1,733 ACRES BOUGHT FOR PARK ACQUISITION NEAR VALLEY BLOCKS URBAN SPRAWL.Byline: Kerry Cavanaugh Staff Writer Conservation groups announced Tuesday they've purchased the 1,733-acre Joughin Ranch, which will become the centerpiece of a regional park just a few minutes' drive from the San Fernando Valley San Fernando Valley Valley, southern California, U.S. Northwest of central Los Angeles, the valley is bounded by the San Gabriel, Santa Susana, and Santa Monica mountains and the Simi Hills. . The preservation of the $7.2 million cattle ranch essentially stops San Fernando Valley sprawl from creeping farther into the Santa Susana Mountains The Santa Susana Mountains are a transverse range of mountains in southern California, north of the city of Los Angeles, in the United States. The range runs east-west separating the San Fernando Valley and Simi Valley on its south from Santa Clara River Valley to the north and , environmentalists said, and guarantees public access to some of the range's highest and most scenic viewpoints. ``It's really the heart of probably the best natural area surrounding the San Fernando Valley,'' said Paul Edelman, deputy director of planning and natural resources for the Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy The Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy is an agency of the state of California in the United States founded in 1979 and dedicated to the acquisition of land in the Santa Susana and Santa Monica Mountains and the Simi Hills, north and west of Los Angeles, for preservation as open . ``It's really like a whole world unto itself. It gives you a sense of big wilderness right at the edge of the city.'' The conservancy's sister agency, the Mountains Recreation and Conservation Authority, will own and manage the property. The land was bought with $5 million from the state Wildlife Conservation Board, $3 million from the Los Angeles Los Angeles (lôs ăn`jələs, lŏs, ăn`jəlēz'), city (1990 pop. 3,485,398), seat of Los Angeles co., S Calif.; inc. 1850. County Safe Neighborhood Parks Neighborhood parks, which generally range in size up to 30 acres, serve as a social and recreational focal points for neighborhoods and are the basic units of a park system. Many include a playground. Act of 1996 and $500,000 from the Nature Conservancy Nature Conservancy, nonprofit organization established in 1951 to preserve or aid in the preservation of natural environments. It protects wilderness areas in the United States and Canada and is affiliated with similar groups in Latin America and the Caribbean. . Money left over from the purchase will be used for restoration and repairs, Edelman said. The buy was a bargain, considering the size of the ranch and its proximity to a dense, urban area, said Jim Park, county Parks and Recreation Department assistant director for special projects. The county has about 600 acres of open space, but aims to eventually preserve 4,000 acres. Earlier this year, the conservancy bought 404 acres in Browns Canyon, just north of DeSoto Avenue and the Ronald Reagan Freeway, which will serve as the parking lot and entryway into the regional park. The conservancy expects to add a few more 40-acre parcels of open space from the Porter Ranch development. An additional 160 acres would be added if the 424-house Deerlake Ranch project is approved by the county. People will be able to use Joughin Ranch as soon as September, when the property is dedicated, Edelman said. The lower part of the regional park will be ideal for picnicking, dog-walking and short hikes. The extensive system of ranch roads provides access to equestrians, hikers and mountain bikers. The ranch includes nine miles of streambed streambed or stream channel Any long, narrow, sloping depression on land that had been shaped by flowing water. Streambeds can range in width from a few feet for a brook to several thousand feet for the largest rivers. and contains biologically critical components of the eastern Santa Susana Mountain ecosystem, said E.J. Remson, manager of The Nature Conservancy's Los Angeles-Ventura project. Black bears, mountain lions and bobcats make their home on the ranch, and it's preservation secures the last major piece of a wildlife corridor, providing a guaranteed pass over the Santa Susana Mountains for wildlife traveling between Los Padres National Forest Los Padres National Forest is a forest located in southern and central California, which includes most of the mountainous land along the California coast from Ventura to Monterey, extending inland. Elevations range from sea level to 8,831 feet. and the Santa Monica Mountains The Santa Monica Mountains are a low transverse range in southern California in the United States. Geography They run for approximately 40 mi (64 km) east-west from the Hollywood Hills in Los Angeles to Point Mugu in Ventura County. , Remson said. Across the Valley, the Conservancy voted Monday night to make an offer on a 55-acre parcel off La Tuna Canyon Road near the 210 Freeway. A developer has proposed building a 10-unit subdivision on site, Edelman said, but the seller decided to give the conservancy once last chance to buy it. He would not disclose the asking price. Kerry Cavanaugh, (818) 723-3746 kerry.cavanaugh(at)dailynews.com CAPTION(S): map Map: Leading conservation groups purchase 1,733 acres in the Santa Susana Mountains Joughin Ranch 1,733 acres |
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