Officials Make Plans to Turn Parks Into Moneymakers

Hard pressed to raise money, the Ventura County Parks Department has launched a major push to convert several parks around the county into profit-making enterprises.

The ventures range from adding a small man-made island for weddings at College Park in Oxnard to an increasingly controversial proposal to build a 16,000-seat amphitheater and 18-hole golf course at Camarillo Regional Park.

Other proposed projects include an 18-hole golf course at Toland Park near Santa Paula and a 27- to 36-hole golf course and equestrian center at Happy Camp north of Moorpark. The department also is looking at adding 76 overnight parking spaces for recreational vehicles at Faria Beach.

Of all the projects, the most controversial is the amphitheater development at the county-owned park near Camarillo. The project’s environmental study is scheduled for release Monday.

But one state agency is already working on a plan to preserve the 325-acre park in its natural state, which officials said could turn out to be more valuable to the county in the long term than an outdoor concert theater.

The California Coastal Conservancy wants to tap state and federal money to restore vital wetland and riparian habitat at the park, said conservancy official Peter Brand. The park, alongside Calleguas Creek, could also serve as a natural flood control system for surrounding farmland, he said.

Using the park as a flood diversion basin could save about $1.4 million typically spent by farmers and government agencies on cleanup operations after big storms, said Brand, who is also a member of the Calleguas Creek Watershed Management Committee.

“If this becomes a preferred alternative, we hope to find funding from the conservancy and other sources to restore the wetland areas and for flood relief,” he said. “There are ways to pay for the restoration that would not cost the county a thing.”

Brand stressed that the conservancy is not taking a position against the amphitheater and golf course project, but rather is simply providing an option for the Board of Supervisors to consider. The conservancy could be ready to make a formal presentation to county officials within a month, he said.

Supervisors John Flynn, Frank Schillo and Judy Mikels, who chairs the Calleguas Creek Watershed Management Committee, said they want to know more about the conservancy’s proposal before taking a position. But they said it could be a viable option.

“We do have problems with flood control at Calleguas Creek,” Flynn said. “This could well serve a better purpose than the amphitheater.”

Even so, Mikels said, the golf course at the site would probably be needed to generate money for the Parks Department.

“If they can make it work with the golf course, I think it would be an awesome opportunity,” Mikels said.

The cash-poor county Parks Department, which operates 27 parks, has been ordered by county supervisors to come up with new revenue sources to pay its own way.

The amphitheater and golf course project proposed for Camarillo Regional Park would be built and operated by private developers and bring in about $500,000 a year in additional revenue for the Parks Department, officials said. That amount could increase to about $800,000 over the first five years of operation.

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Officials say the project, which could be presented to supervisors as early as June, is crucial to keeping the Parks Department solvent and for maintaining recreational services throughout the county.

“Everyone who uses county parks has an interest in this issue,” said Blake Boyle, manager of the county Parks Department. “If new revenues are not realized, then citizens will suffer when existing parks facilities have to shut down and services are severely curtailed.”

But some environmentalists object to such a large-scale development being placed in a rural setting, saying it runs counter to the county’s own Guidelines for Orderly Development, which state that urban development should take place within city boundaries.

“I don’t see how an amphitheater that is only 1,000 seats less than the Hollywood Bowl can be considered anything other than an intense urban use,” said Carla Bard, who is also a member of the Calleguas Creek Watershed Management Committee and an environmental activist.

“This is a mammoth project,” Bard said. “The traffic and air impacts and disturbance from the noise and lights are going to be enormous.”

Like the Coastal Conservancy, Bard said she too would prefer to save the wetland habitat and establish some type of flood diversion system for Calleguas Creek.

“If we could slow down the creek in an environmentally sensitive way, we could save the county millions of dollars,” Bard said. “We wouldn’t have to spend all this money repairing flood damage.”

But county flood control director Alex Sheydayi, who is also a member of the Watershed Management Committee, said he doubts the park is big enough to provide sufficient water storage during floods. Sheydayi said the park is also in the wrong spot to be of much use.

