The city of Santa Clarita is looking to approve a trail easement, a meditation garden and an updated emergency plan on the City Council’s agenda for Tuesday.
A trail easement also is on the agenda for near Highway 14 and Placerita Canyon Road, according to maps provided by the city, which does not identify the property owner that is to receive the requested vacated land in the agenda report recommending the land swap.
Easement
The property was originally recorded by Standard Oil, which granted easements to L.A. County for a road that would be known as Placerita Canyon Road in the 1940s, according to the history of the lot in the city’s agenda.
Now the property owner for the lot is asking the city to vacate its easement for a property at the northwest corner of Placerita Canyon Road and Sierra Highway.
The land is currently co-owned by several individuals, according to city officials who did not name the owners.
Anthony Matthess, president of SVI Properties, represents the owner, and said the property likely is being eyed for a possible future development, but there’s been no publicly stated plan for the property other than the commitment to maintain an existing trail. He declined to name his clients pending escrow for the property.
“The property owner has offered to dedicate a 12-foot-wide easement for public use and trail purposes within the property,” according to the city’s agenda. “The location of the easement will be adjusted based on future development-site plans.”
The online property-records system for the L.A. County Assessor’s Office was not functional Monday due to a system outage, according to an official at the Sylmar Assessor’s Office.
Meditation garden
City staff is recommending a winning bid of just under $200,000 for a meditation garden project at Duane R. Harte Park, in order to create “a tranquil, reflective outdoor space that promotes relaxation and mindfulness for park visitors.”
The safe space is expected to be located toward the rear of the park and feature “decomposed granite walking paths, drought-tolerant landscaping, natural stone elements, wooden benches, and a solar-powered boulder fountain,” according to the city staff recommendation.
“These design elements are intended to complement the existing park setting and provide a designated space for quiet use,” according to an agenda report prepared by Tyler Pledger of the City Manager’s Office.
The recommended winning bid was submitted by Estate Design and Construction from Culver City.
Emergency management
The city of Santa Clarita also is planning to update its emergency plans, according to the agenda.
The City Council is scheduled to review the winning bid for a consulting firm to update its local hazard mitigation plan, which outlines the city’s long-term strategy to reduce or eliminate risk to human life, property and infrastructure from future natural or human-caused disasters.
The Federal Emergency Management Agency requires the plan to be updated every five years, and the city’s is due to expire in November 2026.
The agenda recommends the bid for Jacob Green and Associates, a Tustin firm.
