Runyon Canyon Booster Group Expected To Speak Out Against Zip Line Proposal
LOS ANGELES (CBSLA.com) —A Runyon Canyon booster group is expected at a neighborhood council meeting Wednesday night to speak out against a 2,900-foot-long zip line proposed by a pair of Los Angeles-area businessmen.
Jeff Pruitt and Ryan Woods will make a presentation to the Hollywood Hills West Neighborhood Council during the group's 6 p.m. meeting.
The neighborhood council does not plan to vote or take a position on the proposal during the meeting.
The two businessmen said they first approached the city Recreation and Parks Department last year about building a zip line in Griffith Park, but after discussing the idea with the department and Councilman Tom La Bonge's office, they changed their proposal for Runyon Canyon.
The zip line would start at Runyon Canyon Road just east of the power line structure and drop gliders 500 feet into the canyon, Pruitt said, landing north of Fuller Gate – a popular site for outdoor yoga classes.
Members of a Runyon Canyon Park booster group that raises money for the park plan to speak out against the idea at the neighborhood council meeting, although they didn't elaborate on their specific concerns. But Pruitt and Woods said they hope to win over residents concerned about increased traffic by running a shuttle from the Hollywood & Highland Center parking area, reducing the number of tourists using residential streets and parking along the roads.
"We want this to become the new way to get to Runyon Canyon," Pruitt said.
The pair also said they would donate $700,000 to fix trails, add bathrooms and make other improvements at Runyon Canyon.
Joe Salaices, superintendent of Recreation and Parks operations, said the proposal is in its "infancy stage" and city officials are still gathering information.
A formal application has not been submitted to the city, but if the city wanted to pursue the idea, there would have to be a competitive bidding process to choose an operator, and the proposal would undergo a public and "transparent" review process, Salaices said.
He said the city recently experimented with a smaller zip line at Venice Beach that was "somewhat semi-successful," but it is "not at the same level" as the Runyon Canyon proposal.
Pruitt said the zip line would be one of very few in the country in an urban area, with most built in "remote mountain ranges or areas overlooking just water."
The proposed Runyon Canyon zip line would offer "basically the best view in Los Angeles," including downtown, the mid-Wilshire area, West Hollywood and "on a clear day you'll be able to see the water," Pruitt said.
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