Brian Baldauf Named Chief of Watershed Planning

The Seasoned Planner Will Lead Regional “River Green” Effort to Promote Water, Wildlife, and Recreation throughout the Waterways of the Upper Los Angeles River Watershed

Los Angeles (September 25, 2019) – The Mountains Recreation and Conservation Authority (MRCA) announced today that Brian Baldauf has been named the Chief of Watershed Planning for the Mountains Recreation and Conservation Authority (MRCA). Mr. Baldauf, who has nearly 20 years’ experience working in watershed planning, urban park development, open space conservation, and, previously, in environmental and brownfield restoration, will  lead the MRCA’s watershed planning efforts throughout the Los Angeles River and tributaries.

In his seven years at the MRCA, Brian has been involved in a diverse range of watershed planning projects including the Elysian Valley Bikeway, Pacoima Wash Greenway-El Dorado Park, development of the Los Angeles River Recreation Districts, the Safe Routes to the River Plan, and regional efforts such as the Park to Playa Regional Trail and the Upper Los Angeles River and Tributaries Revitalization Plan that will be completed during early 2020.

Recognized for his successful collaborations with other government agencies and partner organizations, Brian will continue to lead the MRCA’s effort to create public parkland on the 12.5-acre easement at Taylor Yard-G2, located between Bowtie State Park and the City of Los Angeles’ G2 site.

Previously, Brian has served as the Acting Chief of Park Development / Deputy Chief of Park Development managing the MRCA’s Workprogram to develop new park and open space projects throughout the Greater Los Angeles Region, and as a project manager on many projects developed by the MRCA. Prior to the MRCA, Brian was a Construction Manager and Landscape Designer at the urban forestry non-profit organization North East Trees, and helped to construct the Glendale Narrows Riverwalk Phase I in Glendale, CA. Brian received his Masters in Landscape Architecture from California State Polytechnic University at Pomona and is also a Certified Arborist by the International Society of Arboriculture. Prior to graduate school, Brian worked for nearly a decade in environmental consulting to characterize and remediate brownfield sites under Federal, State, and local regulatory agency review. He directed multiple types of cleanup sites including extraction systems, chemical treatment, excavation, and phytoremediation from identification to regulatory closure.

The Chief of Watershed Planning oversees MRCA’s long range planning efforts to ensure that new projects and regulations in the Los Angeles area reflect the agency’s mission to protect open space, wildlife habitat, and parkland that is easily accessible to the public. In particular, the Chief is responsible for keeping the natural resources of the Los Angeles River and its tributaries, and other urban waterways, as an important criterion to consider at all stages of regional planning processes. All development and planning framework that affects these areas should also increase the region’s resiliency to the impacts of climate change, benefit all communities, and contribute toward equity. Planning for the region’s waterway corridors should also aim to connect with the wildlife and trail corridors that exist in the surrounding mountains.

The Mountains Recreation and Conservation Authority (MRCA) is a local government public entity dedicated to the preservation and management of open space and parkland, watershed lands, trails, and wildlife habitat.  The MRCA works in cooperation with other government partners to acquire parkland, participate in vital planning processes, provide natural resources and scientific expertise, and complete major park improvement projects. The MRCA manages and provides ranger services and fire protection for almost 75,000 acres of parkland that it owns and that are owned by the Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy or other agencies and provides comprehensive education and interpretation and leadership programs for youth. It is one of the lead agencies providing for the revitalization of the Los Angeles River.

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LA City Councilmember Bob Blumenfield Introduces Motion to Bring MRCA Ranger Patrol to LA River in Canoga Park

LOS ANGELES, CA – Los Angeles City Councilmember Bob Blumenfield introduced a new initiative to
revolutionize environmental and law enforcement along the headwaters of the LA River by
establishing a pilot program giving authority for the area to the Mountains Recreation and
Conservation Authority (MRCA). Currently the River is a confluence of jurisdictions which has led to
a number of difficult to resolve environmental and quality-of-life issues. Blumenfield’s plan aims to
cut the immense red tape and bureaucratic hurdles that currently exist around solving these issues
and improve the environment and safety of the area.

“The status quo around how we handle issues along the LA River is broken,” said Blumenfield. “I’m tired of the finger pointing around who is responsible for what and the time is now to bring in the MRCA, an organization that is tested, trusted, and perfectly suited to help resolve the complex, multi-jurisdictional problems we are facing.”

