The National Park Service has awarded a contract to AMA Diversified Construction Group, a company based out of Torrance, to revitalize the trailhead parking lot at Cheeseboro Canyon in Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area (SMMNRA). The project will include site grading; the installation of potable water and storm drainage utilities; new gravel-paved roadways and lots; a pedestrian pathway; and a new vault toilet.

“This project will make a big difference for thousands of hikers, cyclists, and equestrians who recreate in this area year-round,” said Jody Lyle, acting superintendent for SMMNRA. “It will also provide better storm water protection for our Agoura Hills neighbors who live near the trailhead.”

The project is slated to begin on Sept. 19, 2022, with expected completion by early summer next year. Construction will occur four days a week—Monday through Thursday from 7 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. No regular work will be performed on Fridays, weekends, and federal holidays unless there’s a weather delay or unforeseen situation. With fire season right around the corner, park officials will monitor fire weather forecasts and take necessary precautions during red flag days.

The entire area around the existing parking lot (see accompanying map) will be closed during construction. Hikers, cyclists, and equestrians can still access the greater Cheeseboro and Palo Comado trail system via the Lower Cheeseboro Canyon Trail leaving from a temporary parking lot just south of the construction area. Several short trail sections (totaling approximately one mile) will be closed during construction.

This project combines federal dollars with private funds from the National Park Foundation, the Santa Monica Mountains Fund, and the Clifford Holmes estate. Holmes, a property ranch manager for actor Bob Hope, left his estate to this project after he died in the 1980s.

For general questions about the project, contact Ana Beatriz Cholo, the park’s public information officer, at ana_cholo@nps.gov.