Roadblock bars access in Agua Dulce
AGUA DULCE — County officials brokered a shaky truce Tuesday afternoon between the manager of a trailer park and residents who, until a few days ago, drove through the park to get to their homes on Briggs Road.
The Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department began receiving calls about a makeshift roadblock behind the Oasis trailer park and campground on Friday.
Rick Helton, a Briggs Road resident, was one of the first to encounter the hastily erected roadblock. On Tuesday, the barrier took the form of a dirt berm and a wrecked car.
“I came home Friday and everything was locked up. I couldn’t get home,” he said Tuesday, standing just outside the boundary of Oasis with other disgruntled residents. “My wife and children are in Canyon Country right now because we can’t get to our home.”
Oasis park manager Manny Fernandez equated granting passage to residents with seizing property from the new owner of the park, a company identified as Agua Dulce Ranch. Basically, Fernandez said he felt legally entitled to block traffic.
“They want to go through, which we think is basically stealing property,” he said.
Parties on both sides of the right-of-way dispute contend threats about gunplay figured in the arguments. Sheriff’s officials say they received no complaints about threats involving guns.
In order to block access to the 15 homes hidden in the rocky hills, workers at Oasis erected a 4-foot-high dirt barrier across the road, which is little more than a flattened dirt path. For added insurance, a wrecked car was left blocking the road.
Fernandez pointed out these ad hoc security measures with a hint of pride. He watched a silver truck lumber down the path, doubtful that emergency vehicles could make the trip any easier.
“I doubt very much that the Fire Department can get there in time to save anybody,” Fernandez said. “It’s no more a road than this part of the hill.”
At least one other road that could provide access to the homes on Briggs Road exists, but the county has ruled it unusable. Fernandez said that road is privately owned by the Briggs homeowners association, which failed to maintain it.
“These people neglected their own road, and it’s in shambles,” he said. “The Fire Department feels they cannot get through. The county will undertake the expense to make the road usable. That should have been taken care of by the homeowners association.”
Fernandez contends residents only want to pass through the park as a matter of convenience.
Norm Hickling, a deputy to 5th District Supervisor Michael D. Antonovich, disagrees with Fernandez’s assessment. Antonovich represents the Antelope and Santa Clarita valleys.
“The only thing the county is worried about right now is the public safety so we can get emergency access for fire and the police department,” Hickling said.
“Any other routes are all unusable right now. I personally inspected one of those routes and it’s not passable by car. It’s not a convenience issue. It’s a public health and safety issue.”
Just who owns the alternate route up to Briggs Road — the county or a private owner — has yet to be determined. “The next couple weeks are going to be very busy while people figure out what rules apply,” Hickling said.
As Fernandez noted the features of his barrier, a blue pickup truck drove up the embankment, over the railroad tracks, past the remains of the dirt barrier and slowly began making its way up the winding road.
Fernandez recognized the driver.
“Today he’s in good form ’cause the cops are here and you’re here,” he said to a reporter.
“Usually he races through here at 50 or 60 miles per hour at 2 a.m.,” Fernandez said.
The road residents are fighting so desperately to keep open is barely passable in a small car. Light trucks bounce on the rocks and depressions all the way up to the summit. No one can call it an easy road.
Agua Dulce Ranch has owned the property for 10 days but has been in negotiation for eight months, according to Fernandez.
“We’re just going to leave the road open,” he said. “In the meantime, we’re going to comply with the Fire Department requirements and make sure the road is clear. These people here threatened people in there at gunpoint. I don’t know specifically which one, but some of them have done that.”
Sheriff’s deputies could not verify any threats by residents.
“I am not aware of anything of that nature,” said Deputy Erich Deopking, who used to live in the area. “The residents are decent people. If that happened, he has not reported it to me or anybody else.”
Deputy Mark Johnson informed the frustrated residents of the agreement reached between the county and Fernandez.
“They (Oasis) are being cited by the Fire Department,” he told Briggs Road homeowners. “They can’t block access until other access is made.”
If access is blocked again, the owner will receive a misdemeanor citation. A third violation can trigger an arrest warrant. Oasis currently cannot operate as a trailer park or campground, although the owner has applied for a conditional-use permit from the county.