As an established, trusted joint powers entity, the MRCA would have full enforcement capabilities that cross jurisdictions. The MRCA would take responsibility for the river environment in this pilot program to patrol the area, enforce relevant ordinances, ensure safety, assist with maintenance and operations, reduce hazards, offer interpretation and educational resources to the public, provide outreach to unsheltered individuals in the area, and ensure that the river is an amenity for the local community. As a Joint Powers Authority agency whose Rangers are Sworn California Peace Officers with swift water rescue, Emergency Medical Technician (EMT), naturalist, and wildland firefighter training, MRCA Rangers can contract to work on all areas of the river regardless of which governmental entity has ownership for a particular area.

“MRCA Rangers are well-trained and especially suited to working with the urban-parkland interface,” said Chief Ranger Fernando Gomez. “We are very good at dealing with issues like homelessness and promoting safe recreation.”

For the last seven years MRCA Rangers have supervised and patrolled the Los Angeles River Recreation Zone, which allows kayaking, hiking, and fishing in the Los Angeles River in two designated areas of the river–one in Elysian Valley and one in the Sepulveda Basin from Memorial Day to the end of September. They have also been responsible for patrol of MRCA parks along the river and in the other 75,000 acres of MRCA-managed public parkland in Southern California.

The Mountains Recreation and Conservation Authority (MRCA) is a local government public entity dedicated to the preservation and management of open space and parkland, watershed lands, trails, and wildlife habitat.  The MRCA works in cooperation with other government partners to acquire parkland, participate in vital planning processes, provide natural resources and scientific expertise, and complete major park improvement projects. The MRCA manages and provides ranger services and fire protection for almost 75,000 acres of parkland that it owns and that are owned by the Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy or other agencies and provides comprehensive education and interpretation and leadership programs for youth. It is one of the lead agencies providing for the revitalization of the Los Angeles River.

Envison Confluence Park

Come learn and help design the new Confluence Park in Elysian Valley.  Join us on July 10, 2019 at the Los Angeles River Center and Gardens 6-8 pm.

Learn More about Los Angeles River Revitalization and Share Your Views

The Upper Los Angeles River & Tributaries Revitalization Plan will kick off informational community meetings and provide an opportunity to provide feedback toward reimagining your river, creeks, and streams. We will begin a series of four meetings throughout the upper LA River watershed starting:

March 13, 2019, 6-8 PM
Location: Discovery Cube
11800 Foothill Blvd
Sylmar, CA 91342

Established by State legislation in 2017, the Upper Los Angeles River and Tributaries Revitalization Plan  was developed to ensure that communities most impacted by the River are engaged and help inform the Revitalization Plan. The goals for this process include: prioritizing engagement of disadvantaged communities while addressing the unique and diverse needs of the Upper Los Angeles River, the tributaries and creating opportunities that help communities realize the value of the River and its connected tributaries.

Attend one of four meetings to be part of an exciting and engaging opportunity to plan for the future of your community! Family friendly activities and venues, entry is free and all are welcome to attend.  Light snacks and refreshments will be provided.

Additional meetings will be held:

March 20, 2019, 6:30-8:30 PM
Location: Los Angeles Zoo
Witherbee Auditorium
5333 Zoo Drive
Los Angeles, CA 90027

April 4, 2019, 6-8 PM
Location: Kidspace Children’s
Museum, 480 N Arroyo Blvd
Pasadena, CA 91103

April 9, 2019, 6-8 PM
Location: Rose Goldwater
Community Center
21710 Vanowen Street
Canoga Park, CA 91303

RSVP: https://www.upperlariver.org/

We look forward to seeing you then. Should you have any questions, please contact river@smmc.ca.gov.

 

Mountains Recreation and Conservation Authority Parks Opens Parks Previously Closed by the Woolsey Fire

CALABASAS, CA (January 30, 2019) — The Mountains Recreation and Conservation Authority (MRCA) announced today that it has opened all but one of the parks that had been previously closed by conditions related to the November 2018 Woolsey Fire.

The MRCA has cleared hazardous conditions from the parks and open space.  In addition, in order to assure public safety, the MRCA has conducted  limited radiological analysis of soils in Upper Las Virgenes Canyon Open Space Preserve and other MRCA areas which determined that the fire had not increased the low-level concentrations of radionuclides that are generally consistent with normal background levels.

As always, trail users should exercise caution in the open space, and not venture off established trails so that plants and wildlife can recover from the fire aftermath.

The following parks managed by the MRCA that were previously closed are now open to the public:

Previously Closed and Now Open to the Public:

Cameron Nature Preserve at Puerco Canyon

Corral Canyon Park – Sara Wan Trailhead

Escondido Canyon Park

Fran Pavley Meadow

Las Virgenes View Trail

Liberty Canyon Trailhead

Seminole Overlook

Triunfo Creek Park

Upper Las Virgenes Canyon Open Space Preserve (formerly Ahmanson Ranch)

Zev Yaroslavsky Las Virgenes Highlands Park

The following park managed by the MRCA remains closed until further notice:

Charmlee Wilderness Park

All other parks, open space and trails managed by the MRCA are open to the public.

