May 25, 2023

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preserving, protecting, and defending the rural character
and natural resources of Carmel Valley since 1949

Carmel Valley Association
Weekly Bulletin

Dear Richard Stott,

The Wildlands Conservancy

is About to Aquire Carmel Valley's

Rana Creek Ranch


The Wildlands Conservancy (TWC) is very close to acquiring the funds to purchase the Rana Creek Ranch in Carmel Valley. The ranch is located in upper Carmel Valley between the Salinas Valley and the Santa Lucia Range with 12,422 contiguous acres ranging from 900 to 3,400 feet in altitude. The property features numerous springs, seasonal creeks, and wetlands in addition to extensive oak woodlands and native grasslands. The ranch supports populations of the federal and state-listed California red-legged frog and California tiger salamander. Rana and Agua Mala Creeks provide potential habitat for re-establishing federally protected South-Central California Coast steelhead in the upper Carmel River. The ranch also provides a key wildlife corridor between the Salinas Valley and Los Padres National Forest.


Numerous wells and developed springs throughout the property supply water to water tanks and cattle troughs. The ranch currently carries approximately 160 calf/cow pairs. The entire ranch is enrolled in an Agricultural Preserve/Williamson Act contract. The property offers over 16 miles of trails and roads suitable for hiking and horseback riding. Carmel Valley Road provides direct access to the ranch at its southwest boundary. TWC intends to develop access to the northeastern portion of the property directly

from the Salinas Valley via an easement through private property. Once developed, this will provide residents of the Salinas Valley, including many low-income communities, with much closer access to the property and its recreational amenities.


With the potential exception of constructing a ranger station, TWC has agreed to restrict future development. There is an existing 9,000-square-foot conference center and several outbuildings that will serve as the preserve’s headquarters and primary visitor access. There is an existing estate home, two guest homes, greenhouse/garden, manager’s residence, pond, and several small associated outbuildings. These facilities will be used as TWC staff housing for preserve operations, rented/leased for revenue generating activities, or a mix of both.


Stay tuned for more information as the situation develops.


Read The Coastal Concervancy Staff Recomentdation


Visit the Wildlife Conservancy Website


Email the Wildlife Conservancy

Please Join Us

in Our Efforts to Preserve

Carmel Valley!


Our hard-working all volunteer board and committee members continue to work to preserve, protect, and defend the natural beauty, resources, and rural character of Carmel Valley, but our true strength is our many hundreds of members.


Please join us now, either with a credit card on our secure PayPal site or by printing our application form and sending us a check. Our successes are possible because only of members like you! Our successes are only possible because of members like you! Thank you!



JOIN USING A CREDIT CARD

or

OUR PRINTABLE MEMBERSHIP FORM

C. S. Noel, President
Carmel Valley Association

RESTORE YOUR BACK YARD FROM WINTER STORMS!

“WOOD CHIP MULCH GIVEAWAY EVENT”


One Carmel has an excess amount of wood chip mulch and is giving it away to the community for FREE Sunday June 4, 2023 9:00am – 1:00pm.


One Carmel’s September Ranch Equestrian Center located at 676 Carmel Valley Road in Carmel Valley Great for erosion control, garden landscape, or as groundcover for weed control. One Carmel’s September Ranch Equestrian Center and the iconic red barn will continue to be a part of our Carmel Valley community for many more decades.


For directions to One Carmel go to www.onecarmel.com This is a self-serve event, bring your own equipment, make sure the wood chips are secured and covered during your transportation. First come, first serve until it’s gone. This event is sponsored by the ONE Carmel Foundation.


Also from One Carmel:


One Carmel and it’s iconic September Ranch Equestrian Center is pleased to share the Don Chapin Company, Inc., will begin onsite grading activities for the One Carmel Phase 1 Subdivision Improvement work on May 15, 2023. The project is expected to be completed by Summer 2024.


We wish our neighbors to know the allowed hours of construction will be between 8:00am to 6:00pm Monday through Friday and 8:00am to 1:00pm on Saturdays. We express our sincere appreciation in advance and thank you for your cooperation and patience as we hope to complete the project quickly and efficiently. We are very grateful for being your neighbor and promise to be a responsible member of this special community and valley.


Should you have any questions or want more information please contact info@onecarmel.com, or the Contractor’s Project Manager, Wesley, at (831) 970-5013 or the Owner’s Rep Construction Manager, Katie, at (707) 239-4198 between the hours of 8:00am and 5:00pm Monday through Friday.

From Michael D. DeLapa

Executive Director, LandWatch:


Affordable Housing Update


As Monterey County and its cities go through the required process of updating the housing elements in their general plans, LandWatch hopes to rebalance the equation in favor of housing that will be by design more affordable to local residents. In the first email on this topic, I shared the data that the housing local governments have approved is misaligned with the housing local working families and individuals need. This email focuses on the tools LandWatch is using to inform the elected and appointed officials and the general public as we aim to rectify the imbalance.

