MOORPARK : 2 Golf Courses Called Threat to Wildlife Area

State Department of Fish and Game officials have warned the Ventura County Board of Supervisors that two golf courses proposed for Happy Camp Regional Park could harm the wildlife habitat.

“The department urges the board to seriously consider conserving the sensitive and irreplaceable resources of Happy Camp Regional Park by maintaining the area in its natural state,” department official Fred Worthley wrote in a recent letter to the supervisors.

The board on Tuesday will hear developer Ralph Mahan’s proposal to build two 18-hole golf courses on the county-owned park north of Moorpark. Mahan says a two-year lease agreement with the county would enable him to raise the money to build the golf courses.

The courses would be developed on the lower 700 acres of the park, while the upper 3,000 acres would remain a wilderness area.

But Worthley pointed out in his letter that the lower canyon supports a variety of habitats and grasslands that such animals as the golden eagle, black-shouldered kites and other raptors are dependent upon for their food source.

“The park represents one of the best remaining examples of an entire watershed system, supporting . . . habitats and wildlife species that are in decline throughout the east county,” Worthley wrote.

With other developments already planned nearby, preserving Happy Camp Regional Park is “all the more essential to wildlife and to the local public as a scenic, natural open space.”

County officials, however, have said they do not believe that the golf courses would cause significant harm to the environment. They also have noted that the golf courses could generate $250,000 to $500,000 annually for the county.