AGOURA HILLS : Residents Urged to Help Monitor Parks

In an effort to supplement thin sheriff’s coverage, Agoura Hills officials are meeting with residents who live near parks, encouraging them to report suspicious activity after dark.

“One of the things we don’t have is a park ranger program, and if there’s a crime or something, the sheriff’s (deputies) might be somewhere else,” said Agoura Hills Director of Community Services Audrey Brown. “If neighbors can do things like identify (suspects), it can help a lot. Obviously, if people are walking into the park drinking six-packs of beer, they are breaking the law.”

Representatives of the city’s Community Services Department and citizen activists have so far met with neighbors of Reyes Adobe, Chumash and Forest Cove parks. Meetings with residents who live near Morrison, Sumac and the planned Agoura parks will be scheduled next month, Brown said.

According to the Sheriff’s Department, Agoura Hills has a contract for one to three patrol cars within the city, depending on the time of day.

Another purpose of the meetings is to gather input on how to improve the parks, including how to use more than $250,000 in Los Angeles County bond money available to the city, Brown said.

So far, suggestions have included installing more playground equipment, trash cans and shades for picnic areas, as well as stricter enforcement of the city’s leash law for dogs, Brown said. “Some of these are little things that we can do without a whole lot of money,” she said. “Anything we can do to make the parks a nicer place for everybody, we want to do.”