Malibu Valley Farms

Soka University officials acknowledged Friday that the school is buying 20 acres next to its holdings in the Santa Monica Mountains for faculty housing, an acquisition they said will reduce traffic to and from the campus. Confirming persistent rumors about the purchase, a spokeswoman for the Japan-based school said building faculty housing off campus also will allow preservation of more of the environmentally sensitive areas of the 580 acres the school already owns.

Soka University officials acknowledged Friday that the school is buying 20 acres next to its holdings in the Santa Monica Mountains for faculty housing, an acquisition they said will reduce traffic to and from the campus. Confirming persistent rumors about the purchase, a spokeswoman for the Japan-based school said building faculty housing off campus also will allow preservation of more of the environmentally sensitive areas of the 580 acres the school already owns.

A group of horse lovers from around Los Angeles County will host a trail ride through the Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area on Saturday, then serve a free lunch to those who complete the ride. Called Trail Ride for Recreational Access and Use, the event is being hosted by the 6-month-old Recreation and Equestrian Coalition. The group aims to inform the public and policymakers about gaining access to diverse recreational parklands throughout the county, especially equestrian trails.

Soka University officials have confirmed that the school is buying 20 acres next to its holdings in the Santa Monica Mountains above Malibu for faculty housing, an acquisition they said will reduce traffic to and from the campus. A spokeswoman for the Japan-based school, confirming persistent rumors about the purchase, said last week that building faculty housing off campus also will allow preservation of more of the environmentally sensitive areas of the 580 acres the school already owns.

In the past 10 days, trainer Julio Canani has won two stakes races with horses who previously had promised more than they delivered. Both Astarabad, who was winless in his first four starts in North America before winning the Escondido Handicap on Aug. 4, and Regal Thunder, who had lost as the favorite in three of his last four before his 11-1 upset in Saturday's $150,000 Pat O'Brien Handicap, had something in common.