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# Millionaire sells land in SM mountains for cheap
- URL: https://www.smdp.com/millionaire-sells-land-in-sm-mountains-for-cheap/
- Published: 2002-05-03T15:00:00.000Z
- Updated: 2026-10-23T00:16:04.000Z
- Author: Guest Author
- Tags: Environment, Malibu, #archive-import

*Land to be opened for hiking, camp for kids*

*By See BILL, page 4 BY ANDREW H. FIXMER Daily Press Staff Writer*

Thanks to the generosity of a hair-care product mogul, Topanga State Park now will reach from some of the tallest peaks in the Santa Monica Mountains to the shore of the Pacific Ocean.

John Paul DeJoria, founder of Paul Mitchell Hair Care Products, sold 410 acres of undeveloped open space between Malibu Canyon and Topanga Canyon for $1.4 million, a fraction of its estimated worth.

The land, reportedly valued at $13 million, will largely be paid for by a grant from the California State Coastal Conservancy.

“It is the most pristine place, situated right on Pacific Coast Highway,” DeJoria said. “There is a year-round creek that runs through the center of the property, and there is amazing wildlife — deer, coyote and birds galore.”

Under terms of the sale, the land must remain undeveloped and open except for hiking trails and maintenance buildings. A camp will be created so inner-city urban children from low-income neighborhoods can experience the wilderness.

DeJoria originally planned to develop the land by creating 12 or more estate properties of about 20 acres each.

“But the more I thought about it, the more I believed it would be a pity to develop — it’s just too pretty,” he said.

> “The more I thought about it, the more I believed it would be a pity to develop — it’s just too pretty” — — JOHN PAUL DEJORIA Paul Mitchell Hair Care Products founder

DeJoria said he thought about giving the land to the Chumash Indians, but restoring the land to its original state would conflict with government agencies. Then he said he figured he would open the land to anybody who wanted to walk through it.

DeJoria said as a kid growing up in Echo Park, going to Griffith Park or Elysian Park was a big deal.

“Being outdoors, having space — all these kids need this,” he said. “We want the land maintained as it exists now with hiking trails and places for families to go.”

Mountains Restoration Trust will honor DeJoria today. At the ceremony, the new section of Topanga State Park will be officially named the DeJoria Family Tuna Canyon Preserve.

The 400-plus acres will fill out 1,659 acres purchased last year by the state for Topanga State Park and 1,256 acres acquired by the Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy last December.

The trust plans on working with the state and the conservancy to protect wildlife habitats and explore non-invasive recreational uses of the land.

The Mountains Restoration Trust is a nonprofit organization that was established in 1981 by the California State Coastal Commission and the California State Coastal Conservancy, in accordance with the Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy Act of 1979\. The trust has been responsible for the acquisition and preservation of more than 4,000 acres in the Los Angeles County area.

![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/55/9f/559f9abc-8372-4a2e-8c2d-27386da4e363/content/images/2026/10/050302-04_01.jpg)

More than 400 acres will be added to Topanga State Park thanks to the generosity of John Paul DeJoria, the founder of Paul Mitchell Hair Care Products. (Photo: Carolyn Sackariason/Daily Press)

*Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on May 3, 2002.* [Read the original PDF.](https://s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/smdp%5Fbackissues/050302.pdf?ref=smdp.com)