Frequently Asked Questions

CONSERVATION

» Why is it important that so much of Tejon Ranch be conserved?
» How exactly will this agreement conserve the land?
» What is the composition of the conservancy that will manage the conservation areas? When will it be formed? How will it be funded?
» How much public access will there be to the conservation land? Will it become a state park?
» What does the conservation of this much land mean for California?
» How does this compare to other land conservation efforts in California’s history?
» Isn’t most of the conservation land essentially lands that could not be developed anyway because of their terrain or wildlife habitat issues?
» What state and federally listed threatened and endangered species are on the Ranch? Has critical habitat been designated on the Ranch?
» You say the conservation will be phased. Describe the timing and how the phasing will work.
» Describe the scientific analysis you went through.
» How does the conservation agreement impact efforts to protect the California condor?
» Will cattle grazing be permitted? Hunting? Farming? Mining or oil drilling? If so, what’s changed?

DEVELOPMENT

» Does this agreement guarantee that Tejon Ranch Co.’s development projects will be entitled?
» Why does Tejon Ranch Co. believe that the agreement is in the best interests of its shareholders?
» Does the agreement mean that the environmental groups actually support the development?

AGREEMENT

» How long have you been in discussions regarding the agreement?
» Is this agreement a model for other major development projects?
» At a time when California is facing a severe budget shortfall and State Parks may be shut down, how can you expect to receive any funding for a land acquisition of this size?

CONSERVATIOn

Why is it important that so much of Tejon Ranch be conserved?
Tejon Ranch is an invaluable piece of California’s natural heritage and arguably the State’s highest conservation priority. At 270,000 acres, it’s the largest contiguous piece of private property in the state. But it’s not just its size that makes Tejon Ranch important. It’s located where four important ecological regions come together — the Sierra Nevada, the Mojave Desert, the San Joaquin Valley and the Coastal Ranges. The Ranch is also home to rare and endemic species, ancient oak trees, rare native vegetative communities, intact watersheds and streams, and also contains critical foraging habitat for the California Condor.

How exactly will this agreement conserve the land?
The agreement provides the framework and the funding for the ongoing conservation of 240,000 acres of Tejon Ranch. Initially, approximately 178,000 acres will be permanently protected by Tejon Ranch Co. through a combination of dedicated conservation easements and designated project open spaces. The environmental resource organizations will have the option — over an approximate three-year period — to purchase conservation easements or possible fee interests to protect an additional 62,000 acres from development, bringing the total conserved lands to nearly 90% of the property. The purchase price will be based on a state-approved appraisal. The newly-created and independent Tejon Ranch Conservancy will monitor the easements and work with the Tejon Ranch Company to oversee all the conserved lands, outside of a future state park, promoting long-term, science-based stewardship of this historic property to provide for public enjoyment through educational programs and public access.

What is the composition of the conservancy that will manage the conservation areas? When will it be formed? How will it be funded?
The conservancy will be created immediately and will be governed by a 12-member board, consisting of four members appointed by Tejon Ranch Co., four members appointed collectively by the environmental resource organizations and four independent members jointly appointed. Permanent employees with expertise in land trust administration, conservation biology and open space land management will be hired by, and report to, the conservancy board. The Tejon Ranch Co. will advance $800,000 a year toward the funding of the conservancy for the first seven years regardless of the status of the three developments. That level of funding will continue for an additional seven years if at least four of the five acquisition areas have been acquired. Transfer fees from the developed areas will provide significant annual income to the conservancy based on conservative modeling that estimates $8 million a year or more.

How much public access will there be to the conservation land? Will it become a state park?
Public access is central to the public benefit of this agreement, beginning with a commitment by the environmental resource organizations and Tejon Ranch Co. to work with the conservancy and California State Parks Department toward creation of a major State Park within the conserved lands.

Californians will enjoy an outstanding example of their state’s natural legacy through a well-managed public access program for the conserved lands. The parties agree that providing outdoor opportunities for people living in underserved communities will be an important part of the conservancy’s access program. In addition, the agreement provides an easement of up to 10,000 acres for the realignment of 37 miles of the Pacific Crest Trail through Tejon Ranch. This realignment has been a top priority for both the Pacific Crest Trail Association and the National Forest Service for over a decade and will finally become a reality through this historic land conservation deal. And even prior to formal dedication of conservation easements, the Ranch-Wide Management Plan, which will be developed by both the conservancy and the Tejon Ranch Co. to oversee stewardship of all conservation lands, will include a program for docent-led tours and other managed public access.

