| Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area | |
|---|---|
IUCN category V (protected landscape/seascape) | |
 Backbone Trail nearMishe Mokwa Trail in the SMMNRA | |
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| Location | Santa Monica Mountains;Los Angeles andVentura Counties,California, U.S. |
| Nearest city | Malibu, California Newbury Park, California[1] |
| Coordinates | 34°06′14″N118°36′09″W / 34.10389°N 118.60250°W /34.10389; -118.60250 |
| Area | 157,700 acres (638 km2)[2] |
| Established | November 10, 1978 (1978-11-10) |
| Visitors | 795,217 (in 2022)[3] |
| Governing body | National Park Service; withState and local agencies. |
| Website | Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area |
TheSanta Monica Mountains National Recreation Area (SMMNRA) is anational recreation area containing many individualparks andopen space preserves, located primarily inSouthern California'sSanta Monica Mountains. Located ingreater Los Angeles, two thirds of SMMNRA's parklands are in northwestLos Angeles County and the remaining third, including aSimi Hills extension, is in southeasternVentura County. It is administered by theNational Park Service in coordination with state, county, municipal, and university agencies.
In size, the Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area is the largest urban national park in the world.[4][5][6][7] It is also one of the best examples of aMediterranean climateecosystem and it protects one of the highest densities of archaeological resources in any mountain range in the world.[8]
The Santa Monica Mountains NRA contains 153,075 acres (61,947 ha)[9] in theTransverse Ranges'sSanta Monica Mountains, with its southeastern slopes part of theLos Angeles Riverheadwaters. TheCalifornia State Park system and other public agencies own 49,756 acres (20,136 ha), theNational Park Service own 25,117 acres (10,164 ha), and the rest of the SMMNRA lands are owned by local agencies, university reserves, and private propertyconservation easements.[citation needed]
During the first decade of the twentieth century,Frederick H. Rindge attempted to create a forest reserve (precursors tonational forests) in theSanta Monica Mountains several times. In 1902, California's State Mining Bureau also attempted to establish a forest reserve, but their proposal was denied.[10]
In 1907, a proposal requesting at least 70,000 acres (28,000 ha) in the Santa Monica Mountains be designated a forest reserve was submitted to theSecretary of the Interior,[11] but state mineralogistLewis E. Aubury opposed the venture.[12] TheU. S. Forest Service then advised Aubury that it was highly improbable a forest reserve would be created owing to local opposition and the small amount of public land still remaining in the mountains.[10]
In 1925,limestone deposits were discovered in the mountains behindPacific Palisades, which led to a lengthy battle between home owners and land developers.[13]Alphonzo Bell Sr. led the push for development, while local opposition was led bySylvia Morrison. After much criticism of Bell's original plan, Bell submitted an updated plan that saw the limestone pulverized, mixed with water, and pumped via a buried pipeline to the mouth of Santa Ynez Canyon, where it would continue along the ocean floor to an offshore buoy.[14]Will Rogers parodied the plan on the front page of theLos Angeles Times,[15] after whichWilliam Mulholland came to Bell's defense. Around the same time, Morrison urged to establish the Santa Monica Mountains as Whitestone National Park, named after the limestone cliffs.[16]
In 1930, lifelong national park advocateFrederick Law Olmsted Jr. proposed a network of parks, beaches, playgrounds, and forests to promote social, economic, and environmental vitality in Los Angeles,[17] and he also advocated for public ownership of at least 10,000 acres (4,000 ha) of beach and mountain betweenTopanga andPoint Dume.[18] His report, however, was not successful.[17]
In 1938, May Rindge (widow ofFrederick H. Rindge) lost control of her Santa Monica Mountain lands and was forced into bankruptcy. She proposed to establish a park in exchange for the cancellation of $1.1 million ($24.6 million in2024) in unpaid taxes,[19] but the county refused her offer.[20]
In the 1960s and 70s, possibly even as early of the 1950s, several proposals designating the Santa Monica Mountains asToyon National Park went beforeU.S. Congress, and in 1971, RepresentativeAlphonzo Bell Jr. introduced the first a bill to create Toyon National Park.[21]
In 1944,Will Rogers State Historic Park was created, marking the first state park in the Santa Monica Mountains and the first public land in the mountains sinceGriffith Park in 1896.
In 1967, theState Division of Beaches and Parks acquired 6,700 acres (2,700 ha) of the Broome Ranch (originally part ofRancho Guadalasca) for $15.1 million ($142 million in2024), which they used to establishPoint Mugu State Park.[22] In 1972, the park system purchased 5,800 neighboring acres (2,300 ha) for $2.1 million ($15.8 million in2024), nearly doubling the park's size.[23] In 1980, a remaining 850-acre parcel (340 ha) that adjoined the property was purchased, becomingRancho Sierra Vista open space park.
