Environmental group and California ranch agree on plan
LOS ANGELES – One of Southern California’s longest development battles ended this week after two decades when an environmental group agreed to build a massive ‘net zero greenhouse gas community ”Of 19,300 homes just off Interstate 5 on the southern slopes of the Tehachapi Mountains.
The pact between Tejon Ranch Co. and the nonprofit Climate Resolve comes amid a severe housing crisis in California and possibly removes the largest remaining roadblock for the 6,700-acre Centennial project bordering the Kern County, approximately 70 miles north of Los Angeles. The project has been repeatedly stalled by environmental and economic challenges, even as other large developments have been approved in one of the last undeveloped sections of Los Angeles County.
The proposal got final certification two years ago from the LA County Board of Supervisors, and the company said it was justified. But earlier this year, Superior Court Judge Mitchell Beckloff rejected the county’s approval of the developer’s environmental impact report, blocking construction.
Specifically, the judge cited aspects of the environmental review regarding the risk of forest fires and the additional greenhouse gases generated by vehicles. Under the agreement which is expected to be presented to Beckloff later Wednesday, Climate Resolve agreed to dismiss its legal claim that LA County violated the California Environmental Quality Act when it approved Centennial in 2019. The new development , which will not include natural gas connections, would be specifically designed to combat global warming, the parties said.
The agreement provides for the installation of nearly 30,000 charging stations for electric vehicles in homes and businesses. In addition, the plan will include other incentives to support the purchase of 10,500 electric vehicles, school buses and trucks.
Centennial’s original plans called for all residential units and a percentage of commercial buildings to be solar powered.
The compromise also requires funding for fire protection and prevention measures, including fire-resilient planning and vegetation management strategies that would also benefit neighboring communities. He is also leading the creation of an organization empowered to produce annual progress reports.
“We’re proud of this deal – it’s taken a long time to hang on and get it done,” said Bryn Lindblad, deputy director of Climate Resolve. “Now we hope people are excited to be part of a zero carbon community north of downtown. “
Barry Zoeller, spokesperson for Tejon Ranch, said some of the costs of additions to normal infrastructure for such a project “will have to be passed on to the customer, otherwise it does not make the community economically viable.”
For two decades, Tejon Ranch continued to develop the proposed community of 57,000 people and 10.1 million square feet of commercial and industrial space.
With that goal in mind, the company negotiated an agreement with several major environmental organizations in 2008 to conserve 240,000 acres of unmanaged mountains, meadows and lodgepole oaks that are home to species such as California condors and pumas. In return, the groups agreed not to oppose the company’s development plans.
Beckloff’s decision earlier this year found that the company’s environmental review had not supported its conclusion that the project would not significantly increase the risk of wildfires in an area there. subject. Although the judge found the developer’s on-site scan to be “sufficient”, he found the discussion of surrounding off-site impacts, such as wind-blown embers, to be “problematic.”
The ruling dismissed 20 of 23 claims raised in separate lawsuits filed against Tejon Ranch Co. under the California Environmental Quality Act by Climate Resolve, the Center for Biological Diversity and the California Native Plant Society.
The plaintiffs were not part of the original coalition of environmental groups that agreed to quash a lawsuit in exchange for preserving the land.
Beckloff has dismissed all claims raised by the center and the Native Plant Society.
But the dominant issues in the Climate Resolve lawsuit were rare victories among more than a dozen lawsuits filed against Tejon Ranch Co. since 2003 to delay or block development of its remaining 30,000 acres of its holdings.
In addition to Centennial, the company’s proposed developments include Grapevine, a planned community in southern Kern County, and Mountain Village, which would include spas, boutique hotels, commercial space and residences in southern Kern County. by Kern.
If approved by Beckloff, Centennial will join the massive Newhall Ranch project in northern Los Angeles County as the most eco-friendly suburban development ever planned in California.
After negotiations with environmental groups, the developer of the 21,500-unit Newhall Ranch project has pledged $ 25 million for conservation efforts. This project will also include 10,000 solar installations and electric vehicle charging stations in each house, as well as others in the surrounding community.
“More than ever, the state is in desperate need of the 19,333 units Centennial will provide, including nearly 3,500 affordable units,” said Gregory Bielli, president and CEO of Tejon Ranch Co. “At the same time, California must meet its climate goals. . “
The oak-strewn peaks of the Tejon ranch. The ranch and an environmental group have announced an agreement to build more than 19,000 zero-emission homes near the Tehachapi Mountains.