What does the conservation of this much land mean for California?
Through the approval of various bond measures over the years, California voters have clearly said that the protection of California’s natural heritage is a high priority for them. Both the location and size of Tejon Ranch have made it one of the most sought-after conservation properties in the state. This agreement provides a historic opportunity to make that priority a reality by conserving 240,000 acres of some of the most significant and ecologically important land in the state.

How does this compare to other land conservation efforts in California’s history?
At 240,000 acres, the conservation of Tejon Ranch is one of the largest and most significant opportunities to protect private land in California history. Here’s how it compares to other land conservation efforts, many of which involved multiple properties owned by both public and private entities:

Yosemite National Park	761,266 acres
Redwood National & State Parks	112,512 acres
Hearst Ranch	82,000 acres
Golden Gate National Recreation Area	74,820 acres
Irvine Ranch Land Reserve	50,000 acres
Catalina Island Conservancy	42,135 acres
Muir Woods National Monument	554 acres

Isn’t most of the conservation land essentially lands that could not be developed anyway because of their terrain or wildlife habitat issues?
A large portion of the dedicated areas and the great majority of the acquisition areas are level areas that have a high potential for development. Habitat issues would likely reduce the potential level of development but not eliminate it. The strong possibility of development on a significant part of the conserved lands — development that could threaten the ecological integrity of the ranch — makes it essential to complete the acquisitions in the approximately three-year option window.

What state and federally listed threatened and endangered species are on the Ranch? Has critical habitat been designated on the Ranch?
The San Joaquin Kit fox, the California Condor, the blunt nosed leopard lizard, and the Tehachapi slender salamander are found on the ranch, as are several listed plant species and an insect species. Critical habitat has been designated on the Ranch for the condor.

You say the conservation will be phased. Describe the timing and how the phasing will work.
Phase One provides for the realignment of the Pacific Crest Trail through Tejon Ranch. It will be dedicated as soon as feasibly possible. An additional 34,000 acres of open space areas within the permitted development areas will be designated as part of the project development process. Conservation easements over the remaining 134,000 acres will be dedicated in six phases as Tejon Ranch Co. receives development approvals. All such easements will be dedicated within 30 years from the date of the approval of the first Environmental Impact Report for one of the permitted development projects.

The agreement also lays the groundwork for the public to purchase an additional 62,000 acres of Tejon Ranch. The partners to the agreement have already approached federal, state and private leaders for help in securing the funds needed to accomplish this goal. This is exactly the kind of opportunity that California voters had in mind when they approved conservation bonds in November 2006.

Describe the scientific analysis you went through.
Acknowledging that an agreement would necessarily entail some amount of development along the western side of the Ranch, all parties agreed to share and analyze scientific data to determine how best to ensure the immediate and long-term ecological sustainability of the land. All those involved in the agreement had complete access to all existing scientific data on Tejon Ranch. For more than nine months, conservation biologists and other representatives from the environmental resource organizations studied and analyzed the scientific data on the Ranch and agreed on a set of conservation science protocols and priorities, using them to determine the relative natural resource values for all areas of the Ranch. The process was used to determine the areas of the Ranch that would have a high priority for conservation, including key habitat corridors linking the ecological regions that intersect at the Ranch.

How does the conservation agreement impact efforts to protect the California condor?
Ensuring the conservation of the California Condor was central among the issues considered by the parties. The parties were satisfied that the agreement is consistent with ensuring permanent protection of the condor.

