Massive development threatens Tejon Ranch

Senior Regional Representative

There's no other place like it in California. Tejon Ranch is 270,000 acres of land owned by one corporation and sitting at the crossroads of the Sierra Nevada, the South Coast mountain ranges, the San Joaquin Valley, and the high desert. Deer, mountain lions, and other threatened species live on the land while the imperiled California condor soars overhead on the lookout for roosting and feeding opportunities.

© 2003 Andrew M. Harvey/Lighthawk www.visualjourneys.net Bear Trap Canyon, a crucial wildlife linkage in the Tejon Ranch area, faces encroachment by a 23,000-home development, 4,000 luxury homes, and increased warehouses.

Widely acknowledged as the crown jewel of unprotected places in California, the ranch is at risk from development by its corporate owner. One vision for the ranch is to preserve its wildness and ensure that it continues to provide an irreplaceable linkage among key ecological regions in California. The vision of the corporation that owns Tejon Ranch is to build a number of developments that will either harm or put at increased risk the natural values of the land. The avowed goal of the corporation is to make Tejon Ranch the Irvine between Santa Clarita and Bakersfield as well as a trucking hub for goods transportation from the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach to Northern California and beyond.

It's the Tejon Ranch corporation's refusal to reveal its long-term planning for the entire 270,000 acres and to share with the public its data on wildlife and plant species on the land that has raised the level of alarm about the ultimate fate of the ranch.

A proposed deal brokered by the Trust for Public Land has been presented by the Tejon Ranch Corporation as securing protection for 100,000 acres on the property. However, a lack of full public disclosure regarding the scientific rationale or even topographical maps of the proposed boundaries of the preserve has made it difficult to judge the merits of the deal. Since the deal would require about $100 million in public funds, the residents of California need a more forthcoming presentation in order to weigh the proposal against other preservation needs in the state. It would be much better if a master plan was finalized for the entire ranch rather than deciding the fate of the land by piecemeal decisions.

What's left out of the proposal includes important habitat on the San Joaquin Valley floor, the grasslands on the southern part of the property, and Bear Trap Canyon, an important wildlife linkage in the area. The developer has proposed several projects that would affect all three of these areas, and it is unknown what else may be proposed by the corporation.

In Los Angeles County, the proposed 23,000 houses of the Centennial development would leap far beyond the sprawl of north county and potentially dump thousands more cars on Interstate 5. In Kern County, the Tejon Ranch corporation is nearing approval to build more warehouses on the valley floor near the looming IKEA transfer facility familiar to motorists heading south on the 5 before entering the Grapevine.

The most recent proposal in the Kern County portion of the ranch is the 4,000-unit super luxury development proposed for the area around Castaic Lake, a natural lake on the ranch. The development, dubbed Tejon Mountain Village, is in the midst of historic and also critical habitat for the condor that is currently used by condors. In fact, the corporation is seeking a 'take' permit from the federal government that would allow the harming or killing of condors and loss of habitat. In a recent press release, the Center for Biological Diversity reported that 'the company has filed suit in federal court to try to eliminate protections for the California condor and limit the condor reintroduction program. In February of 2003 a hunter illegally shot and killed a reintroduced condor on Tejon Ranch during a hunt sponsored by the ranch.'

The Sierra Club, the Center for Biological Diversity, South Coast Wildlands Project, and the Conservation Biology Institute submitted comments on the notice of preparation for the environmental analysis of the luxury resort development, which will do nothing to address legitimate housing needs in the region.

The Centennial development draft environmental impact report is expected by the middle of the year. It is unclear how smooth the sailing will be for the project, which is in County supervisor Michael Antonovich's district. The unprecedented scale of the project and its significant distance from existing development in the county are a direct challenge to any efforts by the county to constrain sprawl and reduce our region's dependence on automobiles.

While Tejon Ranch claims that Centennial will be a self-sustaining development with a mix of residential and commercial development, there has been no commitment to delay approvals of housing until tenants have been secured for the commercial zones. Moreover, the Centennial development will likely increase traffic along I-5.

Local Sierra Club volunteers Mary Ann Lockhart and Jan de Leeuw are concerned about Tejon Ranch's immediate and long-term development plans. Calling the proposed developments 'dumb sprawl,' Lockhart said, 'with $40 million invested in condor recovery programs and the long-term costs of infrastructure to serve the developments, the current Tejon Ranch proposals are examples of bad planning with a thin and peeling 'eco' veneer.'

There are already deep concerns about traffic impacts to the Santa Clarita area and the San Fernando Valley from the continued boom of housing in the Antelope Valley, the building of Newhall Ranch, and other developments in the area. The 12,000-unit Ritter Ranch project in the Antelope Valley is right next to the 7,000-unit Anaverde project. The Centennial project and increased truck traffic to Tejon Ranch warehouses would aggravate an already bad and worsening situation.

Sierra Club volunteers are working with other organizations like the Center for Biological Diversity to try to find a better solution for protecting Tejon Ranch.