Defending the Coast -- again and again
School district eyes agricultural property owned by POST
by Lennie Roberts

When the bountiful fields of the 862-acre Johnston Ranch were acquired by Peninsula Open Space Trust in 1998, environmentalists breathed an enormous sigh of relief. CGF had defended this prime agricultural property from sprawling development several times over the past 25 years. Located just outside the city limits of Half Moon Bay, the historic farm was right in the path of any expansionist plans of a development-minded City Council.

POST's Johnston Ranch, farmed for nearly 150 years, forms an urban-rural barrier on the stouh end of Half Moon Bay.

Beginning in the 1970's the City Council had its eyes on this prize. Back in the 1960's the County purchased 20 acres next to the historic Johnston House for a future Coastside County Government Center. When it became apparent that the County's business could be more efficiently done in one location, the County transferred those 20 acres to the City of Half Moon Bay.

The opening gambit - Half Moon Bay plays the soccer field card
CGF's first major battle was to fend off the City's plans to locate ball fields and other intensive recreational uses on this farmland. Placing these facilities in the middle of prime agricultural land would have seriously compromised the ability of the Giusti family, which had farmed the property for 35 years, to continue their operations. Due to restrictions on use of pesticides, herbicides, and other chemicals next to areas where children congregate, a large "buffer zone" would have been imposed on the Giustis' farming. Night lighting for the ball fields would have further compromised their ability to grow artichokes, as this lighting attracts the plume moth, an artichoke pest. After a long struggle, the Coastal Commission denied the permits for the ball fields, but this land was still at great risk.

Measure D - a developer's dream, an environmental nightmare
In the early 1990's, CGF was called upon again to lead the campaign against a new threat. Measure D had been placed on the ballot by developers who wanted to build a conference center, condos and golf courses on this property. This Countywide ballot measure would have exempted the entire 862 acres of the Johnston Ranch from the protections of the County's Local Coastal Plan (LCP). Although the developers spent over $600,000 on their campaign, this ill-founded proposal went down to a stunning defeat with an 82% "no" vote.

Environmentalists rejoiced at the public support for preserving agricultural lands. But we also hadn't forgotten the old saying about environmental battles, "Victories are temporary; defeats are permanent."

POST comes to the rescue
We waited for the next move by the developer-owners. To our surprise and delight, the owners chose to sell the property to Peninsula Open Space Trust (POST). The land was finally protected through private philanthropy. No longer would environmentalists have to ride in to defend the land from urban sprawl.

Or so we thought.

School district plays hardball and threatens eminent domain
Last fall, a new and powerful threat emerged to shake any sense of complacency about the long-term security of this land. In a blatant attempt to force the Half Moon Bay City Council to back down from their stance of protecting the environmentally-sensitive habitat of the Wavecrest property (a stance firmly supported by CGF and many others), the Cabrillo Unified School District announced its intention to acquire up to 25 acres of the Johnston Ranch -- using eminent domain if necessary.

The plot thickens -- School district and developers in cahoots
Not content with having their new middle school stand as the sole appealing public amenity of the proposed Wavecrest development, the school board has now become the outspoken flag-bearer for the developers of the Wavecrest project. Even in the face of widespread opposition from the Giusti family, POST, the Farm Bureau, CGF and many citizens, the school board has refused to back down from the threat to this important open space unless the entire Wavecrest project -- much more than just a middle school -- is approved.

Drawing the battle lines
Theoretically, the school district could acquire this property from POST by eminent domain. But this would require a countywide vote to allow a school in the middle of this rural, agricultural land. This proposal would be vigorously fought at every step of the way.

A reasonable way out
Years of delay and more contentiousness do not bring us closer to the goal of building a new middle school. The board of the Cabrillo School District should have much greater concerns than being the water-bearer for a highly unpopular development. The last two ballot measures to fund Coastside schools have been defeated, largely due to the school board's political machinations and their decision to partner with developers in far-flung locations rather than building on land they already own near downtown Half Moon Bay.

In the context of this new threat to coastal open space, it is ironic that the proposed coastal expansion of the Midpeninsula Regional Open Space District raised a concern about the use of eminent domain to acquire land for permanent protection. The Board of MROSD has been responsive to those concerns, and has agreed to eliminate permanently its power of eminent domain on the Coast and acquire land from willing sellers only.

Will decades of fine environmental work to protect the Johnston Ranch be undone by a school board out of touch with its mission? The answer is blowing in the wind.