Closing a public park on the 4th of July?

I was visiting one of the nicer parks in are area yesterday, Lake Balboa in the Sepulveda Dam Recreation Area, when I noticed a banner announcing that the park will be closed on the 4th of July. The City of LA Parks and Recreation is going to take over the entire park for a paid admittance event at $6/person.

It seems odd to me that you would close off one of the nicest parks in the area, on what is arguably the busiest holiday of the summer, to those that can't afford $6 a head. It angers me that on a holiday dedicated to celebrating our "freedom" we are telling a large part of the Valley populous, "you have the 'freedom' to celebrate elsewhere."

I am distressed at the trend of closing access to public places in order to make a buck. It seems that every holiday and every event in Southern California is quickly being turned into soem form of money-making operation. Our public parks are one of the few opportunities to enjoy the outdoors for hundreds of thousands of citizens. Removing this option, especially on the 4th of July, seems capricious and cruel.

As you might guess, I will not be attending this "celebration." Being charged to use a public park on a national holiday goes against my grain. I think it is time that the city realizes that access to public parks should not be revoked whever they find it convenient.