NEW REGIONAL PARK (MINI NATIONAL PARK) BEING CREATED EAST OF LINCOLN

You will be amazed at what is happening to protect and enhance our beautiful pristine countryside throughout Placer County through the land acquisition efforts of Placer Legacy. Our Markham Ravine Neighborhood Committee efforts to create an enhanced Markham Ravine closely parallel the rural conservation efforts county-wide. The MRNC foresees the time when our proposed local Markham Ravine habitat and trail system will eventually tie into the larger Placer County effort to create a new regional park, East of Lincoln.  

Placer Legacy Acquisition # 1 - Spears Ranch:

Andy Fisher, project manager from the Placer County Parks Department, has provided the following overview of the improvements proposed for the new regional park. It will encompass a total of 1,181 acres, located between Auburn and Lincoln. The initial Placer Legacy land acquisition for the proposed park includes property which was within the former Spears Ranch. The regional parksite has not yet been named. It was the first large acquisition of the Placer Legacy program. The Placer Legacy program works with the Board of Supervisors to protect the "green infrastructure" of Placer County.

A large portion of the initial $3.5 million purchase price came from the Placer Legacy Open Space Trust Fund. The remainder came from grants and many public and private sources, which will be described in more detail later. This large, mostly natural, park will be located northeast of Garden Bar Road. The main public access will be off of Mount Vernon on Mears Lane. A paved parking area with restrooms and facilities for horse trailers is planned, as well as paved handicapped accessible trails. Other trails will accommodate horses, mountain bikes, hikers and joggers. In addition to approximately 27 miles of trails, there will be day-use picnic facilities, fishing areas, bridges and natural swimming holes. Fisher states, "It is a beautiful area that includes waterfalls, Coon Creek and Deadman Creek. There are acres of blue oak woodlands and extensive plant and animal habitats that will be preserved and restored." The first portion of the future regional park is expected to be open for public use by the Summer of 2006.  

Placer County Supervisor, Robert Weygandt has been spearheading this Placer Legacy land acquisition and park development effort. He states, "Spears Ranch is a piece of what Placer County has looked like for 10,000 years, and we will now be preserving it forever. It is in the vision of a Placer County national park. The ranch includes examples of Placer County's spectacular natural resources and amazing habitat in a beautiful and pristine setting. It is the realization of a dream we've had and, I hope, an inspirational model of a public-private partnership the county must replicate to be successful in making even more open space protection possible."

Placer Legacy Acquisition # 2 - Didion Ranch:

On November 22, 2004 the Placer County Board of Supervisors gave final approval to purchase an additional 220 acres of land, formerly a portion of the Didion Ranch, to expand the proposed new regional park. This 220 acre parcel adjoins Spears Ranch, a 961 acre open-space parcel previously purchased by the County. This portion of the regional park will also feature trails for walking, running, horseback riding, and mountain biking. 

For more information on these two public use regional park facilities please visit the Placer County website listing of county parks. It is linked below.

How Did They Do That? – Acquiring Private Property for Public Land Use

Supervisor Robert Weygandt  has stated that the Spears Ranch acquisition represents the "flagship" of Placer Legacy. He said it is both an example of the beauty and natural resources the county hopes to preserve, and a model of a public-private partnership the county must replicate to be successful in saving more open space.

The Trust for Public Land (TPL), a national non-profit land conservation organization, negotiated the purchase of the Spears ranch in 2000 from the Spears family, and in December 2003 conveyed the ranch to Placer County for permanent public protection. Founded in 1972, TPL has protected more than 1.5 million acres nationwide, including more than 50,000 acres of critical watershed, recreation, and forest lands in the Sierra Nevada.

The $3.5 million purchase was made possible through local, state, and federal funding and private philanthropy. The bulk of the funding, $2,220,934, came from the county's Placer Legacy Open Space Trust Fund, which includes public funds set aside over the previous three years, and donations from the public and county employees.

The California Department of Parks and Recreation provided more than $204,000 from California's portion of the federal Land and Water Conservation Fund, and $400,000 from the Riparian and Riverine Habitat Grant Program, made possible as a result of the passage of the Park Bond Act in 2000. The California Resources Agency provided $250,000 from the Sierra Nevada-Cascade Grant Program, which was also funded through the voter-approved Park Bond Act.

The Sierra Business Council provided $500,000 for the purchase through a grant from the David and Lucile Packard Foundation's Conserving California Landscapes Initiative (CCLI). The CCLI grant is part of the Packard Foundation's contribution of $175 million statewide to help conserve 342,000 acres of California's pristine landscapes. The Packard Foundation's support was sought and obtained by the Sierra Business Council. SBC has been a leading non-profit in creating and supporting the Placer Legacy project since its beginning.

"The protection of Spears Ranch is key to protecting critical wildlife habitat and adding to public open space in the Sierra Nevada foothills," said Reed Holderman, Executive Director of the Trust of Public Land. "It is only through a tremendous team effort involving Placer County, the State of California, the Sierra Business Council, the David and Lucile Packard Foundation and the Spears family that this remarkable landscape has been protected for future generations," he said.

"This is a landmark purchase, not just for Placer County, but also for the Sierra Nevada," said Jim Sayer, President of the Sierra Business Council. "Placer Legacy is a model for how to protect important natural assets and the local quality of life in the Sierra's fastest growing area. Our business members strongly believe that a successful economy depends upon a healthy environment." "We are very proud that the State Resources Agency and California State Parks participated in this creative public private partnership," said Mike Chrisman, California Secretary for Resources. We are protecting this beautiful property in Placer County to benefit our environment and for all Californians."

The Placer County Board of Supervisors created the Placer Legacy program to conserve open space, and has strongly supported it since its inception in 2000.  Placer Legacy works with willing sellers and is voluntary. The Spears Ranch is the latest property protected through Placer Legacy acquisition. Other acquisitions have included portions of the Shallenberger Ridge overlooking Donner Lake, a trailhead and open space conservation easement at Moody Ridge, and agricultural conservation easements including Aitken Ranch and the Grey family property in rural Lincoln.

Still, other acquisitions have been pursued by Placer Legacy since its’ inception, including land along the south fork of the Yuba River and additional land in the Garden Bar area, East of Lincoln, site of the proposed second regional park. The County acquired the 220 acre second park site from BOR Properties LLC for $767,500. A longtime property owner, JJD Properties LTD, donated a conservation easement to the County at no cost over its entire 780-acre property, which includes the park site. The easement will protect all 780 acres from ever being developed beyond the 21 home sites that are permitted through historical entitlements. "My partners, Dennis Meyer and James J. Didion, and I are extremely pleased that our working with Placer County has been able to result in a 220-acre park and a 780-acre conservation easement," said Paul Aronowitz, the third partner in BOR Properties.

Grant funding from California State Parks will help pay for trails and other improvements at this second park site. County Facility Services Director, Tom Miller, thanked the BOR partners for cooperating with the County to make the park acquisition possible. "This was a complicated transaction, and it wouldn’t have been possible without the BOR partners’ expertise and willingness to work with the County," Miller said. "The acquisition was worth all the hard work, because the park will be a tremendous addition to the Placer Legacy program."

The Markham Ravine Neighborhood Committee applauds the significantly successful efforts of Placer County and Placer Legacy to preserve our open space. “Oh, what beauty surrounds us, that we recognize and preserve it is our task.”

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