JANN HENDRY/Acorn Newspapers TAPO CANYON PARK-The future of Tapo Canyon Park is a concern of Supervisor Judy Mikels. She wants to rebuild the park with RV hook-ups and a dumping station at the expense of two horse arenas. Supervisor Judy Mikels announced last week plans to rebuild Tapo Canyon Park are on hold until after the June 6 primary.

The announcement comes after critics charged Mikels with using the park to generate preelection publicity.

Volunteers were scheduled in early January to clean up the 212-acre recreational area, which has been closed since the wildfires of 2003, with the hope that the park would reopen shortly thereafter. However, Mikels postponed the cleanup to meet with residents on the $1million park renovation she had planned that included hook-ups for recreational vehicles, and picnic and play areas.

Gene Hostetler, chairman of the Rancho Simi Recreation and Park District, said Mikels only brings up the subject of Tapo Canyon Park, a hot-button issue with residents, during elections. Before the last election, she suggested the county would be willing to give or sell the park to the district, Hostetler said.

"After the election it was pulled off the table," he said.

Jarrod DeGonia, Mikels' aide, disagrees.

"My response to that is if it was a political ploy, then Judy wouldn't delay it until after June 6," he said. "She wants to do it for the right reasons, not for political reasons, so she's going to wait until after the election."

DeGonia said the issue has become too politicized for constructive dialogue. After the June primary, Mikels will keep her promise to meet again with residents to discuss the revised plan.

In a press release issued last week, Hostetler and resident Ryan Chaleff, whose home sits adjacent to the park, said that the park has suffered from years of county neglect and they want it turned over to the park district.

"The county can't compete with our building and maintaining of the parks," Hostetler said, describing the only other eastern county park as a shambles. "(Oak Park's) not wellmaintained. We would never have a park look like that."

Chaleff doesn't want park improvements to include overnight facilities for campers.

"I'll look right out of my window and that's what I'm going to see, a trailer park," he said. "We just want the park the way it was (before the fires)."

Chaleff isn't alone. Reportedly, the Friends of Tapo Canyon Park collected 200 signatures on a petition asking that the county just restore the park to its pre-fire state, which offered only restrooms and two equestrian arenas.

DeGonia said Mikels responded by revising the plan last month to include an equestrian arena. He said there will be more discussion about it in the future.