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Malibu surfside news | November 9, 2017 | 11
Mountains Recreation and Conservation Authority
MRCA board eyes pair of
acquisitions to protect wildlife
Malibu beach
accessways, Malibu
park improvements
also discussed
Suzanne Guldimann
Freelance Reporter
An essential section of
habitat that is also a major
viewshed on the way into
Malibu is one step closer
to being preserved as open
space.
At its Nov. 1 meeting, the
Mountains Recreation and
Conservation Authority discussed
a phased plan to acquire
320 acres along Kanan
Dume and Cornell roads
known as Triangle Ranch.
The property, previously
slated for a 61-unit housing
development, is described
by the MRCA as a “crucial
linkage for habitat preservation,
watershed protection,
and wildlife movement in
the area.”
Triangle Ranch is one of
the largest remaining privately
owned properties in
the Santa Monica Mountains
that could be developed
into a major housing
tract, but it’s also home to
numerous protected plant
and animal species, and
its acquisition has been a
long-term objective of the
MRCA and its sister organization,
the Santa Monica
Mountains Conservancy.
“Acquisition of the property
will provide a broad
habitat connection between
the Liberty Canyon wildlife
corridor and the Ladyface
Mountain core habitat area
that contains over 1,000
protected acres,” a staff report
states. “Acquisition
would protect a regionally
significant viewshed along
Kanan Road as one of the
gateway’s to the Santa
Monica Mountains National
Recreation Area.”
The MRCA plans to work
with the property owner,
the county, and the City
of Agoura to purchase the
property in phases over several
months, starting with a
60-acre section scheduled to
close escrow by year’s end.
Phase 2 would be approximately
40 acres and would
close by the end of the first
quarter of 2018. The third
and fourth phases would
need to close by the fall of
2018.
The MRCA is also seeking
to acquire a nearby 98-
acre parcel that is adjacent
to the Liberty Canyon wildlife
corridor on the south
side of Agoura Road.
Both acquisitions are described
as essential for the
continued survival of the
Malibu area’s mountain lions
and other wildlife.
On another note ...
The board also discussed
the transfer of two beach
accessways in Malibu,
from the State Coastal Conservancy
to the MRCA.
The accessway at 20802
Pacific Coast Highway in
eastern Malibu was a condition
of development for the
construction of the original
house at the site, but
has never been open to the
public. It is the subject of
litigation against the Coastal
Commission, which issued
fines against the current
property owner in a highprofile
case last year.
The second easement is
in the Escondido Beach
area, at 27348 and 27400
PCH. According to the staff
report, “There are existing
encroachments subject to
enforcement action by the
CCC on the vertical access
easement located on the
properties. However, the
easement is currently available
and signed for public
access.”
Transferring the subject
easements “would better
streamline the project planning
efforts,” the report
found.
Improvements at two
Malibu parks — Ramirez
Canyon, and the Sara Wan
Trailhead parking lot at
Corral Canyon — were
also approved.
At Ramirez Canyon, the
MRCA is seeking $67,000
of Proposition 12 funds
for maintenance projects
that include pruning several
mature trees, repairing
the roofs of the leak-prone
“Art Deco” and “Peach”
houses originally built by
Barbra Streisand in the early
1980s, and repairing and
replacing leaking pipes and
irrigation systems.
At the Corral Canyon
trailhead parking lot, the
MRCA plans to redesign the
parking spaces to improve
traffic flow and better separate
pedestrians from vehicular
traffic. Other possible
improvements, “depending
on cost and impact of circulation
changes,” include
“upgrading seating and/or
picnic tables, and updating
the kiosk with park information
and interpretive
content,” according to the
report.
The MRCA will seek
$100,000 in Proposition 84
funds for the improvements.
More information on the
projects can be found at
http://mrca.ca.gov/.
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