The Mountains Recreation and Conservation Authority (MRCA) is a local government public entity dedicated to the preservation and management of open space and parkland, watershed lands, trails, and wildlife habitat. The MRCA works in cooperation with other government partners to acquire parkland, participate in vital planning processes, provide natural resources and scientific expertise, and complete major park improvement projects. The MRCA manages and provides ranger services and fire protection for almost 75,000 acres of parkland that it owns and that are owned by the Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy or other agencies and provides comprehensive education and interpretation and leadership programs for youth. It is one of the lead agencies providing for the revitalization of the Los Angeles River.

 

Mountains Recreation and Conservation Authority Receives 226-acre Donation of Prime Wildlife Linkage Near Interstate 5 West of Castaic Lake

The now permanently protected parkland is a major viewshed between the mountains and the Santa Clarita Valley enjoyed by motorists on a two-mile stretch of both the north and southbound sides of the freeway

 

CASTAIC, CALIFORNIA (January 2, 2019)—The Mountains Recreation and Conservation Authority (MRCA) announced today that it had taken title to a significant donation of 226 acres of prime open space in north Los Angeles County near Castaic Lake in the scenic canyon that separates the south and north-bound lanes of Interstate 5 (I-5) as the freeway descends into the Santa Clarita Valley.  The property is part of a habitat linkage that allows wildlife to move under I-5 between the Los Padres and Angeles National Forests. The donation is one of the largest in the history of the MRCA.

 

“Interstate 5 creates an over 30-mile-long wildlife movement barrier across the mountains between the Santa Clarita Valley and the beginning of the Grapevine,” said Paul Edelman, MRCA Chief of Natural Resources and Planning.  “The donation land is vital for animals to safely cross that I-5 barrier because it leads into existing wildlife under-crossings.   This will also set the stage for conservation of additional land to the north.”

 

The donor, Neil Nadler, had owned the property for over twenty years and had developed plans for a business park and motocross tracks on most of the land.  However, biologists told him he needed to leave ample space for the wildlife corridor to the north.  Officially, the property is part of the Sierra Madre-Castaic Connection identified in the 2005 South Coast Missing Linkages Project.   Known as Marple Canyon, the property supports a mix of riparian vegetation types along a windy creek bed.  The slopes support grassland and coastal sage scrub. The California Department of Fish and Wildlife designates the property as part of an area with High Conservation Value.

 

” I am pleased and honored to be able to conserve this important portion of the Sierra Madre-Castaic wildlife linkage,” said Nadler. “Being an environmental advocate who understands how costly wildlife corridors can be, I’m especially grateful that I am in the position in my life to give back to our fragile ecosystem.  I also want to thank Kristeen Penrod of South Coast Wildlands, and the other scientists who helped me over the last 23 years understand the Marple Canyon’s highest and best use is for everyone to appreciate the beauty and function as a critical element in wildlife movement.”

 

Two years ago, Nadler helped the MRCA purchase an adjacent seven-acre parcel that contains a tunnel heavily used by wildlife beneath the south-bound lanes of I-5 and that allow animals to reach the new parkland.

 

The MRCA will name the new parkland for Nadler.

 

The Mountains Recreation and Conservation Authority (MRCA) is a local government public entity dedicated to the preservation and management of open space and parkland, watershed lands, trails, and wildlife habitat. The MRCA works in cooperation with other government partners to acquire parkland, participate in vital planning processes, provide natural resources and scientific expertise, and complete major park improvement projects. The MRCA manages and provides ranger services and fire protection for almost 75,000 acres of parkland that it owns and that are owned by the Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy or other agencies and provides comprehensive education and interpretation and leadership programs for youth. It is one of the lead agencies providing for the revitalization of the Los Angeles River.

Map of Nadler 226 Acre Donation

Contact:
Dash Stolarz
dash.stolarz@mrca.ca.gov
323-221-9944 X198

The Los Angeles River Recreation Zone is Closed for the Season

Kayaking, fishing, and walking in the two sections of the river managed by the Mountains Recreation and Conservation Authority in Elysian Valley and at the Sepulveda Basin in Encino are not permitted until the next Recreation Zone Season commencing on Memorial Day, 2019

LOS ANGELES (September 30, 2018) — The Mountains Recreation and Conservation Authority (MRCA) announced today that the Los Angeles River Recreation Zones in Elysian Valley and the Sepulveda Basin have closed for the season.

