Agenda Item: 4
CITY OF SANTA CLARITA
AGENDA REPORT
UNFINISHED BUSINESS
CITY MANAGER APPROVAL:
DATE: June 13, 2023
SUBJECT: ANALYSIS RELATED TO THE FEASIBILITY OF TRANSFERRING OWNERSHIP OF WILLIAM S. HART REGIONAL PARK
DEPARTMENT: Neighborhood Services
PRESENTER: Jerrid McKenna
RECOMMENDED ACTION
City Council review the analysis related to the feasibility of assuming ownership and operations of William S. Hart Regional Park and provide direction to staff.
BACKGROUND
At the November 23, 2021, regular meeting, the City Council approved the recommended action to send a letter to the County of Los Angeles (County) requesting the County’s consideration to transfer ownership of the William S. Hart Regional Park (Hart Park) to the City of Santa Clarita (City). If agreeable in concept to the County, it was outlined at the meeting that staff would work with County staff to develop a report that would include future financial obligations, details on deed restrictions, and an outline of the process and timeline to complete the transfer for the City Council to review and consider at a future meeting.
Shortly after that approval, a team of approximately twenty City staff was formed to complete this analysis. The full report is attached as reading file to this item for review. In addition, a summary of key findings from the analysis has been included below.
Key Findings
History of the Site
Hart Park is an approximately 160-acre park that is currently owned and operated by the County, but located in the City.
The property on which Hart Park is located belonged to silent film star William S. Hart, who left the bulk of his estate to the County upon his death in 1946, stipulating that his home and ranch
property be used as a museum and public park. Hart Park is home to the William S. Hart Museum, historic Heritage Junction, many native plants and animals, and a herd of American Bison. Amenities at Hart Park include hiking and nature trails, a large picnic area, and buildings that had been used by William S. Hart personally.
Last Will and Testament
William S. Hart’s Last Will and Testament (Will), executed on September 9, 1944, governs and outlines use and maintenance requirements at the site. More specifically, the Will states the following, “The Park shall be forever used exclusively as a public park and pleasure grounds, and for exhibition purposes, for the amusement, recreation, health, and pleasure of its inhabitants. The Park shall be open to public use at all times, subject to proper restrictions to be provided by the Board of Supervisors of the County. No charge or fee shall ever be made to the public for admittance to the Park.”
1991 Court Order
Upon initial analysis and feedback collected from the County, revenue generating events at the Park were significantly limited due to the Will. However, a Court order issued on August 13, 1991 by the Superior Court for the State of California to the County of Los Angeles determined "...that fees for special events and fundraising to support the park are consistent with Hart's will."
This Court order would allow events including, but not limited to, "...classes, concerts, plays and movies...filmmaking, weddings...company outings and birthday celebrations. Such events shall be scheduled so that they will not unreasonably restrict the public's general uses of the park either as to area or time." Further, the Court Order requires specific accounting for money collected for these special events: "...any money obtained from the programs or fundraising activities permitted herein shall be segregated and accounted for separately...and used exclusively for and at William S. Hart County Park."
Properties
Eight properties exist within the Hart Park property, two of which are not subject to the Will (purchased from other entities by the County):
• 2827-001-902 (9.33 acres; third portion purchased by Hart) • 2827-001-903 (0.24 acres; County purchased in 1968 from the federal government – formerly a forest ranger office)
• 2827-001-904 (24.4 acres; owned by the Frew family and sold to County in 1958—not subject to the Will)
• 2827-001-905 (13.4 acres; purchased by Hart c. 1933)
• 2827-001-906 (41.3 acres; purchased by Hart c. 1933)
• 2827-001-907 (33.7 acres; purchased by Hart c. 1926-7) • 2827-001-912 (32.1 acres; first portion purchased by Hart in 1921)
• 2827-001-913 (1.23 acres; County purchased in early 1970s from Cal Lutheran Church— not subject to the Will)
Site Condition
The project team has conducted multiple inspections at the site over the last year. While the team obtained some records of completed capital projects and details about ongoing maintenance, there is deferred maintenance to the facilities and the surrounding landscape that would need to be addressed.
Facilities
All facilities on the site have been inspected by City staff and itemized into a tiered level of importance pertaining to safety with associated costs to repair. The County provided a recent capital reserve study to help identify areas of immediate need and outline the investments made recently to rehabilitate some of the facilities. Most of the more modern facilities are functional, but must be addressed over time. The historical facilities are in good condition at this time, with some immediate needs that have been identified.
Landscape
Maintenance to the landscape has been kept to a minimum in recent years. It appears only basic mow and blow services are being provided on a daily basis. Many of the surrounding trees near walkways and pathways are deteriorating or in need of pruning to protect the health of the tree or adjacent structures. Immediate needs include removing dead or declining trees, pruning poorly structured trees, stump grinding to remove existing stumps, and pest management treatments for trees showing symptoms of pathogenic activity.
Hart Mansion
The Hart Mansion/Museum (Mansion) has been closed since the Pandemic. The construction of the Mansion was completed in 1927 and houses the three-dimensional portion of the Hart Collection. Rehabilitation work has been performed periodically since the late 1980s by the Department of Parks and Recreation, Natural History Museum (NHM) staff, and contractors.
Overall, the Mansion is in good condition. However, the materials and systems in this building are outdated and unique. This will likely require outside contractors to complete future maintenance and repairs. Further, there are two items in need of immediate attention: the HVAC and the phos-chek (fire retardant) system.
Hart Collection
Obtaining ownership of the Hart Collection, both physical and digital, would be a significant effort, along with the ongoing responsibilities associated with collection management. There are currently more than 6,000 artifacts located at the Mansion. Periodically, objects are temporarily transferred for conservation and temporary exhibitions. All objects are moved back to the Mansion after completing conservation work and a temporary exhibition display. These
transactions are permanently recorded by Incoming and Outgoing Receipts kept by the Registrar's Office. Collections are continuously tracked for insurance purposes. Part of the Hart Collection is also held at the Seaver Center and has been kept in digital format.