In 1974, the 11,525 acres (4,664 ha)Topanga State Park (originally Topanga Canyon State Park) was opened to the public.[24][25] The park encompass large areas outsideTopanga Canyon, fromPacific Coast Highway toMulholland Drive.[24] Also in 1974, the State of California purchased the 2,700-acre (1,100 ha)Century Ranch including a 120-acre property formerly owned byRonald Reagan for $4.8 million ($30.6 million in2024). In 1975,Bob Hope's Century Ranch-abutting Hope Ranch was purchased for $4.1 million ($24 million in2024), and in 1976, the State Parks and Recreation Commission officially named the Century, Reagan, and Hope Ranch landsMalibu Creek State Park.[26]
In 1964,Susan B. Nelson, later known as the mother of the Santa Monica Mountain National Recreation Area, helped organize Friends of the Santa Monica Mountains, Parks and Seashore.[27] The SMMNRA was established on November 10, 1978,[28] with a strategy of growing the park through "mosaic pieces" that would link critical habitats, save unique areas, and expand the existing park.
In the 1980s, theSanta Monica Mountains Conservancy was created to acquire and preserve land for open spaces,habitat preserves, and public recreation.[29][30] One of their first acquisitions wasRancho Sierra Vista in 1980, andParamount Ranch was also acquired that year.[31]
In the early 1990s,Bob Hope created controversy when he proposed selling 5,900 acres (2,400 ha) of land in the Corral Canyon area to the government in exchange for 59 acres (24 ha) in the nearby Cheeseboro Canyon section of the SMMNRA, land he planned to use for access road to a new golf course and housing development.[32] The land swap was never completed, with the Jordan Ranch becoming the Palo Commado section of the Cheeseboro Canyon/Palo Comado Canyon Open Space parks and most of the land for the 1,000 acres (400 ha) Corral Canyon Park later donated by Hope.[33]
In 2003,Ahmanson Ranch was acquired by theSanta Monica Mountains Conservancy to create the 2,983 acres (1,207 ha)Upper Las Virgenes Canyon Open Space Preserve.[34] In 2010, 200 acres (81 ha) of land northwest of theU.S. 101/Las Virgenes Road junction, as well as additional land to the southeast of Las Virgenes Road, were acquired by the Santa Monica Mountain Conservancy.[35][36][37] Additionally, several hills with undeveloped ranch land in the area also had theirviewsheds protected from development, and these areas now serve as an unofficial gateway to the SMMNRA and its visitor center on Las Virgenes Road atKing Gillette Ranch.[36]
In 2018, theWoolsey Fire burned 88% of the federal parkland[38] and more than 40% of the natural area in the Santa Monica Mountains.[39]
In order to understand the effects ofU.S. 101 on Santa Monica Mountains wildlife survival, movement, and genetic diversity, theNational Park Service began trackingbobcats in the area in 1996,[40]mountain lions in 2002,[41] andblack bears in 2019.[42] TheWallis Annenberg Wildlife Crossing, a vegetated overpass spanningU.S. 101 at Liberty Canyon, is meant to alleviate some of the negative effects discovered by the study.[43]
TheNational Park Service's Rim of the Valley Corridor Special Resource Study, which entails connecting theSanta Monica Mountains and parklands surrounding theSan Fernando,Crescenta,Santa Clarita,Simi, andConejo valleys is also currently under study.[44][45][46][47] This study could involve adding up to 313,000 acres (127,000 ha) to the SMMNRA.[45]
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TheSanta Monica Mountains have been occupied by humans for more than 10,000 years[8] and contain many prehistoric and historic sites.[48] More than 1,000 archaeological sites are in the Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area, making it one of the highest densities of archaeological resources in any mountain range in the world.[49]
At least 73 archeological sites, structures,cultural landscapes, and cultural properties in the SMMNRA are eligible for listing on theNational Register of Historic Places.[50] The SMMNRA also contains 26 knownChumashpictograph sites[51] and a number ofCalifornia Historical Landmarks lie within the area, including the site of thePort of Los Angeles Long Wharf (#881),Point Dume (#965), andAdamson House (#966). Also within the SMMNRA isParamount Ranch, however, theWoolsey Fire severely damaged the ranch in 2018.
Santa Monica Mountains Fund (SAMO Fund) works to encourage appreciation and understanding of the Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area (SMMNRA) by supporting itsNational Park Service andCalifornia State Parks programs.[52] The SMMNRA encompasses homelands of indigenous people including theChumash people in the western portion and theTongva people in the eastern end.
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TheAnthony C. Beilenson Interagency Visitor Center opened in June 2012 and is operated by four partner agencies:National Park Service, California State Parks, Santa Monica Conservancy, and Mountains Recreation and Conservation Authority. TheSatwiwa Native American Indian Culture Center is the only site in the SMMNRA dedicated to Indian cultures. Park headquarters are located offsite inThousand Oaks.
Main entrances to the SMMNRA are located inMalibu,Newbury Park,Agoura Hills,Calabasas,Woodland Hills, andTopanga.
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