For the sixth year in a row, the L.A. River Recreation Zones have provided summer access to recreate and explore the Los Angeles River in two different parts of the river that are still in a natural state.  Activities include steerable boating such as kayaking and canoeing, fishing and bird watching.  The River Recreation Zones are managed by the MRCA in coordination with the City of Los Angeles and Councilmember Mitch O’Farrell, the Army Corps of Engineers, and the County of Los Angeles.

“We look forward to opening again next Memorial Day,” said MRCA Chief Ranger, Fernando Gomez.  “We urge everyone to check out the website www.lariverrecreation.org to find out information about the program.”

The Sepulveda Basin Recreation Zone is a gentle, two-mile up river and back trip with braided channels, wildlife, and tranquil pools. Of the two Recreation Zones, the Sepulveda Basin offers easy paddling, and less natural obstacles.

The Elysian Valley kayak experience is a five mile one-way trip with braided channels and abundant wildlife in the middle of the city. The kayak experience includes strong currents and a few rapids..

In addition to managing the Recreation Zones, this summer the MRCA continued its tradition of working with local nonprofits such as Community Nature Connection, Mujeres de la Tierra, and Los Angeles Conservation Corps to provide free trips to underserved youth and adults.

The Mountains Recreation and Conservation Authority is a local public park agency dedicated to the preservation and management of open space, urban parkland, watershed lands, trails, and wildlife habitat.  The MRCA manages more than 75,000 acres of public parkland and provides natural resources and scientific expertise, critical regional planning services, operations, fire prevention and ranger services, as well as education and leadership programs for thousands of youth each year.  It is one of the lead agencies revitalizing the Los Angeles River.

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Mountains Recreation and Conservation Authority List of Park Closures Due to Woolsey Fire

CALABASAS, CA (December 10, 2018) — The Mountains Recreation and Conservation Authority (MRCA) announced today that the following parks managed by the MRCA remain closed to the public due to circumstances related to the recent Woosley fire incident:

Closed for Hazardous Conditions

Cameron Nature Preserve at Puerco Canyon

Charmlee Wilderness Park

Corral Canyon Park – Sara Wan Trailhead

Escondido Canyon Park

Fran Pavley Meadow

Las Virgenes View Trail

Liberty Canyon Trailhead

Triunfo Creek Park

Upper Las Virgenes Canyon Open Space Preserve (formerly Ahmanson Ranch)

Zev Yaroslavsky Las Virgenes Highlands Park

 

 

Mujeras de la Tierra, MRCA to Honor Fallen Park Rangers at Dia de los Muertos Procession and Altar

Media Advisory for Thursday, November 1, 2018 6-8 pm

Día de Los Muertos Procession and Altar Honor Park Rangers Killed in the Line of Duty around the World

 Uniformed Park Rangers with their faces painted in the traditional style and spectacular lighted Demonio de la Basura to lead hundreds in a dazzling procession through the streets of Cypress Park to the Los Angeles River Center

 What:

More than 300 community advocates, park rangers, environmentalists, international, federal, state and local leaders and school children will unite on November 1 to honor—through a Día de los Muertos (Day of the Dead) street procession and altar—The lives of those who have died in the line of duty while protecting and defending the environment and natural world.

One of the most spectacular and meaningful annual Dia de los Muertos celebrations in Los Angeles, the procession and ribbon cutting will include stunning art figurines, feathered Aztec dancers, traditional music, marigolds, entertainment, and wild beauty.

A community celebration will follow the ceremony.

The events are being organized by Mujeres de la Tierra, a non-profit environmental group based in L.A.

When:

Thursday, November 1, 2018

6:00 PM Procession begins – Cypress Park Library

7:15 PM Ribbon Cutting Ceremony – Los Angeles River Center & Gardens

Where:

6:00 p.m. Procession begins: Cypress Park Library, 1150 Cypress Avenue, LA

7:15 p.m. Procession ends and Ribbon Cutting: Los Angeles River Center & Gardens   570 West Avenue 26, Los Angeles

Who:

• Irma Muñoz, President/Founder, Mujeres de la Tierra
• David Szymanski, Superintendent, National Park Service Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area
• Craig Sap, Superintendent, Angeles Region, State Parks—sworn Park Ranger and Chair of the Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy
• Fernando Gomez, Chief Ranger, Mountains Recreation and Conservation Authority
• Senior Ranger Jewel Johnson, Secretary, International Ranger Federation
• Mark Stanley, Executive Director, San Gabriel and Lower Los Angeles Rivers and Mountain Conservancy
• David McNeill, Executive Director, Baldwin Hills Conservanc

Esperanza, the iconic 12-foot Calavera

 

Visuals:

PROCESSION: The half-mile street procession includes the fabulous Demonia de la Basura—a 10-foot high, lighted skeletal figure made from recycled water bottles—Aztec dancers, burning sage, and marchers with wooden skulls.  Park Rangers will march in uniform and have their faces vividly painted in accordance with the Dia de los Muertos tradition.

