Santa Monica Mountains Park

As the author of the 1978 legislation that created the Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area, I take issue with Bill Boyarsky’s discouraging assessment of the efforts to save this beautiful area (“Watching the Mountains Go Downhill,” Metro, Feb. 2).

It’s true that some very valuable pieces of land in the Santa Monicas have been lost to development, or are about to be. However, of the 150,000 acres within the boundaries of the recreation area, roughly 60,000 are already in public ownership--thanks mainly to the state’s foresight in establishing four large parks in the mountains many years ago. The 16,000 acres of park land Boyarsky mentioned refer only to land which the National Park Service itself has acquired.

That the Park Service has been able to acquire even that much acreage is a testament to park supporters’ ability to make progress under adverse circumstances. Not only did we have to contend with skyrocketing land prices and competition from developers, but also the opposition of President Reagan and his appointees.

Fortunately, we were able to persuade Congress to continue appropriating at least modest amounts of funds for the Santa Monicas anyway, which enabled the National Park Service to buy some key properties. And, two years ago, the park got a big boost from Prop. 70, which provided $30 million for state acquisitions in the mountains. Now that we have a President who supports the Santa Monica Mountains park, the prospects for its continued expansion are more encouraging.

We shall keep working to obtain federal funds for land acquisition but, to ensure that the Park Service has the opportunity to buy land before it is developed, local officials will need to make appropriate land-use decisions--for example, refraining from increasing zoning densities, which make the land more attractive to develop.

REP. ANTHONY C.

BEILENSON

D-Los Angeles