One year ago, Congress defunded public media. Now that we're 100% community funded, please become a sustaining member or increase your existing membership today.
This is an archival story that predates current editorial management.
This archival content was written, edited, and published prior to LAist's acquisition by its current owner, Southern California Public Radio ("SCPR"). Content, such as language choice and subject matter, in archival articles therefore may not align with SCPR's current editorial standards. To learn more about those standards and why we make this distinction, please click here.
Who Has Hastain Trail? Home Development Threatens Longstanding Franklin Canyon Hiking Location
(Zach Behrens/LAist)
The Hastain Trail above Beverly Hills in Franklin Canyon is in danger of disappearing as the landowner looks to build homes on the location. 62-year-old Mohamed Hadid, designer and builder of more than a dozen Ritz-Carlton hotels and BH "mega-mansions" owns "97 acres abutting Franklin Canyon Park between the San Fernando Valley and Beverly Hills," reports the L.A. Times. The beloved, lasso-shaped trail, in use since the 1960s, "bisects about 45 acres of his property."
"I understand they believe the land belongs to them because they have been hiking here and there for years.... But it's private land," Hadid said. The property is zoned for as many as 11 homes. Hadid said he wants to build six or seven houses on the ridgeline. He envisions a mix of luxury Mediterranean and contemporary-style homes, structured to blend into the mountainside, with at least 10 acres separating them.
According to their attorney, a strong case will reportedly be based on the rule of "implied dedication," which gives "public rights over private land if it is proved to have been used as a trail for five years consecutively before 1972," notes the L.A. Times. Regular hikers from years ago will likely be called to testify and evidence, including dated photos and arial shots, will be gathered.
One year ago, Congress voted to defund public media, eliminating a critical $1.7 million from our budget every year going forward. But they couldn’t silence us, and we’re not going anywhere. LAist is now 100% community funded and that means we’re taking our future into our own hands and turning to you to keep local reporting strong.
You come to LAist because you want independent reporting and trustworthy local information. Our nonprofit newsroom doesn’t answer to shareholders looking to turn a profit. Instead, we answer to you and our communities. We are free to follow facts wherever they lead and to hold power to account without fear or favor. Our only loyalty is to our readers and listeners and our mission: to inform, engage, and strengthen Southern California’s communities.
If this story helped you, please become a monthly member today to help sustain this mission. It just takes 1 minute to donate below.
You come to LAist because you want independent reporting and trustworthy local information. Our nonprofit newsroom doesn’t answer to shareholders looking to turn a profit. Instead, we answer to you and our communities. We are free to follow facts wherever they lead and to hold power to account without fear or favor. Our only loyalty is to our readers and listeners and our mission: to inform, engage, and strengthen Southern California’s communities.
If this story helped you, please become a monthly member today to help sustain this mission. It just takes 1 minute to donate below.
Senior Vice President News, Editor in Chief