During the course of the discussions with the Resource Groups, Tejon Ranch Co. agreed to ban lead ammunition in their hunting program, doing so prior to the statewide ban. In addition, the proposed conservation areas and mitigation areas reflect the input of top condor experts, including Dr. Lloyd Kiff, Dr. Robert Risebrough and Pete Bloom. Based on input from the environmental resource groups and condor experts, the Tejon Ranch Co. agreed to modify the land use plan for Tejon Mountain Village (TMV) in two important ways:

Eliminating over three miles of development from the eastern half of Geghus Ridge and approximately seven miles of development from the bottom of Bear Trap Canyon and
Removing units from ends of the northern ridges (including Grapevine Peak, Squirrel Ridge and Lolas Ridge), thereby creating development setbacks of approximately 1,400 feet to 4,200 feet from the original development boundary and approximately 2.5 miles from the San Joaquin Valley floor

This project redesign reduces potential conflicts between the development and California Condors by reducing the extension of development into condor habitat and protecting specific geographic areas known to be used extensively by condors.

Finally, the agreement does not preclude the soon-to-be-released Tehachapi Multi-Species Habitat Conservation Plan (MSHCP), which is expected to propose important, additional mitigation measures that would enable the Ranch protect condor habitat.

Will cattle grazing be permitted? Hunting? Farming? Mining or oil drilling? If so, what’s changed?
Tejon Ranch Co. will continue with its historic land use activities, but these activities will be subject to a Ranch-wide Management Plan developed by the conservancy. That plan will identify Best Management Practices for all land use activities. The land use activities that will generally take place throughout the Ranch include grazing, game management and filming. Some future expansion of farming, oil drilling and sand and gravel mining within defined areas are allowed by the agreement, but less than would be allowed without the agreement. Infrastructure for the extraction of subsurface minerals and oil and gas would be limited to defined surface areas.

DEVELOPMENT

Does this agreement guarantee that Tejon Ranch Co.’s development projects will be entitled?
Tejon Ranch Co.’s development projects will still be held to all appropriate standards fundamental to the entitlement process, including compliance with CEQA. Tejon Ranch firmly believes that its projects are worthy of entitlement and will bring many benefits to California.

Why does Tejon Ranch Co. believe that the agreement is in the best interests of its shareholders?
Tejon Ranch Co. believes that without this agreement, insulating the Ranch from a multitude of legal challenges in both state and federal courts, it would have faced a number of years of costly litigation. The agreement gives the company the expectation that, upon receiving entitlement approvals from the counties and permits from regulatory agencies, it will be able to begin development as market conditions dictate. Tejon Ranch Co. believes this is precisely what its shareholders would expect of the company.

Further, it believes that many of its shareholders will be proud that the company can both deliver on its business plan and continue its legacy of good stewardship.

Does the agreement mean that the environmental groups actually support the development?
By signing the agreement, the environmental groups have only agreed not to challenge the projects in court. They did so knowing that 90% of the Ranch would be protected, an unlikely outcome even in the event of a legal victory, and that any development would still have to be vetted by the public through the permitting process, including the CEQA process.

AGREEMENT

How long have you been in discussions regarding the agreement?
Tejon Ranch Co. had been meeting with various environmental resource organizations for a number of years but entered into a Memorandum of Understanding with the signatory environmental resource organizations to begin formal negotiations approximately two years ago. All parties are proud that the two years of good-faith negotiations proved successful, resulting in the Tejon Ranch Conservation and Land Use Agreement.

Is this agreement a model for other major development projects?
It certainly shows what can happen when traditional opponents sit down together to find consensus and solutions. It also demonstrates the importance of looking at the big picture — a property in its entirety, not just bits and pieces — and taking a holistic approach to its future. Finally, it reflects the unique conservation opportunities embodied in the Ranch.

At a time when California is facing a severe budget shortfall and State Parks may be shut down, how can you expect to receive any funding for a land acquisition of this size?
Any public funding from the State of California would come from bond funds, not general revenues. This is exactly the kind of opportunity for far-reaching protection of California’s natural heritage that led voters to approve numerous bonds that can help fund the purchase of the additional 62,000 acres. Funding is also not limited to state dollars. Federal and private dollars could also be used to purchase the development rights.

Moreover, following the conservation of the lands, the agreement provides for the ongoing funding of the conservancy that will oversee the conservation area through the use of conservation fees collected at the time of title transfers of certain residential units within the current development areas. In essence, the development on Tejon Ranch will assist in funding ongoing conservation and stewardship of the land.