all the concern I hear about the Malibu Creek watershed, how the hell does this project even come to be at all?
Thanks again for all your effort. If I can help in some way, let me know. For now, I am emailing people trying to get the word out.
Be Well,
Doug Way(Bill and Marilyn Way's son)
Thanks Ted, I am also emailing Zev, who from what I can see, seems to be supporting this thing?
ReplyDeleteDoug
Talked to Tom McGuirk today a member of the Corral Canyon Fire Safety Alliance who lives in Corral Canyon. He couldn't believe the Reagan campground was even being conisidered. Apparently, the park service recently announced adding even more campsites in Malibu Creek State Park near Corral Canyon over the strong objections of local residents and the LA County Fire Dept. He's forwarding our information to all his neighbors and Alliance members. He's pretty sure they (and LACFD) will strongly back our opposition.
ReplyDeleteMr. Fulton,
ReplyDeleteThank you for your email. The Senator is aware of the proposed campground and fundraising efforts and will work with State Parks to ensure that the campground meets the requirements of California’s environmental laws and regulations.
Thank you,
Callie
Ted,
ReplyDeleteI'm also involved with the Campaign To Save Topanga State Park and we've got a Facebook cause page "Save Topanga State Park." Sometime in the next week or so I'd like to link your website.
Paul
So much for screening the viewshed of Scenic Mulholland Highway. For Fire saftey you have to clear the brush not add native vegetation as required to protect the view along Mulholland. They also killed the fires in the Corral Canyon camping plan....things are looking up for protecting the historic Reagan Meadow. It's going to be expensive to enforce all these rules and patrol all these campgrounds.
ReplyDeleteSee excerpt below from the Malibu Surfside News
Wednesday, September 30, 2009
Conservancy to Outline Plans for Public Camping at Five Malibu Parkland Sites
BY SUZANNE GULDIMANN
The plan also states, “Development, use restrictions, and brush maintenance for all campsites shall be carried out in accordance with the Fire Protection and Emergency Evacuation Plan,” and that “the only cooking apparatus permitted shall consist of self-contained propane stoves. No kerosene or white gas lanterns shall be permitted.”
Campers would also be required “to utilize designated cook stations (hospitality stations) provided at each approved campsite, which shall be designed of nonflammable materials and capable of being fully enclosed,” while “cold-camping apparatus such as flameless cookstoves and lanterns are preferred.”
The plan goes on to state, “Prospective campers shall be informed of the no campfire/cold camp policy upon reserving and/or registering for use of camp facilities and shall be put on notice that unauthorized use of fire-related camping and cooking apparatus specifically prohibited by the no campfire/cold camp policy will be cause for confiscation of such devices and/or expulsion of visitors from camp facilities. Signs shall be posted and camp areas will be routinely patrolled to enforce the no campfire/cold camp policy.”
What happened to brush clearance for fire saftey?
ReplyDeleteNow we are adding vegetation to protect the watershed?
From the Acorn, Oct 1st:
Schafer, the state park superintendent, carries a different opinion.
“We will keep bad things from running into the creek,” he said.
The impact of horse waste will be minimized by installing landscape elements on the grounds designed to remove silt and pollutants from water runoff.
The following is hearsay forwarded to me by some one I do not know and cannot verify: "why this game is really being played, Ruth Gerson backer of the Reagan Campground owns the Calimigos Ranch a multi million dollar facility. Business associates of hers wish to profit from the construction contracts and concession of operating the RREC. So Ruth gets the park to give her the land for free, she aligns herself with a nonprofit corporation to collect donations to build it (since the park is broke, if the park was not broke you skip this step). Then the park awards a sweet heart deal of a contract to her business associates to construct and operate the facility for the next fifty years. Just like the Malibu Pier has concessionaires running restaurants. So this may well be about money and not trail access to the park. But I have no way to verify any of this (except that Ruth does in fact appear to own Calimigos) Why does the park support this? They will get a rent check from the facility and they need the money, their park attendance numbers go up because of the facility and they get a bigger slice of the state bugdet in future state budget requests because their attendance numbers are higher. Everybody wins except the stupid, poor people of Los Angeles who never saw this coming. Again this is all hearsay. No disrespect intended. Power of the internet though, tell your friends, if enough people are made aware of this it won't happen. I have a friend who knows Margo Feuer, who is old and doesn't have a computer but she is one of the one's credited with founding the Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area. If she disaproves of the RREC it will be politically impossible to build.
