City Studies Annandale Canyon Purchase
By Monrovia Weekly
Published: Thursday, April 24th, 2008
The city of Pasadena is continuing to pursue efforts to acquire Annandale Canyon for open space park purposes at an estimated cost of at least $7 million.
Annandale Canyon is best known for the century old Annandale Country Club, with a highly regarded private golf course.
The recently released capital improvements budget carries the project in the five year plan, but the only funding identified is a $2.5 million matching grant from the Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy secured last year.
The city had been considering the possibility of funding $3 million of the costs through a benefit assessment district, but the matter was taken off the council agenda when preliminary surveys indicated a lack of support among the 600 property owners who would be included in the district.
The property owners would have been levied up to $1,000 a year for 20 years in benefit assessments, with the largest costs going to those closest to the property.
The 21-acre canyon, on the west side of town near Scholl Canyon, is the proposed site for a luxury housing development, but owner Jon Head has indicated he is prepared to sell.
Strong community opposition and the icy market for housing are considered to be factors in the willingness to sell for what the owner says are his costs and the cost to the city.
The city is considering a parks and open space bond issue to be placed before voters as early as November, with Annandale a possible contender for funding from that source. Also given consideration is the idea of a citywide open space assessment district, though it would be a tough sell in current economic times.
The city is now in the process of establishing an open space conservation committee to work on a detailed acquisition and proposals for funding.
In a piece on the Pasadena Sierra Club website, vice chair Don Bremner said, “A citywide public opinion survey could guide decisions by disclosing what Pasadena residents are willing to pay…and what taxes could finance (open space and parks).”
Bremner said, “A natural area like this, with properly cleared trails, would benefit the whole city, not just the neighbors. It’s out of the way, but it would offer a more secluded wild land experience than more open and visible parks.”
By Charles Cooper
Leave a Reply
