One of the largest private land purchases for conservation in California’s Bay Area was just carried out to save a historic ranch from being turned into a sand quarry.
Before it was called Sargent Ranch, it was the sacred home of the Amah Mutsun Indian Band, and now it’s going to be protected for what one would assume to be a long, long time to come.
Located in south Santa Clara County, the ranch is about 27 miles from Monterey Bay. Here, the Palo Alto-based nonprofit Peninsula Open Space Trust, (POST) just completed the third purchase agreement that will see all but 7% of the original 6,500-acre Sargent Ranch leave the hands of developers who have sought environmental permitting for a sand and gravel quarry for a decade.
Challenged in court by environmental groups over the ranch’s historic and connective value for native species like badger, deer, mountain lions, bald eagles, and steelhead trout, the developers eventually relented and sold.
“[T]his property represents one of our region’s most ecologically and culturally significant landscapes,” said POST President Gordon Clark in a statement. “To date, we have acquired three properties in the area, protecting a total of 6,114 acres of the 6,500-acre ranch. The remaining 480 acres are under contract and we expect to conserve them in late 2026.”
“Our number one reason to conserve this land is that it’s a major win for biodiversity, safeguarding habitats and essential landscape connectivity for species that journey between the Santa Cruz Mountains, Gabilan, and Diablo Ranges.”
The Amah Mutsun band had lived in the area for presumably hundreds of years before it was the site of colonization through a Spanish mission. In the mid-1800s, the ranch’s namesake, James P. Sargent, purchased the property with his fortune from California’s Gold Rush. Under his ownership, the grounds included a railroad depot, saloon, and other infrastructure.
Since then, the property has had several owners and has been subject to various unrealized plans for development. Most recently, a group of investors called Sargent Ranch Partners LLC proposed a sand and gravel mine on the site.
The Partners first sought approval for a 403-acre, open-put gravel mine in 2015, and encountered vigorous resistance by environmental groups. The current owner made no comment on his team’s sale to POST, which has exceeded $63 million raised primarily from Silicon Valley benefactors and private donations, according to the Santa Cruz Sentinel.
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Now that the ranch is out of the development line, it’s not clear what will happen to it. The Sentinel reports that Clark will organize some studies on the land focusing on the movements of the native animal species, while the Amah Mutsun will be brought onboard through a kind of stewardship, co-ownership agreement.
It could eventually be transferred into county hands, to join the system of some 28 parks managed by the Santa Clara parks department.
“We want to be supportive,” said Todd Lofgren, director of the department. “We are going to work with the partners and community to help create a plan everyone is excited about.”
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In his statement, Clark said the results of the field studies will determine how his group will move forward.
“POST is working closely with a variety of partners, including the Amah Mutsun Tribal Band, Amah Mutsun Land Trust, Santa Clara County Parks, the Santa Clara Valley Habitat Agency, Valley Water, the Santa Clara Valley Open Space Authority, and the Land Trust of Santa Cruz County, among others,” he said.
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