Let’s start by identifying what good housing policy looks like. LandWatch set forth policies it supported in a 2022 Housing Element Principles Paper

The principles focus on key issues related to:

  1. Zoning density and appropriate development standards;
  2. Removing governmental constraints to housing production;
  3. Limiting annexations to sites needed in this housing cycle;
  4. Integrating affordable housing into high opportunity areas;
  5. Investing in infrastructure and fair housing programs for lower resource communities; and,
  6. Supporting incentives to create affordable (sub-market rate) housing along with market rate housing.


Jose Torres, LandWatch’s Housing Advocate is tracking the progress of Monterey County jurisdictions. In addition to following the Planning Commission and City Council/Board of Supervisors meetings each week, here are some of the tools Jose uses for research. You can use them, too! 


  • Annual Progress Reports Tool This tool gives an overview of housing projects submitted, entitled, permitted, and constructed in jurisdictions throughout the state.
  • Housing Elements Download Tool This tool features the jurisdiction, the planning period covered, the status of the Housing Element, when the document was received, and provides a link to the Housing Element itself.
  • Affirmatively Furthering Fair Housing Tool This map allows viewers to explore the data behind fair housing enforcement, segregation and integration, disparities in access to housing opportunities, disproportionate housing needs, racially/ethnically concentrated areas of poverty, and more!


We will continue to keep you informed of the opportunities to engage in your community as the Housing Element process unfolds. Here’s a tool we use internally to track such opportunities. Many thanks for your interest in the intersection of housing, climate, and social justice.

Carmel Valley Manor Will Replace its Failing Septic System


Mandated by the Monterey County Health Department, the project, which has been in the planning stage for years, will be completed in two phases, each taking about six months

 

The non-profit residential community is now undertaking a major sewer improvement project to replace its 60-year-old failing septic system and will connect to the Carmel Area Wastewater District system. The eight-million-dollar project, $6 million of which is construction costs, is being funded by Carmel Valley Manor and spearheaded by the Carmel Area Wastewater District. The project has been in the planning stage for several years and has been approved by all local and State agencies. Completing the new sewer system will benefit other businesses and organizations along the route, and the sewer line will be large enough to accommodate existing residences and businesses as far away as Carmel Valley Ranch. In addition, the sewage will be treated by the Carmel Area Wastewater District and reused to irrigate local golf courses such as Pebble Beach. 

 

Below is the latest schedule for work that affects Carmel Valley Road. Schedule is subject to change due to weather or other factors:

 

  1. Timing and duration of main sewer installation on Carmel Valley Road:


  • Start 4/28/23
  • End 7/7/23
  • End date does not include laterals, testing, or final pavement restoration
  • Two-way traffic to be maintained during installation during most of the duration of work

 

2.     Installation of Sewer Laterals on Carmel Valley Road:


  • Start 7/17/23
  • End 7/31/23
  • Two-way traffic to be maintained where possible. May be temporary lane closures at times
  • Pavement restoration on Carmel Valley Road TBD

 

No construction will occur during Car Week in August.

 

Upon completion, the new sewer system will not only serve the over 400 residents, staff and guests at Carmel Valley Manor, but it will also serve the Monterey County Regional Fire District, Carmelo School, All Saints Day School, Quail Lodge, and numerous residences and businesses in the Valley. 

 

For more information on this project, please contact John Haupt, Carmel Valley Manor’s Director of Capital Planning, jhaupt@cvmanor.com.

From the Big Sur Land Trust:

Race for Open Space has been extended into May! 

 

After considering the substantial repairs required on our courses due to recent storms, current predictions for even more rain and wind, and the continuing impacts to our surrounding communities, we’ve made the difficult decision to postpone the Adventure Course events, the Fun Run, and the Arroyo Seco Ranch guided hike until May. All other guided hikes and self-guided hikes remain open in April! The Race for Open Space is our largest fundraising event of the year, and we hope you will take advantage of all the hiking opportunities in April and these new dates for more adventures in May!

Here are the events originally scheduled for Saturday, April 1, which have been rescheduled to Saturday, May 27:


  • Palo Corona to South Bank Trail (2 mile) Fun Run
  • Williams Canyon to Palo Corona (8.5 mile) Adventure Course
  • Palo Corona to San Jose Creek Trail (9.5 mile) Adventure Course
  • Palo Corona to Mitteldorf Preserve (21 mile) Adventure Course


The Arroyo Seco Ranch Guided Hike originally scheduled on Sunday, April 9 has been rescheduled to Saturday, May 6.

Please note: All Race for Open Space self-guided hike opportunities at Mitteldorf Preserve and Glen Deven Ranch are still open throughout April. And, with exception of the Arroyo Seco Ranch hike, all guided hikes are also still being held in April. 

 

Learn more and sign up here.

Nature Explorer’s Summer Camp NOW ENROLLING


The Santa Lucia Conservancy has been a mainstay for hands-on environmental education since 1999, and this year, they are launching a summer camp pilot program for 3-6th graders from June 5-16.


