DWP PANELIST FINDS FOES OVER RESERVOIR.

Byline: Deborah Sullivan Daily News Staff Writer

West Hills residents, appalled that the Department of Water and Power is considering developing parts of Chatsworth Reservoir, are opposing the reappointment of DWP Commission President Rick Caruso, who is a proponent of the idea.

As Caruso's Sept. 8 reappointment hearing before the Los Angeles City Council approaches, a group of West Hills residents has circulated 500 fliers urging their neighbors to voice disapproval of Caruso's reappointment.

``The objective is to ask the members of the council first of all to not support the appointment of Mr. Caruso, who is apparently a dyed-in-the-wool supporter of developing the reservoir,'' said West Hills resident Tony Immarco.

``Item No. 2 is to get the Chatsworth Reservoir to be assigned to the mountains conservancy in perpetuity.''

Caruso, who said he was not aware of the opposition drive, said he thinks there's a way to use part of the reservoir for wildlife habitat, part for sports facilities and a portion for residential or limited commercial development.

``There's a large contingency of people that live in the area that would like to see soccer fields and baseball fields and a park, as well as this wildlife refuge,'' he said.

``So my idea is to develop a plan to see if we can satisfy the community, and also see if there's a way to generate revenue for the department. We need more time to study it before we turn it over to a conservancy group.''

The department, faced with a $7.5 billion debt, is reviewing its unused properties for possible sale.

The Chatsworth Reservoir would likely be worth about $50 million on the open market, but Caruso said it's highly unlikely it would be sold in its entirety. However, he said, ``I want to know that we at least explore and look at every possibility before we give it away.''

The 1,300-acre reservoir has been a wildlife habitat since the department drained it about 20 years ago. It now houses Canada geese, hawks, owls, bobcats, coyotes and other birds and mammals.

In March, the City Council voted to direct the department to lease the property to the Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy for use as a wildlife preserve - a plan that won the support of Reps. Brad Sherman, D-Woodland Hills, and Howard P. ``Buck'' McKeon, R-Santa Clarita.

However, residents and Councilman Hal Bernson, who represents the area and has championed the site's preservation, were dismayed when the department failed to take action after several months.

``Obviously, people are really disturbed because Caruso advocates some sort of usage other than its present (one), which is open space, passive recreation, with the proposal that the Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy manage it as a wildlife preserve,'' said Ollie Sar, a spokesman for Bernson.