A 5-0 San Diego County Board of Supervisors vote May 14 approved the purchase of two Ramona properties for inclusion in the county’s open space programs.
The Supervisors authorized the acquisition of the 1,372-acre Gildred Ranch property and the 480-acre Highland Valley-Oak Country II land. Both sites west of Rangeland Road near Ramona Airport will be purchased from The Nature Conservancy and are adjacent to other grasslands property previously acquired by the county.
The total purchase price will not exceed $2.85 million. Federal and state grants will be deducted from the appraised value, and, if The Nature Conservancy receives permission to use a $700,000 state water resource grant for the purchase of the Oak Country II site, the total amount would be reduced to $2.22 million.
The Ramona Grasslands is cited as a significant preserve area in the North County Multiple Species Conservation Program, and in 2000 the supervisors directed the county’s to seek potential funding for the acquisition of grasslands areas in Ramona.
The County will allow passive recreation within the recreation area. A trail network will extend through the Gildred and Oak Country II properties that will be incorporated into the Santa Maria Creek Greenway as well as providing connections to other planned local and regional trails. The acquired land will also include easements for the preservation and protection of biological resources.
The Nature Conservancy acquired the Gildred Ranch property in 2007 and has entered into a real property purchase and sale agreement with Highland Valley Partners LLC to acquire the Highland Valley Oak Country II property. The Gildred Ranch land has an appraised value of $11 million, and the Oak Country II was appraised at $12.5 million.
After deducting the grant amounts, the county would purchase the Gildred Ranch property for $1.25 million. When the supervisors set the May 14 hearing date on April 9, up to $1.6 million was authorized for the purchase of the Oak Country II site. At the time of the April 9 approval, the amount was to be reduced to $700,000 if The Nature Conservancy received permission to use a $900,000 state water resources grant for the purchase of Oak County II. The state Department of Water Resources (DWR) has tentatively approved the use of $700,000 for the purchase, although DWR proposed to withhold 10 percent, or $70,000, until the county completes hydrology and related studies for the property. Those studies are expected to be completed in December at which time the county will receive the remaining $70,000 from DWR.
Money from the county’s general fund will be used for the purchase. An additional $1,566,300 of one-time costs will be incurred after the property is purchased. The purchase-related one-time costs include $7,800 for title insurance and $8,500 of staff time costs. Creation of the preserve’s resource management plan will include estimated spending of $600,000 for site-specific field surveys, $450,000 for a trails master plan, $150,000 for associated environmental review, and $350,000 for initial stewardship costs such as fencing and signage.
The ongoing stewardship and monitoring costs are estimated at $277,800 annually, and an additional $10,250 of ongoing annual costs will pay for water standby fees, vector control charges, and other fixed assessments from which the county is not exempt.