Since that time, it has helped to preserve over 72,000 acres of parkland in both wilderness and urban settings, and improved more than 114 public recreational facilities throughout Southern California.
[11][12] The Conservancy was responsible for the 1990s acquisition of the Jordan Ranch lands in the western Simi Hills near Thousand Oaks from entertainer Bob Hope, creating the Cheeseboro and Palo Commado Canyons Park section of the Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area (SMMNRA).
[16] The Conservancy is one of the four agencies sharing operation of the Santa Monica Mountains Anthony C. Beilenson Interagency Visitor Center, located at the former King Gillette Ranch stables.
[19] As reported in the Los Angeles Times, controversy ensued when the Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy voted in April 2014 to drop its opposition to the large Dave Evans subdivision development proposal for Malibu, in exchange for $1 million in donations and consulting work.
"The Edge", with the Irish rock band U2, has proposed a compound of five mansions on a coast−facing Santa Monica Mountains ridge, above Serra Canyon on Sweetwater Mesa Road.
Malibu residents and environmentalists have opposed the project as excessive development and viewshed destruction, and have called into question the ethics of the Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy regarding the proposal.