Camp leaders integrate science, natural history, and art through fun, engaging activities that teach children to become keen observers of the natural world, give them the space to ask questions, and encourage them to express themselves creatively. Kids will explore topics including native plants, redwood ecology, watershed function, songbirds, owls, cultural history, mammals, restoration, and the wildlife corridor from the mountains to the sea – all within ecologically significant protected lands in Carmel Valley!


We are also providing full scholarships to 10 children from underserved communities thanks to a grant from Save the Redwoods league Learn more and register: https://slconservancy.org/summer-camp/

Native vegetation thinned, trimmed, and pruned


Conservation Fuel Management Handbook

Best Management Practices for Defensible Space


Conservation fuel management is a

collaborative community endeavor!


LEARN THE MANY WAYS

YOU CAN PROTECT YOUR HOME:


Read the Manual in English

or in Spanish

CVA's Newly Created Natural Heritage Committee

Will Soon Need Your Help!


As you may have heard, the Carmel Valley Association has recently created a new Natural Heritage Committee.


The committee's mission is to help celebrate, protect, restore and sustain Carmel Valley’s natural ecosystems; the social, cultural, spiritual, and economic benefits they provide; and the vital linkages between people and nature -- past, present, and future.  


While this mission can seem challenging, it is increasingly vital in our times if we want to save what we treasure most about the Carmel Valley.


And, we need help to meet that challenge. Once the new Committee has met, we will update this page with information about how to become a member or to contribute as a volunteer or intern. Look for updates in early to mid-April, 2023.


From the American Institute of Architects,

Monterey Bay Chapter:


2023 Arts + Architecture Lecture Series

Housing: Finding Solutions with Architecture


Housing: Finding Solutions with Architecture


Our 2023 lecture series is focused on the critical issue of Housing. The fact this has gotten to a crisis point in California and especially in locations like the Central Coast has been obvious for many years. Ever increasing housing prices have kept out not just people below the poverty line and the homeless but a significant percentage of the population from owning a home, and thereby preventing them from achieving the traditional American dream and the primary form of wealth creation.  

 

Thursday, May 18

Housing on the Central Coast: Community Panel Discussion and Forum

Moderated Panel Discussion with Community leaders in public office, planning, housing advocacy and project development.


All events will take place from 6:00 to 7:30 p.m., at SandBox Sand City, a community and performance space at 440 Ortiz Avenue, Sand City, CA


Tickets: $10 for AIA Members and Sponsors, $25 for the general public


Click here to register

When Fun Isn’t Fun, Let CVA Know!


Many residents have been contacting CVA for help with problems including special events, short terms rentals, out of compliance lighting at night, noise, traffic, and road conditions. 


CVA is here to help see that your concerns make it to the appropriate county representative and get attention. 


You can report incidents or areas of concern by


CLICKING THIS LINK.

Removing Invasive Genista?


CVA has two weed wrenches to loan -

making the work of removing genista much easier.


Contact:


Paola Berthoin

25440 Telarana Way

Carmel, CA 93923

 

RisingLeaf Restoration Consulting

www.paolafiorelleberthoin.com

www.passion4place.net

 

831.624.9467

Here's a web site to check to see
 if your area is scheduled for a power outage:

Issues of Concern to Residents of Carmel Valley

Dark Skies


Proposed Dog Park at Palo Corona Regional Park


Rancho Cañada Village


Carmel River Floodplain Restoration

and Environmental Enhancement Project (Carmel River FREE)


Mid-Valley Shopping Center Redo


Carmel Valley Ranch Proposed Equestrian Center


Short-Term Rentals in Carmel Valley


Carmel Unified School District Purchase

of Property on Carmel Valley Road


New Proposal for Development on Val Verde Drive


Cima Collina Winery Sues the County

Over Denial of Special Events at Hilltop Ranch


September Ranch


Carmel Valley Village Development Criteria


Link to the Santa Lucia Conservancy Invasive Plant handbook

Make sure you are signed up to receive emergency alerts!
Curious About CVA?

Carmel Valley Association is one of the oldest, largest, and most successful community organizations in Monterey County. We are entirely volunteer, with no paid employees. Our mission is to defend the beauty, resources and rural character of our beautiful valley. We do that by working with residents, businesses, and government.

 

CVA was instrumental in the adoption of the Carmel Valley Master Plan and recently settled a lawsuit with Monterey County regarding traffic measurement and capping future development on very favorable terms for our valley. Our volunteer experts represent Carmel Valley's interest, testifying before governmental bodies concerning development, water, traffic, road signs, and other quality of life issues.


We keep valley residents informed about important issues and events with our weekly email Bulletin, which goes to over 1650 residents, and our quarterly Newsletter, which is mailed to over 7,000 valley addresses.


president@carmelvalleyassociation.org

or reply to this email 


Click to Join Us Today!


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Header photo by
Carmel Valley Photographer 
Douglas Steakley www.douglassteakley.com