Make no mistake. If Governor Schwarzenegger's proposal to eliminate General Fund support for state parks passes the legislature, there will be permanent damage to our parks statewide and to the livability of all our local communities. California's state parks–all 220 of them–are designated for closure, among them all those in the Santa Monica Mountains: Topanga, Leo Carrillo and Malibu Creek State Parks; Malibu Lagoon and Meyer Memorial State Beaches; and Will Rogers and Los Encinos State Historic Parks.
PHOTO BY ANTHONY VEREBES  All 220 of California's state parks would be in jeopardy of closure if the governor's proposal to eliminate General Fund support for them passes the legislature as the budget wrangling continues in Sacramento. The cost of a single wildfire would wipe out any savings from closing state parks. |
Topanga State Park, along with Malibu Creek State Park and Point Mugu State Park, are the magnificent "string of pearls" in the Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area. They provide thousands of acres of protected land and are used by more than three million visitors annually. Most of the 70 miles of the Backbone Trail goes through these parks. Four miles of Topanga Creek are in Topanga State Park.
Our local parks are the product of a grassroots movement in the 1960s that fought to protect and save open space in our mountains. Last year, in Topanga and the Los Angeles area, the Campaign to Save Topanga State Park collected 17,000 signatures opposing the closure of Topanga, Will Rogers and Los Encinos State Parks.
We are the beneficiaries of the hard work of many leaders and activists who have gone before us, and our parks are a legacy which our current legislature must not undo. Large-scale developments such as "Topanga Mountain Park" are an unthinkable solution to our budget woes.
Should our parks be put in "caretaker status" (i.e. closed), gates will be locked, bathrooms will be closed, water and power will be turned off and buildings will be shuttered. However, it is laughable to think that Topanga State Park, or these others, actually could be closed. Topanga State Park's 30-mile boundary is unfenced and interfaces with thousands of residences and back yards.
If we close our parks, they'll be open to homeless encampments, rogue mountain bikers and off-roaders, marijuana farmers, and taggers. Wildfire danger would increase from illegal campfires and sparks from cigarettes and drug operations. The cost of a single catastrophic wildfire would more than wipe out the savings from closing state parks. People will still use our parks, but law-abiding people are less apt to and those are the visitors who are the volunteer eyes and ears of our already understaffed state parks rangers and peace officers.
Our state parks, including Topanga State Park, have an economic multiplier effect in the local community. Local Topanga businesses benefit from purchases of park visitors. Every $1 that funds the state park system returns $2.35 to the state's General Fund, largely from economic activities in communities surrounding these parks. In these difficult economic times, our parks are essential locations for low-cost recreation and vacations.
Our California budget situation and possible solutions are convoluted and complicated. However, the state park system receives only $145 million or one-tenth of one percent of the entire state budget. Many of us think that how we treat our land and how we care for our young, our old, and our most vulnerable will, in the long run, tell what kind of people we really are. Shutting any of us out of spaces where the power of nature restores and sustains the human spirit is not beneficial.
We thought we had won last year when the governor revised his decision to close state parks. But it was a hollow victory. It is time, once again, to stay informed and take action. For now, it seems the best we can do is write, call and e-mail the governor and our legislators.
Up-to-date information and options for taking action is available on The Campaign to Save Topanga State Park's website, www.SaveTopangaStatePark.org, and the California State Parks Foundation website, www.savestateparks.org.
This is a rapidly developing situation, and may have greatly changed before this isue of the Messenger even goes to print.
