LOS ANGELES : Wilson Appoints Sybert to Mountains Conservancy

Gov. Pete Wilson on Tuesday announced the appointment of former senior aide Richard P. Sybert to the Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy, a move that is expected to raise Sybert’s standing as a Republican challenger to Rep. Anthony C. Beilenson (D-Woodland Hills).

Sybert, 41, will replace Roger Gertmenian on the policy-making board of the conservancy, a state agency that acquires parkland in the Santa Monicas and neighboring hills and mountains, and provides grants to local parks and conservation groups.

Sybert resigned in October from his post as state planning director and head of the Governor’s Office of Planning and Research, moving to Woodland Hills to open a law and land-use consulting firm. By then, he had already loaned more than $300,000 of his own money to a committee exploring the possibility of his becoming a candidate next year for the Republican nomination to represent the 24th Congressional District, which includes portions of the San Fernando Valley, Thousand Oaks and Malibu.