ReplyDeleteGiven the information I received in the previous post I must report that the Acorn mislabeled my blog in their online article possibly intentionally so that the link doesn't work online. In their online article the link appears as http://savethemeadow .blogspot.com/
ReplyDeleteNote the space between the w and the period making the link not work.
Last Week I wrote a letter to the editor of The Acorn listing the problems with the Reagan Equestrian Campground and RV Park. The Acorn labeled the editorial High Tech Schools. I have put a link at the bottom of the last post in this blog so that you may see it. If they disable it online I will post a scan of a paper copy on this blog. I find it unlikely that both these errors are coincidence and can only conclude that the Acorn is working in concert with backers of the Reagan Equestrian Campground and RV Park to silence free speech. I do not reach this conclusion lightly but judge for your self.
ReplyDeletePerhaps I have been too hard on Zev. (Also, on a personal note, no disrespect intended in this blog, it's just that this issue is not about getting RREC out of our backyard. It's about saving the open space of the historic Reagan Meadow and things get emotional. I have learned that the 3rd District Supervisor supports the concept of horse camping in the Santa Monica Mountains but no specific location to achieve that objective as the county has no finalized plans on the matter. Go Zev, We love Zev now!
ReplyDeleteThe following was posted on: The Conejo Post
ReplyDeletereference:
http://www.conejopost.com/?p=1112#more-1112
Some Questions about the Proposed RV/Equestrian area at Malibu Creek State Park
October 1st, 2009 · 1 Comment · California State Government
I just read the 10-03 Acorn’s article about the proposed 7-acre RV/Equestrian Campground at Malibu Creek State Park. It interests me that the article says the California Dept. of Parks and Recreation worked with the group, Equestrian Trails, Inc and raised approximately $3 million to construct the project.
Questions: Isn’t it premature to raise money for a project in a state park, that has not yet been brought before the public? Is this Reagan Meadow project subject to the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA), and is an Environmental Impact needed (EIR)? Would this campground attract a lot more horses and riders to the park and would that increase manure along the trails and possibly into Malibu Creek? What about fire danger with open fire pits planned? And, it was mentioned that it could be used as an evanuation site for horses during wildfires. Is that wise, with the whole area being so fire-prone itself?
I don’t know whether I am for or against this horse and RV campground at Malibu Creek State Park, but I do know that I would like to have more facts. To read The Acorn article by Stephanie Bertholdo, go to: http://www.theacorn.com/news/2009-10-01/Front_Page/Equestrian_center_in_for_a_ride.html
Posted by Janna Orkney
Tags: Malibu Creek State Park·proposed RV/Equestrian Campground·Reagan Meadow
One Comment so far ↓
Nan Kane // Oct 2, 2009 at 5:18 pm
I agree with Janna. And then some. Santa Ana fire season now lasts from June through October. Year round camping in the driest areas of Southern California will give us year ’round fire potential. No one can seriously support that, can they? The pollution to the watershed is also critical. The rural environment in Southern California is far more vulnerable than some people acknowlege. I’m very surprised that the Parks system would announce this plan, move on with fundraising efforts without greater concern for the irreparable damage to our environment that this proposal can cause.
I hope you will contact
District Superintendent of the California State Parks Ron Schafer rscha@parks.ca.gov , Zev Yaroslavsky and Senator Fran Pavley to protest this development.
You can also get updates from the Save the Meadow blogspot: http://savethemeadow.blogspot.com/
Ted -
ReplyDeleteThis is a tough call. The equestrian community has been working on this
for years. The SMMNRA is for everyone after all. But 30 campsite and 60
corrals seems overly excessive. I share the concerns over horse trailer
congestion at Cornell and Mulholland, open fires, ugly corrals and
dangerous manure contamination and runoff.
If all these issues cannot be addressed to the satisfaction of those who
live in the area, permits should not be granted. And even if they are
addressed on paper, permits must be conditional, provide a failsafe
monitoring plan with a reserve fund for violations, with a condition to
revoke permits if violated.
The community needs to put pressure on State Parks to make sure the
equestrians don't bully their way, as they have done in the past on the
North Area Plan for instance.
Toby
We now have a website, leave your comments there
ReplyDeleteUse the contact us button
http://www.savethemeadow.com