SANTA MONICA MOUNTAINS : $33 Million Sought for New Parkland
Rep. Anthony C. Beilenson (D-Los Angeles) on Tuesday asked a congressional panel for a record $33 million next year for new parkland for the Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area.
Testifying before the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Interior, Beilenson said the National Park Service would use the money for high-priority acquisitions such as the Soka University site in Calabasas and the Paramount Ranch tract in Agoura.
Soka, which wants to build a major university, has said its land is not for sale. The Paramount tract is held by the Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy, but could be lost to foreclosure unless a $17.6-million note is paid.
The Bush Administration has recommended an acquisition budget in the Santa Monica Mountains of $14 million for fiscal 1993.
Beilenson also sought at least a $200,000 increase in the area’s operating budget, which he said “has not kept pace with its growth in responsibilities as more land is acquired.”
Extending from Griffith Park in Los Angeles to Point Mugu State Park in Ventura County, the area is a mosaic of mountain parks and private holdings. The Park Service has acquired about 17,500 acres, halfway to a goal of 35,000 acres in federal ownership.
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