Santa Clarita residents will have an opportunity to receive information on a proposed parks initiative Friday at 1:30 p.m. at the Santa Clarita Valley Senior Center. The city has proposed an Open Space and Parkland Preservation District and is in the process of sending ballots to the city’s property owners. Fifty percent or more of the ballots must approve the proposal for it to progress any further. The City Council will tally the ballots and decide on the district on Nov. 23. If the district is approved for the 2006-07 fiscal year, property owners would pay $25.10 a year toward the purchase, development and maintenance of open space and parkland. Of the $1.4 million the district would generate in the first year, the funds can be used only in specific ways, said Darren Hernandez, the city’s director of administrative services. Hernandez also said the district would aid Santa Clarita in completing a “green belt” of open space surrounding the city. Parks Director Rick Gould said the purpose of Friday’s meeting is “to educate city residents regarding the potential effects of the district so property owners feel they have acquired adequate information to make a yes or no decision.”

For more information on the proposed district or Friday’s meeting, call 286-4023