Bids Will Be Sought for Camp for Disabled

National Park Service officials planning a mountain nature center for handicapped campers near Westlake Village said Thursday that they have decided to open the to bidders.

The move means a nonprofit Santa Fe Springs-based group, which has proposed the 160-acre campground on parkland at Mulholland Highway and Decker Road, will have to compete to be the concessionaire that builds and operates it, officials said.

Park administrators and members of the Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area Advisory Committee in April endorsed the proposal of the nonprofit group, called Total Access Camping. But National Park Service lawyers later recommended the open-bid process, said Bill Farrand, chief of planning for the recreation area.

Burt Wallrich, founder of Total Access Camping, said he hopes to use private donations and grants to build a 75-bed campground with special sidewalks and ramps for wheelchair-bound visitors.

“I wouldn’t say that a profit-making group has any edge over a nonprofit group in a case like this,” Farrand said. “The return to the park service is not the deciding factor. We’ll judge proposals on the basis of their ability to meet requirements we set forth.”

Wallrich could not be reached for comment Thursday. But Farrand said Wallrich has told parks officials that the open bidding does not bother his group.

“Burt said whether or not his organization gets the bid isn’t important. He just wants the campground built,” Farrand said.