Stoney Point Park Gets a Clean Sweep

Volunteers picking up trash and removing graffiti joined the rock climbers at Stoney Point Park on Saturday morning.

About 100 people from various community service groups canvassed the park in search of litter.

“Two big gripes I have are graffiti and litter. This is ideal for me,” said John Williams, 50, of Van Nuys.

Williams, who came with a group from the Knights of Columbus, said he found a purse--containing receipts and pennies--bottles, cans, lottery tickets and candy bar wrappers.

“I’m reinforcing my disgust for cigarette smokers. There are cigarette butts by the thousands,” said Karen Schneider, 38, of Huntington Beach.

Schneider came from Orange County to help her nephew Jonathan Teaff clean the park. Jonathan, 17, of Canoga Park said he must repair the park’s trails and benches as part of an Eagle Scout project. He’s also a frequent park visitor and rock climber.

“It’s kind of secluded. If you’re high enough on the rocks you get a nice view of the Valley,” Jonathan said. Boulders perched on the park’s summit are popular with weekend climbers, but they also attract taggers and litterbugs.

“People who come here at night don’t seem to have much respect for it,” said Steve Ramirez, 50, of Van Nuys.

“It amazes me people would do this to such a beautiful place,” added Charles Church, 66, head of the West Valley Graffiti Coalition. “I don’t know why they would want to make a mess of it.”

Participants quickly filled more than a dozen trash bags with garbage. Volunteers also sandblasted graffiti from rocks.

“This is a family outing. The majority of these kids [otherwise] would be sitting in front of a TV right now,” Alvarez said. “They may come back and know what trouble it was to clean it up.”