View of the Hearst Ranch

For past 25 years, the citizens of California have fought hard to preserve the 128 square mile (82,000 acre) Hearst Ranch. Thousands of individuals attended public hearings, wrote letters, made phone calls and did much more in an effort to preserve the scenic coastline, known as the gateway to the Big Sur Coast, and the viability of agriculture on the Hearst Ranch. These battles were fought over development rights, resorts, dude ranches and other proposals by Hearst.The success of the grassroot efforts show how important the preservation of the Hearst Ranch is, not only to the local community, but to the entire state and nation.

In December of 2002, The American Land Conservancy (ALC) in partnership with the California Rangeland Trust (CRT) announced a basic framework negotiated between the American Land Conservancy and the Hearst Corporation. Since that time the State has been engaged and is supportive of the project.

The five basic planks in the framework are:

• Eliminate New Resorts:
• Limited development of Old San Simeon Village to Julia Morgan's Vision:
• Provide Permanent Public Access to Coastline:
• Create East Side Conservation/Agricultural Easement:
• Reduce Potential Development:

To support the effort of conserving the Hearst Ranch, "Hearst Ranch Conservation Now" was created as support group for the project. We have met with Hearst, ALC, State agencies, state Officials, Sierra Club, elected officials, talked to individuals and others all to gather information and the different perspectives on the project.

From this information we have concluded there is no reason why this project should not go forward at this time. It will protect the 82,000 acre Hearst Ranch and 18 miles of priceless Coastline in perpetuity.

It is your choice to support this project or not. But we urge you to gather information from this web site and other sources and decide for yourself whether preserving this extraordinary piece of California is important. If you decide it is, please join our effort to support this project and preserve the Hearst Ranch. If you have questions we will try to answer them if we can.

To join the effort to preserve the Hearst Ranch
<Click Here>

To ask questions or make comments
<Click Here>

What will the project do and why we should support the project:

• The Hearst Ranch conservation project - due to its size, the importance of its resources, its value to the community, and the benefits to the public - is the most important conservation project in the nation.

• It protects more California coastline - and provides more public access to the coast - than any other single transaction in California history.

• Over 128 square miles (82,000 acres) of exquisite scenic views and unique and diverse habitats are protected - forever - by this transaction. (Size Comparison Map to San Francisco)

• Homesite development on the Hearst Ranch will be severely restricted, forever. Current zoning allows for approximately 400 homes, yet the transaction forever restricts homesite development to 27, which will be clustered in non-sensitive, designated areas outside of the viewshed of Highway 1 and Hearst Castle.

• Resort development contemplated by existing zoning will be eliminated (no golf courses, no equestrian resorts, and no massive hotel developments). Only one Julia Morgan-style inn development at Old San Simeon Village, with no more than 100 rooms, can ever be built.

• The protection of natural and agricultural resources are carefully balanced. No more than 3000 acres of the Ranch may ever be used for agricultural intensification, including no more than 300 acres for vineyards and 300 acres for orchards.

• The conservation easement negotiated between the American Land Conservancy, California Rangeland Trust and the Hearst Corporation on the Hearst Ranch, East of Highway 1, will be held by the California Rangeland Trust, who will continually monitor the Ranch insuring the protection of the valuable resources, habitat, history and the working landscape encompassed by the Hearst Ranch.

• Public access to the coast is significantly expanded by this project. In addition to allowing continuation of the current revocable access program, the project would guarantee public access to all portions of the coastline, which could never be taken away. New coastal access includes a continuous, 20-mile coastal trail and permanent access to some 30 new beaches. (West Side Access Comparison)

• Significantly, all new coastal access guarantees are being provided without using a cent of public money. Funding for the Ranch's coastal areas is provided by CalTrans money and landowner donation. By definition, the CalTrans funds can only be used for scenic viewshed protection, i.e., extinguishments of development rights. Therefore, all public access guarantees are due to donation by Hearst.

• The project is state of the art and unparalleled in its safeguards for monitoring, enforcement tools, management requirements, and easement holder audits. (Detailed Transaction Documents are online)

• The project is a bargain. The state's independent appraisal places the value of the conservation package at $230 million, and yet the price being paid to Hearst is just $95 million - and $23 million of that amount is being provided by federal dollars. The project represents the largest single donation to the State in history.
  

Project History and Timeline

ALC Hearst Ranch Project Info

Map Showing location of Hearst Ranch
(File Size is 240 KBytes)

 

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Note: This site is sponsored and paid for by local individuals. It is not associated with the Hearst Corporation or the American Land Conservancy (ALC).