Los Flores Ranch Park in Santa Maria is closed due to the rain storm this week

SANTA MARIA, Calif.- Managers with the Santa Maria Recreation & Parks Department say the park is closed for all public use.

Scheduled programming has also been canceled as of January 5th.

The department made the decision to close the popular park because mud and flooding made it unsafe.

"When people use trails and it's muddy and wet, it actually creates a lot of damage to the trails. That creates a lot of work for maintenance in our volunteers, who put a lot of time and effort into to building those trails. So that's one of the reasons, too, is that we could do some preventative maintenance and care that way. The trails are ready to go once the rains subside and we're able to get everybody back outdoors," said Rudy Gutierrez, Santa Maria Recreation and Parks Recreation Supervisor.

More rain is predicted over the next two weeks. The city of Santa Maria is baring visitors for public safety. Officials look forward to reopening at a later time in better weather.