In keeping with its long-held position of seeking 100% preservation of the Hearst Ranch, Friends of the RanchLand (FRL) initiated work in February on what we call “Blueprint for the Conservation of Hearst Ranch.” Because of an absence of detail in the Hearst/American Land Conservancy’s ALC) widely circulated, single-page Framework,” FRL felt that public agencies and the public needed more background and detail than was being provided.

While the Hearst Corporation was busy making vague promises and claims that there was no opposition to the Framework,” the community groups that had historically been most involved in preserving the Hearst Ranch (ECOSLO, Sierra Club, FRL, EDC) were openly skeptical of Hearst’s refusal to detail their future development plans for the Ranch and declined to endorse the “Framework” because of lack of detail. Many people turned out to the Board of Supervisors meeting in January to express concern about the BOS’s apparent willingness to spend $100 million of the public’s money based on a single-page document written by Hearst’s corporate lawyers.

Copies of FRL’s “Blueprint” have been sent to the Coastal Conservancy (who is negotiating on the State’s behalf), and to other state agencies and decision-makers. All reports from Sacramento indicate that the Blueprint has been very well-received (except by Hearst representatives).

The Coastal Conservancy found the Blueprint to be “a well-considered, wellresearched, and credible document which fleshed out a number of issues on which we needed additional background. And the more information, the better, as we are struggling to get adequate information from the Hearst Corporation. In no way do we see the ‘Blueprint’ as a threat to successful negotiations — quite the contrary. The Conservancy, too, has concerns regarding the lack of public discussion of the nature of the proposal.”

At a recent meeting with Mary Nichols, Secretary of the State Resources Agency, and her deputy, Michael Spear, both praised the Blueprint as the “best public input” they had ever received relative to a conservation deal involving public funds. Nichols said that “the Blueprint is an excellent working document for the State to refer to in its negotiations with the Hearst Corporation and ALC,” and that it would be used as a checklist of what the conservation easement should cover.

Here is an overview of recommendations in the Blueprint:

Public Participation: Full details of the proposal should be made available to the public for a reasonable comment period before any proposal is finalized and a transaction occurs. (Legislation introduced in May by Sen. Byron Sher and Assemblywoman Fran Pavley would make this a legal requirement. We support it.)

Outright Purchase: Friends of the RanchLand believes strongly that public ownership of the entire Hearst Ranch would be the most cost-effective and durable choice, over the long term, for protecting irreplaceable biological, cultural, scenic, and public access values. But if total fee-title purchase proves to be unfeasible and an easement is purchased instead, comprehensive language protecting resources must be included, and the easement must be guaranteed to be both durable and enforceable.

Development: Any easement should ensure that development does not interfere with the conservation values of the Ranch. There should be no additional development at Old San Simeon. Rangeland: Grazing should be conducted using the best stewardship and management practices in a manner that does not degrade the range. There should be a Range Management Plan for conservation of the Ranch.

Biological Resources: Permitted activities should preserve and protect the diversity of habitat types and require the restoration of such habitats that have been degraded. There should be a Habitat Management Plan.

Scenic Values: All permitted activities should preserve and enhance critical viewsheds. Development should be strictly limited and light pollution prohibited or effectively mitigated.

Public Access: Public access should be assured by fee-title acquisition of all lands west of Highway One so that the public and appropriate resource agencies can work out a management plan and alignment for the Coastal Trail in an open, fair, and transparent process. Access to public lands east of Highway One should be provided in the form of a trail easement across the ranch.

Cultural Sites: All permitted activities must preserve, restore, and respect sites and landforms deemed culturally significant by Native American groups. A Cultural Preservation Plan should be developed for permitted activities.

Historic Sites: The easement should maintain and preserve sites, routes, and other areas of historical significance on the Hearst Ranch and ensure that they are accessible to the public.

Traffic & Circulation: Highway 1 should remain a scenic two-lane road, recognized for its contribution to California’s coastal renown and designated as a Federal Scenic Byway. Consistent with this recognition, passing lanes should not be installed unless absolutely required for safety reasons and their length restricted.

Enforceability and Durability: The easement contract must contain language to ensure management and oversight of the property and verifiable compliance with easement requirements and conditions. The easement contract must be secure from revisions privately negotiated between the Hearst Corporation and the easement holder. The easement should be held by a public entity of sufficient size, independence, and public accountability as to be immune to undue pressure from the Hearst Corporation and provision must be made for third party enforcement. An endowment of an amount sufficient to fund the creation and implementation of a comprehensive management and monitoring plan must be made a part of the purchase agreement.

Friends of the RanchLand created the Blueprint because we feel it’s important to preserve the invaluable resources on the Hearst Ranch and to be certain that the public gets good value for its money. We encourage you to read the Blueprint for yourself. Once you do, we are confident you will endorse its common-sense approach.

The Friends of the RanchLand Blueprint and a shorter, three-page outline of the same document can be seen on two websites: www.slocoastalliance.org and http://www.edcnet.org/ProgramsPages/hearst.htm.