AGOURA HILLS : New Park Cause for Celebration for Local Man

Ron Troncatty recalls that back in 1984, when he began telling people about his dream of a new city park, they told him he was crazy.

Troncatty, then vice president of the Old Agoura Homeowners Assn., wanted to arrange a land swap: the 2.75-acre city-owned site on which the old park was situated for another tract down the street, a nine-acre parcel owned by a developer.

“It’s not normally done, trading property like that,” Troncatty said.

But he never gave up and, 10 years later, Troncatty was one of the speakers Tuesday at the groundbreaking for the new park.

“I am so happy. This is a dream come true for me, and for a lot of other people,” he said.

Construction on the first phase of the new park--an equestrian facility--is scheduled to begin Monday, said Audrey Brown, the city’s director of community services. The first phase is expected to be complete next spring.

The park is being funded with a $600,000 grant from the Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy. The City Council recently awarded a contract for $618,465 to Terra Cal Construction Inc. for the first phase.

No general funds will be used for the project, city officials said. Additional funds will come from money raised under the Los Angeles County Park Bond Act.

The equestrian center, which will link up with a regional equestrian trail system, will be located between Chesebro Road, Colodny Drive and Driver Avenue.

Funding also has been obtained for a baseball field and a children’s playground, said Audrey Brown, the city’s director of community services. Funds are still being sought for a full-size basketball court and a 1,500-square-foot recreation building, she said Tuesday.

Under the plans, the equestrian center would be free and open to users from throughout the region. The center would be near a portion of the Zuma Ridge Trail, an equestrian path running through the county.

The old park was built by Los Angeles County and taken over by the city when it incorporated in 1982.

Land for the new park was obtained by trading the old park site to Chesebro Development Group for nine acres, on which the new park is to be built, Brown said.

The city already owned one acre at the site. Chesebro agreed to the swap, Brown said, because the 2.75 acres are not prone to flooding.