COSF News   (November 2008)                                    

2008 Trail Work Day
Over 185 volunteers turned out for this year’s Conejo Open Space Trail Work Day, to make the event a great success. Groups from CLU, COSCA staff, scouts, Santa Monica Mountains Trails Council, Sierra Club, bike clubs, Newbury Park High School, equestrian groups, and many individual volunteers participated. The work accomplished included sections of trail realignments on Saddle Pass Trail (North Ranch near Bowfield Street) and on Potrero Ridge Trail (east of Via Las Brisas). Significant work was also accomplished at the Botanic Gardens, and on Lindero Canyon Creek Trail. Click here to view a slideshow of Trail Work Day photos.


Conejo Canyons Management Plan Public Workshop
To summarize the Conejo Canyons Management Plan Public Workshop held on October 22, 2008, an October 25, 2008 article in the Ventura County Star states in part:

COSCA, a joint powers agency created by the city of Thousand Oaks and the Conejo Recreation and Park District in 1977, held the first of two planned community workshops Wednesday night at Thousand Oaks City Hall to gather public comments on the plan for the Conejo Canyons area, which includes Wildwood Park, Arroyo Conejo, the Western Plateau and Lynnmere. About 50 people, many of them hiking and outdoors enthusiasts who regularly use the area, listened to a presentation by COSCA Manager Kristin Foord, then broke into smaller groups to brainstorm and come up with suggestions for the management plan. Foord told the gathering that the purpose of a management plan is to "identify the existing resources, the management challenges and then develop recommendations for how to best preserve those resources and solve those management challenges and come up with some plans, goals and visions for the area." She said public use of the area, including hiking trails, is an important component of the plan, but it will address more elements, including archaeological, paleontological and geological resources, and flora and fauna. "The overriding theme of everything COSCA does is that conservation of the natural resources is the dominant theme in all of our management decisions," Foord said. After the brainstorming sessions, the groups presented their concerns and suggestions in writing to Ann Dove of the National Park Service, who is helping COSCA gather public comments. "Overall, they want to see the open space stay approximately as it is today with a few added amenities at trail heads such as more restrooms, water fountains, a few things to make the visitor experience more pleasant," Foord said. She said the public's comments will be incorporated into a first draft of the management plan, which will be presented at the next community workshop, in early 2009. Based on additional community input to be gathered at that meeting, the first draft will be revised into a final draft, which will be presented to the COSCA Board of Directors by the end of 2009 for its consideration.

The public comment period continues through November 22, 2008. Draft trail maps are available for review/download on COSCA's website at www.conejo-openspace.org/news_and_events.htm.

For comments, or to be added to the mailing list for notification about the second workshop planned for early 2009, please contact Shelly Austin, COSCA Associate Planner, at 805.449.2339 or by email at saustin@toaks.org.


Conejo Open Space Trails Advisory Committee (COSTAC) meetings are open to the public, and are usually held on the first Monday of each month. However, there is no COSTAC meeting scheduled for December due to the holidays. The next meeting is scheduled for January 5, 2009. For information, please contact Shelly Austin, COSCA Associate Planner, at 805.449.2339 or saustin@toaks.org.