No Oil Drilling “EVER” In Temescal Canyon
For years, PPRA and No Oil, Inc., with support
from its members, persisted in protecting the entrance of
Temescal Canyon State Park from oil drilling activities,
especially since the mid 1990’s attempt to drill core
holes by a consortium of petroleum officials (please see
historical timeline on pages 2 and 3).
Well, this past year was a great year for PPRA and
the Community – on August 21, 2007, covenant papers
were recorded that prohibit oil drilling in the canyon!!
Coastal drilling has been prohibited ever since the
passage of Prop 0 in 1988 – Canyon drilling is now
prohibited by the newly recorded covenant! Thank you
to all who worked so tirelessly to accomplish this.
The focus of our efforts was on the 3.95-acre State
Park parcel at the corner of Temescal Canyon Blvd. and
Sunset Blvd. This parcel will be subdivided from the
State Park, at which point the YMCA of Metropolitan
Los Angeles will likely exercise their option to purchase
and acquire the land from the Santa Monica Mountains
Conservancy. While the rest of the State Park land
north of Sunset Blvd is public open space, and thereby
protected for the pleasure and use of all residents and
citizens of the City of Los Angeles (i.e. no oil drilling
is allowed), the disposition of oil drilling rights to the
soon-to-be-subdivided parcel was unresolved until
the formal subdivision papers were drafted. PPRA is
gratified that after an enormous amount of work, these
papers were worded to our satisfaction.
Efforts were made by the applicant to record the
parcel map without the oil drilling restriction; efforts
were made by the applicant to record the covenant with
the provision that the oil restriction could be modified,
terminated, or changed by the city; efforts were made
to record the parcel map with the remainder land not
specified as State Park Land; and, efforts were made
by the applicant to record the documents with the
subdivision requested by the local Palisades Y rather
than the rightful owner, the YMCA of Metropolitan
Los Angeles with corporate offices at 625 South
New Hampshire, Los Angeles, CA 90005. Hours of
volunteer time dealing with emails and meetings,
including numerous hours reviewing documents by
Nancy Markel, a PPRA and No Oil board member,
were required to achieve the proper wording to protect
the parcel.
The map is recorded with “no oil drilling activities
in any form are allowed on the subject property”,
referring to the 3.95-acre parcel. The adjoining
parcels are recorded as “State Park Land” with the
acreage of the remainder State Park land documented.
Additionally the Parcel Map (L. A. 7245), states that it
was “at the request of LARRY ROSEN, of YMCA of
METROPOLITAN LOS ANGELES.”
This covenant protects the land from industrial
activities without possibility of modification by any city
agency, or by any owner, now or in the future. PPRA
and No Oil, Inc. would like to thank Councilman Bill
Rosendahl, who worked diligently with us to ensure
that the land was protected in perpetuity from oil
drilling activities of any kind in the August parcel map
recording.
Someday another history may be written about
the Palisades, including the struggle over subdividing
Temescal State Park for private use – it should
describe the collective efforts of this community, of
the tenaciousness of No Oil, Inc. and Pacific Palisades
Residents Association, and of Councilman Bill
Rosendahl to safeguard the land from drilling activities
for future generations.
What happens next to the 3.95-acres at the corner
of Temescal Canyon and Sunset Blvd. will have to be
watched by the greater community, including other
organizations and other community activists.
PPRA and No Oil, Inc. have fulfilled their part –
the land is protected so that oil-drilling activities in any
form will never occur. I urge the community and future
generations to be vigilant!!
