Southern Sierran
A Gift In Perpetuity
Elsmere Canyon Preserved
by Sandra Cattell
Santa Clarita Valley Group

A glimpse of the 842 acres now publicly owned in perpetuity at Elsmere Canyon. photo by Henry Schlutz

Friday, November 12, high on a ridgeline overlooking both the San Fernando Valley and the Santa Clarita Valley, I stood with my fellow Sierra Club Angeles Chapter members Geraldine Lorme, Lynne Plambeck, Henry Schultz, Linda Tarnoff and Diane Trautman attended the City of Santa Clarita’s dedication of Elsmere Canyon. We joined dignitaries Congressman Brad Sherman, Supervisor Mike Antonovich, and the entire City of Santa Clarita City Council, as well as representatives from many more elected officials in the gala celebration of escrow closing on Elsmere Canyon, putting all 842 acres into public ownership. It was a joint effort, with contributions by the City of Santa Clarita Open Space District Funds, $3,850,000, the County of Los Angeles, Mike Antonovitch, $1,750,000, and the Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy, $500,000. Located just south of Interstate 14, and east of Interstate 5, Elsmere is a critical link in the wildlife corridor between the Santa Susana and San Gabriel Mountains, and a connecting piece of the Rim of the Valley. Open space advocate and City of Santa Clarita Mayor Laurene Weste (a critical broker of the deal), in addressing the SCV Sierra Club at its October meeting, stated “It’s about putting this land into public ownership, so it is saved in perpetuity, for our children, and our children’s children.”

The history of Elsmere is a study in the power of people dedicated to effecting change. When the Santa Clarita Valley was thinking of becoming a city in 1986, it was discovered the nation’s largest dump was planned for Elsmere Canyon. Sierra Club members Karen Pearson, Jill Klajic, and Marsha McLean organized an army of 10,000 to fight the dump. They reorganized and revitalized the Santa Clarita Group of the Angeles Chapter in 1991, as well as the Elsmere Canyon Preservation Committee. According to Karen Pearson, chair of the SCV group at the time, “When the Sierra Club opposed the landfill, it made headlines here.” Jill Klajic became a city council member, and served as mayor, putting the Save Elsmere campaign into the city spotlight. On a platform of protecting the valley’s water supply from the landfill, Lynne Plambeck was elected to Newhall County Water District. Years later, Marsha McLean became a city council member, continuing the fight, and the dump threat was eventually defeated.

In 2006-2007, local Sierra Club members Sandra Cattell, Henry Schultz, Diane Trautman and Maria Gutzeit served on the City of Santa Clarita’s Open Space District Committee, and the community passed an initiative to tax itself to purchase open space. Although there have been many concerns that the money would be used wisely, we felt safe with our own Sierra Club member Henry Shultz on the Audit and Oversight Committee. The city has leveraged its money by partnering with other entities, purchasing the neighboring properties of Whitney Canyon and East Walker Ranch (Placerita Canyon), as well as other areas. One goal has been a trail connecting the Pacific Crest Trail to the sea (Ventura).

We are proud to have been a partner in the preservation of Elsmere Canyon. Local outings chair Ray Lorme stated “we have led dozens of hikes in the area over the years, exposing thousands of people to the beauty of Elsmere, including Barbara Boxer.” The issue was summed up by Sierra Club member and City of Santa Clarita Mayor-pro-tem Marsha McLean, “In 1989 I was told that the world’s largest dump was a done deal. I’m proud to have fought for 21 years, and finally we have Elsmere in pubic ownership.

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