Hart Collection at the Seaver Center
The archival portion of the Hart Collection was removed from the Hart Mansion in the 1980s and is housed at the Seaver Center. The intention was to return the collection to Hart Park once the County constructed an appropriate facility to house the collection and provide public access. This did not happen. The NHM staff stated that the collection is integrated into their history collection at the Seaver Center and that it would be a challenge to remove it for the transfer. This process could take considerable time. With some planning, it could be possible to house the archival collection in the City’s Archives at Newhall Library. The close proximity of Newhall Library to the Hart Museum will allow patrons to visit the Museum and then research or browse Hart's personal and professional records in the City’s Archives at the Newhall Library.
Museum Collection Data Transfer
City staff met with the NHM’s collections and Technology Services (TS) staff to discuss the data transfer of the digital assets. Currently, there is no in-house system that can accommodate this type of collection/data. Using Polaris, the Library’s integrated library system, for this purpose is not feasible because the software cannot support museum or archival collections. Moving forward, it will be important to identify a secure means for storing Hart Collection data (collection management system) with appropriate redundancy to ensure there is no loss of information.
Future Programming
Recreational and event programming, offered by the City, could vary from large scale, single- day special events to weekly youth camps and staff- or volunteer-led community hikes. The City has developed several new programs that would fit within Hart Park including a Youth Outdoor Adventure Camp and a Community Hike series that continues to grow. Staff also anticipates Hart Hall being part of the City’s facility reservation options for the community with weekly rentals and meetings be held in the space. The seven group campgrounds are also a great addition to the City for various rentals and events for a variety of different groups. City staff also expects to offer interactive programming including animal tours, animal caretaking classes, movies in the park, and seasonal youth camps similar to Camp Clarita.
Revenue Potential
On the revenue side, it is important to note that revenue opportunities were very limited in the past due to the properties being enforced by the William S. Hart Will, which states that the Park is to be free to the public. However, the project team believes there may be additional revenue opportunities to help pay for annual operations and capital improvements at the site.
As an example, when the Cowboy Festival switched locations to Hart Park, the City had to develop a different structure to make the event free to the public. As a result, general admission
to the event was free to everyone, but the City was able to charge for VIP passes and fees for vendors. Revenue opportunities like these are supported by a court order that was issued to the County on August 1, 1991, "...finding that fees for special events and fundraising to support the park are consistent with Hart's will."
With knowledge of precedential events at the site and the court order, another significant revenue stream that could be captured at this site is filming. While the park needs to be open to the public for free, sections of the park could be sectioned off for filming similar to how filming at other City parks is conducted.
Finally, there is a large parcel (24.4 acres) included in the possible transfer that is not governed by the Will. The opportunities for revenue generation on this parcel could be fully explored and were not included in the financial impact in the following section.
Financial Impact
After a thorough review of documentation provided by the County, the City developed a financial forecast that assumes taking over all operations of Hart Park and maintenance of the grounds and facilities, including functions of the Mansion and services for animals at the site. It also assumes relocating existing programming and events to Hart Park and expanding new programming at the site over time; however, as mentioned previously, as a conservative measure, it does not capture any significant new events, filming activity, or new use of the non-Will parcel.
Year 1 Ongoing
Revenues $331,780 $380,220
Expenditures $3,449,410* $2,324,974
Net ($3,117,631) ($1,944,754)
*includes $650,000 in one time need for emergent capital projects
Opportunities and Challenges
While there is still much to learn about the overall operations and condition of the park amenities, historical artifacts and facilities, the project team has made a great deal of discovery over the last year. They developed a comprehensive list of potential opportunties with assuming ownership and operations of the site and potential challenges.
Opportunities
• Large regional park
• Last County-owned park within the City boundary
• Includes the former Senior Center property
• Possible revenue potential beyond current operations (filming, events, etc.) • Control of enhancements to the park
• Local historic educational opportunities
• Preservation of local history and significance
• Leveraged volunteer work
• Increase in community support for one-time and annual donations to improve the Park
Challenges/Unknowns
• Significant effort to extract and transfer historical artifacts (physical and digital) related to the Hart Collection
• Management of the Museum including preservation of the Hart Collection • Absence of historic building plans for future maintenance • Maintenance and repair of aging, historic facilities with unfamiliar, complicated systems • anagement and care of animals at the site
• Infrastructure issues and repairs (e.g. slope failure, phos-chek system, water storage tank, retaining walls, etc.)
• Evacuation and preservation of historic artifacts during emergencies
Next Steps
Should the City Council and the County Board of Supervisors agree to move forward on the transfer of ownership, the City would incur expenses related to each of the steps below, including, but not limited to, appraisal and title reports; CEQA exemption filing; probate preparation, filing and processing; and preparation of legal documents. Staff estimates it could take anywhere from 18 to 24 months to complete the steps identified below to fully execute the transfer and begin City operations of the Park.
• City Council direction to proceed with the Transfer
• Complete Title Report and Appraisal
• CEQA - Class 25 Exemption
• Probate Court (County would file; City cost)
• Formal approval by City and County for transfer
• Execution of documents
• Natural History Museum Transfer Agreement for Collection • Determine grants associated with the site and reassignment • Prepare for transfer (recruit and hire staff, purchase equipment) • Certificate of Acceptance
• Trust Fund Transfer
ALTERNATIVE ACTION
Other action as determined by the City Council.
FISCAL IMPACT
There is no fiscal impact on this item.
ATTACHMENTS
William S. Hart Park Transition Report