Simi Conservation Agency Decides Not to Disband

In a dramatic change of heart, the agency formed to resurrect Corriganville Park as a recreation area and backdrop for western films decided Wednesday night against dissolving itself and turning its operation over to the local park district.

Members of the Rancho Simi Open Space Conservation Agency board said, however, that they need to meet more frequently when necessary to eliminate bureaucracy they said has stalled plans to reopen the 188-acre park.

“We’ve got to find a shorter way to solve these problems,” said Simi Valley Councilman Bill Davis, an agency board member. “A decision that can be made in a week takes six months. That’s just ridiculous.”

Members were concerned that even the simplest of tasks, such as issuing permits for overnight camping, would be nearly impossible under the present system.

The agency, composed of two representatives each from the City Council and the Rancho Simi Recreation and Park District, as well as one at-large member, meets only four times a year. The park district board, in contrast, meets biweekly.

Proponents originally hoped that Corriganville would open last month but they are now eyeing an early fall date.

Prior to Wednesday night’s meeting, four of the agency’s board members had said they favored disbanding the organization and turning control over to the park district.

City Councilwoman Barbara Williamson said she changed her mind after reviewing the 1987 agreement that established the agency. The pact specifies that the agency was designed to both buy the land to reopen the park and oversee its operation.

Following her comments, the other board members agreed to maintain the conservation agency but improve its operation.

Don Funk, a park district representative to the agency, said the conservation group will one day be dissolved because ongoing maintenance of the new recreation area is primarily a park district function.

District officials estimate that they will have to spend only about $45,000 from their $7.3-million annual budget to maintain the park, which is made up mostly of rocky hills, sandy flats and natural trails.

The conservation agency has already set aside $106,000 to regrade, open and maintain the park.

Its members hope that the effort will ultimately entice Hollywood studios to finance construction of new Old West-style buildings on the flatlands for the filming of movies and television programs.

From 1937-66, more than 3,000 movies and television episodes were filmed at the site, which was set up by Ray “Crash” Corrigan, a Hollywood stuntman and actor in numerous B-grade westerns. The buildings have all since been destroyed by fire.

The conservation agency purchased the site in 1988 for $1.7 million from Griffin Homes, a Calabasas-based developer.