SIMI VALLEY : Parks District to Hold Protest Rally

Rancho Simi Recreation and Park District officials will hold a public rally Monday to protest a state budget proposal that could take away more than a third of the district’s annual revenues.

Parks officials said they are inviting sports organizations, equestrian groups and other residents who depend on park district programs.

The rally is scheduled to begin at 5:30 p.m. in the Rancho Simi Community Park amphitheater at Erringer Road and Los Angeles Avenue.

The state proposal to grab property taxes that now go to park districts threatens to take as much as $2.5 million from the Simi Valley park district, or 37% of its annual budget, district General Manager Jerry Gladden said.

To sustain $2.5 million in funding cuts, the district would have to lay off 24 staff members in the next fiscal year, twice as many as now planned.

Under such a scenario, residents of Simi Valley and the surrounding unincorporated communities served by the park district would see their parks and recreational programs suffer, Gladden said.

Parks officials would have to drastically cut back on park maintenance, cancel some recreation programs and reduce the opening hours for the community swimming pool, he said. Gladden said the rally is intended to heighten community awareness about the potential impact of the state budget cuts.