All Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy and Mountains Recreation and Conservation Authority Parkland in the Santa Monica Mountains and Fire Evacuation Areas Closed All Other Conservancy and MRCA- Operated Parks Now Open LOS ANGELES, CA (January 17, 2025) — The Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy announced today that all of its parks and trails in the Santa Monica Mountains andf ire evacuation areas are closed to the public until the fire emergency is over. All parks and trails owned or managed by the Mountains Recreation and Conservation Authority (MRCA) in the Santa Monica Mountains are also closed. In addition, many parks throughout the MRCA’s 80,000-acre jurisdiction in other areas are also closed. See list below. “We appreciate the public’s help in our efforts to keep the community safe,” said MRCA Chief Ranger Fernando Gomez. Park closures include: Temescal Gateway Park King Gillette Ranch All Topanga Canyon Parks including Top of Topanga Overlook, Tuna Canyon Park, Mill Creek, Redrock Canyon Park, Ed Edelman Park All MRCA Parks and Beach Accessways in and adjacent to the City of Malibu including Escondido Canyon Park, Sara Wan Trailhead, Cameron Nature Preserve at Puerco Canyon Dirt Mulholland Drive San Vicente Mountain Park All Mulholland Overlooks Fryman Canyon Park and the Betty Dearing Trail Wilacre Park Franklin Canyon Park Upper Las Virgenes Canyon Open Space Preserve The MRCA maintains its own fire division to protect resources on MRCA-managed properties, and works together with local fire departments, State and federal agencies, and the public to prevent wildfires, and—if necessary—to defend against them. In the current Palisades Fire incident, MRCA Fire Division defended Temescal Gateway Park in the Palisades Fire area. MRCA also successfully defended structures in Upper Las Virgenes Canyon Open Space Preserve in the Kenneth Fire. The MRCA is on 24 hour patrol now and throughout all red flag incidents. Air quality in the region is unhealthy. THE SANTA MONICA MOUNTAINS CONSERVANCY is a State Agency that was established by the California Legislature in 1980. Its mission is to strategically buy back, preserve, protect, restore, and enhance treasured pieces of Southern California to form an interlinking system of urban, rural, and river parks, open space, trails and wildlife habitat that is easily accessible to the public. THE MOUNTAINS RECREATION AND CONSERVATION AUTHORITY (MRCA) is a local public parks agency exercising joint powers of the Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy, the Conejo Recreation and Park District, and the Rancho Simi Recreation and Park District. The MRCA operates and manages all parkland that it owns and that is owned by the Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy. Together, the MRCA and Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy have helped to preserve over 80,000 acres of urban and wilderness parkland.
