Projects include wildfire resilience, land acquisitions, and Explore the Coast
Fort Bragg, CA – Today, the Board of the State Coastal Conservancy authorized over $94 million to 17 projects that will conserve land, expand public access to the coast, and enhance coastal resilience to climate change including wildfire.
Notably, the Conservancy awarded $42 million to the Wildlands Conservancy to acquire the fee title and leasehold interest in the 2,060-acre Wild Cherry Canyon property within the Diablo Canyon Lands in San Luis Obispo County. This largely undeveloped property west of Avila Beach offers unique natural and cultural resources and opportunities to open public and tribal access.
The Conservancy also authorized a grant of $5,000,000 to ytt Northern Chumash Nonprofit to undertake the yatspansini wayaktspu Conservancy Acquisition. This property is 357 acres of the Alexander Ranch, north of Cayucos in San Luis Obispo County. With this acquisition, the ytt will protect and restore natural resources and wildlife habitat; preserve open space; enable compatible aquaculture and agriculture uses, including grazing; protect cultural resources; provide compatible Native American tribal access and managed public access, including the potential establishment and management of tribal camping areas and an education center; and potentially create tribal housing for property management. ytt Tribal members describe their historic ties to the land as having served, since time immemorial, as stewards in this coastal area, managing land and ocean ecosystems seasonally through cultural fire, sustainable harvesting, and reciprocal care. The ytt Tribe’s acquisition of the Alexander Ranch would mark the first major opportunity in generations for the Tribe to restore cultural, ecological, and ancestral ties to their coastal homelands. Conservancy funding for this acquisition comes from the voter-approved Safe Drinking Water, Wildfire Prevention, Drought Preparedness, and Clean Air Bond Act of 2024 (2024 Climate Bond or Proposition 4).
The Board also approved $14,500,000 to the Santa Clara Valley Open Space Authority to undertake the Coyote Valley Landscape Linkage Acquisition, consisting of acquiring approximately 417 acres of land located in Coyote Valley in Santa Clara County for protection, restoration, and enhancement of natural resources and wildlife habitat; protection of open space and natural floodplain; provision of public access; and enabling climate-resilient agricultural use. The Santa Clara Valley was once a flourishing ecosystem of oak woodlands, savannas, grasslands, streams lined with riparian forests, connecting the Santa Cruz Mountains to the west and the Diablo Range to the east. However, over the years, agricultural and urban development has significantly transformed and fragmented the landscape. Coyote Valley, which is situated within the larger Santa Clara Valley, is often referred to as a “last chance landscape,” as it is one of the few remaining undeveloped valley floors, crucial for wildlife migration and adaptation to climate change. Funding for this project also comes from the 2024 Climate Bond.
The Conservancy’s flagship Explore the Coast program also received funding. A total of $964,535 was awarded to eleven nonprofit organizations and two school districts for thirteen projects that will help people who have faced barriers to the coast experience and enjoy the California coast and San Francisco Bay shoreline. Staff estimates that the programs funded today will engage more than 3,988 unique participants. Of these people, the programs will serve approximately 3,009 low-income Californians, 3,702 people of color, 211 youth who are houseless or in foster care, approximately 1,452 people for whom English is not their first language, and at least 1,398 people with physical, cognitive, and/or emotional disabilities.
The full list of projects considered today can be found below:
NORTH COAST
A grant of up to $935,000 to the City of Willits to augment the Conservancy grant authorized on November 30, 2023 to implement the Willits Rail with Trail Project, consisting of construction of a 1.6-mile trail between East Hill Road and East Commercial Street in the City of Willits that will eventually become part of the Great Redwood Trail in Mendocino County.
A grant of up to $329,800 to Conservation Works to undertake the Designing Water Resilience on Public and Working Lands Project, consisting of conducting studies and community engagement and preparing designs for improving water systems for purposes of supporting enhanced public access and wetland and other habitat at six state and county parks in Sonoma County.
A grant of up to $1,218,390 to the Wildlands Conservancy to undertake the Seawood Cape Preserve Overnight Accommodation Implementation Project, consisting of 1) developing final designs and completing the permitting process, and 2) constructing a campground, a new section of the California Coastal Trail, and other public access improvements and amenities at the Seawood Cape Preserve just north of the City of Trinidad in Humboldt County.
A grant of up to $825,000 to Blue Lake Rancheria to acquire and develop a management plan for the 54-acre Crannell Pasture on lower Little River near Westhaven, Humboldt County to preserve open space; protect and restore natural resources and wildlife habitat; protect cultural resources; and provide opportunities for compatible public access and California Native American tribal access and cultural use.
SAN FRANCISCO BAY AREA
A grant of up to $2,500,000 to Point Reyes Bird Observatory to augment two previous Conservancy grants to provide an additional two years of adaptive management of approximately 177 acres of restored wetlands by engaging the local community, maintaining and enhancing the wetlands, and implementing property improvements of public access amenities and other infrastructure in the Novato Baylands in Marin County.
