After discussing all things open space in Santa Clarita with county Supervisor Kathryn Barger Wednesday, Councilwoman Laurene Weste was recognized for her work behind the effort to add more than 191,000 acres of the Rim of the Valley Corridor to the Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area.
The National Parks Conservation Association, a nonprofit organization that advocates on behalf of the National Park System, honored Weste for her leadership in progressing the Rim of the Valley Campaign during the organization’s centennial celebration at the historic El Pueblo de Los Angeles Wednesday.
“I have the utmost respect for the mission and goals of the National Park Conservation Association,” Weste said in a statement. “Their work so closely aligns with my passion for preserving the crucial natural resources of the Santa Clarita Valley and the surrounding mountain ranges. I am deeply honored to be selected for this recognition.”
House Resolution 1709, formally known as the Rim of the Valley Corridor Preservation Act, was introduced by Rep. Adam Schiff, D-Burbank, on March 13, and would expand the Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area to include a proposed Rim of the Valley Corridor Unit, which includes portions of the Santa Clarita Valley.
The bill would enable the National Park Service and local communities “to better protect natural resources and habitats, and provide members of the community with improved access to nature for recreational and educational purposes,” according to Schiff’s office.
Weste, who helped found the city’s open space preservation district, testified in support of the resolution in Washington, D.C., in April, where she said that H.R. 1709 could “lead to leveraging modest federal investments, which will yield high levels of return by creating and enhancing amenities that residents and businesses value in making their decisions to locate in our community and surrounding areas.”