 

ALTAR:  Enormous traditional Day of the Dead altar, dedicated to the more than 850 Park Rangers who have died in the line of duty since 2009.

 

The procession and ceremony are being organized by Mujeres de la Tierra (Women of the Earth), a non-profit environmental organization based in Los Angeles.

 

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Mountains Recreation and Conservation Authority Awarded $3 Million for the Liberty Canyon Wildlife Crossing over the US-101 Freeway

Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy grants Proposition 68 funds to engineer the state-of-the-art bridge which will protect the genetic diversity of the ecosystem

LOS ANGELES (October 24, 2018) – The Mountains Recreation and Conservation Authority (MRCA) announced today that the Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy had awarded the agency up to $3 million in matching funds from the California Drought, Water, Parks, Climate, Coastal Protection, and Outdoor Access for All Act of 2018 (Proposition 68) for the Liberty Canyon Wildlife Crossing over the US-101 Freeway in Agoura Hills. The MRCA will use the funds to contribute to the California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) initial Plans, Specifications, and Engineering (PS&E) design phase of the project—the final phase before construction of the long-anticipated habitat linkage bridge.

The California Wildlife Conservation Board and the National Wildlife Federation will also contribute matching funds for a total of $8 million for this phase of the project.

“The Conservancy’s Proposition 68 grant will turn the concept of a Liberty Canyon Wildlife Crossing into a reality,” said Joseph T. Edmiston, Executive Director of the Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy. “This structure–which will be the largest and best designed of its kind in the world–will ensure that wildlife movement back and forth between the Santa Monica Mountains, Simi Hills, and Santa Susanas, and the two National Forests to the north, can continue unimpeded for the future. The long-term health of the ecosystem and persistence of wildlife populations depend on it.”

The Conservancy funded Caltrans’ initial study which established the feasibility of the Liberty Canyon Wildlife Crossing as a safe and effective wildlife passage across the eight-lane freeway.   Since that time, the National Wildlife Federation has raised millions of dollars to propel the project forward.  Caltrans completed its required environmental review of the project earlier this year.  With funding secured, it can now proceed with the actual engineering and design of the bridge.  A start time is planned for early 2019; design and engineering are estimated to take approximately one year.

US-101 is a formidable barrier for many wildlife species including mountain lions, bobcats, gray foxes, and mule deer that have historically traveled between these mountain ranges. In particular, populations of mammals with large home ranges such as mountain lions and bobcats need expansive areas in which to hunt, breed, and survive. The original construction of the freeway divided this previously continuous habitat range into isolated fragments. For mountain lions, this restriction has resulted in significant inbreeding, territorial fighting, and low genetic diversity within the Santa Monica Mountains.

National Park Service (NPS) researchers have documented serious threats to the long-term viability of the mountain lions if a structure is not constructed. Scientists have long identified Liberty Canyon as the optimum location to construct a wildlife crossing because of the large swaths of protected public land extending into the mountain ranges on either side of the freeway. The two outposts of the crossing will be on protected open space owned by the MRCA.

The National Wildlife Federation and the Santa Monica Mountains Fund have established a fundraising initiative at www.savelacougars.org to raise funds for the engineering design and construction expenses.

In addition to the MRCA, the Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy and Caltrans, partners include California State Senator Henry Stern, former California State Senator Fran Pavley, California State Assemblymember Richard Bloom, U.S. Congressman Ted Lieu, Los Angeles County Supervisor Sheila Kuehl, Ventura County Supervisor Linda Parks, the National Park Service Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area, the National Wildlife Federation, The Resource Conservation District of the Santa Monica Mountains, and the City of Agoura Hills.

The Mountains Recreation and Conservation Authority is a local public park agency dedicated to the preservation and management of open space, urban parkland, watershed lands, trails, and wildlife habitat.  The MRCA manages more than 75,000 acres of public parkland and provides natural resources and scientific expertise, critical regional planning services, operations, fire prevention and ranger services, as well as education and leadership programs for thousands of youth each year.  It is one of the lead agencies revitalizing the Los Angeles River and its tributaries.

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Contact:

Dash Stolarz

Director of Public Affairs

(323) 221-9944 x198

Dash.stolarz@mrca.ca.gov