Amend the scope of the Conservancy grant to Sonoma Ecology Center for the Cradle Basket Project, authorized by the Conservancy on November 21, 2024 to install an art installation comprised of five hand-carved boulders, produce accompanying audio/visual content, and create programming for tours that share stories of five tribes along a pathway to a future Indigenous Environmental and Cultural Learning Center along the Napa River, to reduce the number of hand-carved boulders that will be installed at Oxbow Commons from five to two.
A grant of up to $14,500,000 to the Santa Clara Valley Open Space Authority to undertake the Coyote Valley Landscape Linkage Acquisition, consisting of acquiring approximately 417 acres of land located in Coyote Valley in Santa Clara County for protection, restoration, and enhancement of natural resources and wildlife habitat; protection of open space and natural floodplain; provision of public access; and enabling climate-resilient agricultural use.
A grant of up to $4,000,000 to Midpeninsula Regional Open Space District to undertake the Highway 17 Wildlife and Ridge Trail Crossings project, consisting of constructing a highway undercrossing for wildlife and 2.1 miles of multi-use Bay Area Ridge Trail made up of a highway overcrossing and an adjacent connector trail, south of Los Gatos in unincorporated Santa Clara County; and the adoption of findings under the California Environmental Quality Act.
A grant of up to $10,055,692 to Ducks Unlimited, Inc., which includes $6,976,691 in funds from the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation, to augment Conservancy funding previously authorized for the restoration of tidal marsh and enhancement of managed ponds at the Eden Landing Ecological Reserve, $50,000 to the Aquatic Science Center for website management, and $50,000 to the California Wildlife Foundation to conduct outreach, all as part of Phase 2 of the South Bay Salt Pond Restoration Project in Alameda, San Mateo, and Santa Clara Counties.
CENTRAL COAST
A grant of up to $5,000,000 to ytt Northern Chumash Nonprofit to undertake the yatspansini wayaktspu Conservancy Acquisition, consisting of acquisition of 357 acres of the Alexander Ranch in San Luis Obispo County to protect and restore natural resources and wildlife habitat; preserve open space; enable compatible aquaculture and agriculture uses, including grazing; protect cultural resources; provide compatible Native American tribal access and managed public access, including the potential establishment and management of tribal camping areas and an education center; and potentially create tribal housing for property management, north of Cayucos in San Luis Obispo County.
A grant of up to $1,000,000 to the County of San Mateo to undertake the Half Moon Bay Landfill Climate Resilience Planning Project, consisting of conducting technical studies; analyzing alternatives; engaging the community; and preparing 30% conceptual designs, a plan for funding implementation, and a plan for permitting and environmental review for adaptation of the landfill located at Poplar Beach in San Mateo County
A grant of up to $42,000,000 to the Wildlands Conservancy to acquire the fee title and leasehold interest in the approximately 2,060-acre Wild Cherry Canyon property within the Diablo Canyon lands to protect, restore, and enhance natural and cultural resources; to provide public and California Native American tribal access; to enable potential construction of lower-cost coastal accommodations; and to enable agriculture that is compatible with these uses, in San Luis Obispo County.
A grant of up to $750,000 to the City of Pacific Grove to undertake the Lovers Point Pier Rehabilitation Project, consisting of repairing and enhancing the resiliency of the Lovers Point Pier for continued public access in Monterey County.
SOUTH COAST
A grant of up to $3,305,000 to Riverside County Regional Park and Open-Space District to undertake the Santa Ana River Trail Rincon to Prado Spillway Phase 2 Segment – Construction project, consisting of the construction of a 0.65-mile segment of the Santa Ana River Trail in Riverside County; and adoption of findings under the California Environmental Quality Act.
A grant of up to $1,500,143 to the University of California Santa Cruz Center for Coastal Climate Resilience to undertake CoSMoS Adapts: Supporting Coastal Climate Resilience in the South Coast, consisting of assessing adaptation solutions to reduce the risks of coastal hazards due to storms and sea level rise, conducting regional engagement and capacity‑building activities, and developing high‑resolution visualization and innovative communication tools that strengthen climate resilience planning in Ventura, Los Angeles, and Orange counties.
WILDFIRE
Grants totaling up to $4,200,000 to the Round Valley Indian Tribes, Sonoma Land Trust, and Santa Clara County Parks and Recreation Department to carry out implementation projects that will improve forest health and wildfire resiliency in Mendocino, Sonoma and Santa Clara Counties; and adoption of findings under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA)
A grant of up to $100,000 to the East Bay Regional Park District to augment the grant of $2,075,000 authorized by the Conservancy on September 5, 2024 for wildfire resilience fuel reduction treatments, shaded fuel break development, and equipment purchases, and to expand the project to include developing a wildfire treatment prioritization framework and related management tools for all Park District land and to conduct a prioritization planning workshop for local public entities and nonprofit organizations.
STATEWIDE
Grants totaling up to $964,535 to eleven nonprofit organizations and two school districts for thirteen projects under the Explore the Coast program that facilitate and enhance the public’s opportunities to explore the California coast and San Francisco Bay shoreline.
