Legislation will close the Elsmere "donut hole" in Rim OfThe Valley Corridor.

A bill that would revise the boundaries of the Rim of the ValleyTrail Corridor to include all of Elsmere Canyon has been proposedin Sacramento by Senator George Runner.

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Senate Bill 1180, which Runner proposed Feb. 8, will allow theSanta Monica Mountains Conservancy to include Elsmere inside theboundaries of the corridor after a public hearing and scientificland planning studies.

The legislation, which is expected to go to committee in lateMarch or early April, will close the gap left when Elsmere Canyonwas excluded from 1989 and 1999 legislation because owner BrowningFerris Industries wanted to make the 800-acre canyon alandfill.

Since March 2007, 400 acres of Elsmere Canyon have been underthe Mountains Recreation and Conservation Authority, a joint powersauthority of the SMMC, Conejo Recreation and Park District andRancho Simi Recreation and Park District. The remaining 800 acresof Elsmere Canyon are currently for sale by BFI/Allied Waste.

Runner said that the Rim of the Valley Trail Corridor is anoverlay zone that gives the area environmental significance shouldits land use ever come into question in the future.