Swimming pool hours, hiking trail access, boating rentals and after-dark programs will be cut at various Los Angeles County parks, due to a revenue squeeze that takes an 8.5% bite out of the county’s Parks and Recreation’s annual budget.

While the $22 million in spending cuts are spread throughout the sprawling LA County Parks system, they will affect adults and children heading to parks in an effort to escape the summer heat or find a green space for healthy, outdoor exercise often unavailable in crowded, lower-income neighborhoods.

The length of the county’s pool season will be reduced, from 23 weeks to 11 weeks, ending on Aug. 16.  The Parks After Dark programs will be eliminated at 34 parks countywide, accompanied by reductions in part-time staffing and administrative functions, county Parks and Recreation announced last week.

Six regional parks will be closed on Mondays and Tuesdays starting on Monday, June 30. These are:

• Castaic

• Frank G. Bonelli

• Kenneth Hahn

• Peter F. Schabarum

• Santa Fe Dam

• Whittier Narrows

Regional lakes at Castaic, Bonelli in San Dimas and Santa Fe Dam in Irwindale will be closed for swimming, boating and fishing on Mondays and Tuesdays. These activities will be open Wednesday through Sunday.

In order to meet the 8.5% reduction to the parks’ budget, parks administrators said in a statement that they had to make “some difficult but necessary decisions to preserve our core mission.”

The county budget cuts are attributed to drops in property tax revenues due to the January wildfires, anticipated curtailment of federal dollar allotments and a $4 billion settlement involving  6,800 sexual abuse claims, some dating as far back as the 1950s, made against county employees who worked in county-run facilities.

While parks remain open, i.e., being the core mission of the department, the cuts to operating days, programs and staffing will be permanent, the department announced. Signs announcing the closures have been placed at regional parks.

Parks and Recreation spokesperson Josh Van Gundy said that the moves “are part of our budget cuts” and would not comment further. Likewise, Annette Kondo, public information officer, declined to comment or elaborate on the cuts and their effects on county residents. Instead, the department directed all media inquiries to the department webpage and a list of “frequently asked questions.”

One resident asked: “I use the regional parks for my daily walks, exercise and mental health, why am I not able to just walk in the park?” The answer provided was no, no one would be allowed into the regional parks on Mondays and Tuesdays and that includes vehicles and pedestrians, because there will be “no active park supervision, which presents safety concerns for visitors.” That includes closure of all trails in those six parks.

Boats, even those privately owned, will not be allowed at county lakes on those two days. Also the Castaic campground will be closed on Mondays and Tuesdays. All school field trips scheduled for Mondays and Tuesdays at the six regional parks are canceled. The county emphasized in its FAQs statement that all smaller, local county parks are not affected by these closures and remain open seven days a week.

In addition to cuts, the county is imposing fee increases to drive into a regional park. Also, boat launching fees at county lakes will be increased. But the county would not provide details on the new fee schedules. Entrance fees are proposed to jump at botanic gardens, including the Los Angeles County Arboretum and Botanic Garden in Arcadia.

Parks and Recreation is asking residents to donate to the Los Angeles County Parks Foundation at https://www.lacpf.org/.