“Preserving this land for permanent open space would be a massive win for our city,” Katy Yaroslavsky says in regards to Senderos Canyon
By Dolores Quintana
LA City Council District Five representative Katy Yaroslavsky has made the case that the city of Los Angeles should purchase the 260-acre Senderos Canyon, one of the last major undeveloped areas in the city located in Bel-Air as reported by 2Urban Girls.Com and introduced a motion before the City Council to explore a purchase.
Yaroslavsky made the case on her official CD5 Twitter page and said, “The owners of Senderos Canyon have attempted to sell the land for over a decade. The problem is that 90% of the available land is undevelopable, and would require massive investment to build on. So, after years of massive price cuts, the land is finally going up for auction. Preserving this land for permanent open space would be a massive win for our city. If properly preserved and managed, the property has an opportunity to present benefits for nearby neighborhoods in the Very High Fire Hazard Severity Zone.”
She added, stressing the importance of open spaces in the city, “It would also mean additional open space for recreational activities and habitat for wildlife. The land borders several large parcels of public land and could expand the Westridge-Canyonback Wilderness Park on the other side of the 405. Over the decades, we have seen so much of our open space lost to development. This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to save what little we have left.”
We reported on the sale on January 27 here and the press release noted that it is “the single most monumental land opportunity in Los Angeles comprising approximately 260 sweeping, pristine acres in the heart of Bel Air, is now listed for sale by auction via Paramount Realty USA, a prominent national auction firm. Bidding is set to begin today, January 24, 2023, at 12:00 p.m. Pacific Time, through the auction deadline of 4:00 p.m. Pacific Time on March 15, 2023.” and that the owners have been trying to sell the 260 acres since 2013 without success. Senderos Canyon is 6% of Bel-Air’s total landmass so it is a significant part of the area within the city.