“It’s downstream from where the creek usually breaks out,” he said. “So I don’t see how it would be a benefit.”

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Flynn said there are other problems--mainly traffic--with placing the amphitheater at the park site. The park is now served by Lewis Road, a narrow two-lane roadway that has no freeway offramp.

“I’m not an automatic vote in favor of the project,” Flynn said. “My chief concern is that it’s too big. It’s massive. That doesn’t sit well with me. I’m concerned about the traffic and the fact that this is a major event area out in the middle of open space.”

Still, Flynn and Mikels said there is a demand for an entertainment complex like the one proposed at Camarillo Regional Park.

“There is a large amount of people that consider this recreation,” Mikels said. “And we have to try and meet the needs of all the people.”

The proposed amphitheater would be built and operated by Encino-based Avalon Productions; an adjacent golf course would be constructed and run by Blue-T Golf of Omah, officials said.

Both Avalon and Blue-T Golf have already paid $25,000 each for two-year option agreements with the county, said Robert Amore, the county parks official who helped negotiate the agreements.

If the projects are approved, the developers would each enter into a 50-year contract that would guarantee the county a percentage of tickets sales and golf fees, Amore said. At the end of the term, the county would own both facilities.

The Parks Department, which receives no property tax money or county General Fund subsidy, has no choice but to look at such money-making ventures because of an ever-tightening budget, Boyle said.

For years, the county-owned Channel Islands Harbor has provided the parks system with $1 million of its $3-million annual budget, with remaining revenues coming from park fees.

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County supervisors decided last year to split the parks and harbor into separate departments and gradually decrease the subsidy provided to recreational areas. All harbor proceeds will now be used to revamp the aging marina, adding high-rise offices, apartment complexes and possibly an aquarium.

But that means the Parks Department must come up with its own money. Although the department is still receiving a subsidy from the harbor, the amount will gradually decrease to nothing over the next five years.

“We have to bring on line recreational activities to meet our mission and to keep the rest of the park system alive,” he said.

Indeed, Boyle noted that Ventura County is not the only county struggling with park financing.

The Los Angeles County parks department, for instance, has been trying of late to give away nine parks to cities in which they are located. But not one city has stepped forward because of the high maintenance costs they would have to assume.

“Cities typically have a property tax that supports parks,” Boyle said. “But when it comes to the county’s system, that’s not true. That’s why we have to throw into the mix things like golf courses and amphitheaters.”

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Proposed Parks Projects

The Ventura County Parks Department operates 27 parks and two public golf courses. Subsidized for years by the county-owned Channel Islands Harbor, the department has been directed to come up with additional revenue to pay its own way. Here is a list of some of the profit-making ventures proposed:

Camarillo Regional Park: 16,000-seat amphitheater and an 18-hole golf course would be built at the 325-acre park near Camarillo State Hospital by private developers. It could bring an estimated $500,000 in annual revenue to the Parks Department, with that amount increasing to $800,000 over five years. The project’s environmental impact report will be released Monday.

Toland Park Golf Course: 18-hole golf course and adjoining recreational facilities would be built at the 212-acre park near Santa Paula by a private developer. Initially, it could bring about $200,000 to $300,000 in annual revenues to the county. The Board of Supervisors is expected to consider next month an option agreement with a potential developer.

Happy Camp Regional Park: 27- to 36-hole golf course and equestrian center would be built on 700 acres of the 3,700-acre park site north of Moorpark by a private developer. It could generate about $400,000 annually in county revenues. The Board of Supervisors is expected to look at plans for the project later this year.

Rincon Parkway: A portion of a day-use parking area at Faria Beach between the communities of Solimar Beach and Emma Wood State Beach would be converted into overnight camping spaces to accommodate 76 recreational vehicles. The conversion could bring an additional $90,000 in revenue to the Parks Department.

Source: Ventura County Parks Department

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Park Proposals

Squeezed by an ever-tightening budget, the Ventura County Parks Department is proposing to increase revenues by building a 16,000- seat amphitheater and 18-hole golf course at Camarillo Regional Park.