Press about the Fitch Mountain Parkland opportunity
Heirs put Fitch Mountain up for sale
Published on December 16, 2002
© 2002- The Press Democrat
BY: PAUL PAYNEFitch Mountain, the scenic backdrop of the city of Healdsburg, is for sale for $3 million.
Owners of the wooded landmark -- heirs of the late Zelma Ratchford -- listed 258 acres last month, including the mountain's 991-foot peak.
The move rekindled efforts to buy the land with public money and build a long-sought park. The estate is offering to sell the mountaintop to the Sonoma County Agricultural Preservation and Open Space District, which has bought 57,000 acres over the past decade.
But because the Open Space District already has a conservation easement prohibiting development on about 70 percent of the property, district officials may balk at an outright purchase.
``That's a pretty hefty chunk of dough for a property that is already protected,'' said Supervisor Paul Kelley, whose support would be critical. ``It's safe to say a piece of property like this is not as high a priority as others.''
For years, park supporters have coveted Fitch Mountain's redwood forests and sweeping vistas, which have remained mostly untouched. Ratchford herself approached the city and Open Space District, hoping to turn over the land to the public.
In 1994, the county bought development rights to the eastern slope of the mountain for $1 million in a purchase that was considered a steppingstone to creation of a park or preserve.
But public access is limited. Hikers must receive permission from the Ratchford estate before ascending the mountain.
And about 75 acres are divided into lots that could be sold individually, marring Healds-burg's signature backdrop.
Both problems could be solved if the county buys the land and restores its many miles of hiking trails for the public, Healdsburg resident and conservationist Royce Meyerott said.
Meyerott hope to collect signatures from 10,000 Sonoma County residents calling for the acquisition, which would be paid for out of a $50 million pool of public money created by a quarter-cent sales tax.
``These kinds of opportunities are going away fast,'' Meyerott said. ``It's now or never.''
Eric Drew, a Healdsburg broker who is married to Ratchford's granddaughter, said estate members are eager to sell.
Many are older people who cannot wait for drawn-out negotiations with a public bureaucracy that could take years.
``I think there would be a preference that it be sold to the Open Space District,'' Drew said. ``However, with differences in age and health among the six estate members, there is a sense of urgency.''
But open space officials, presented with purchase options for many properties, would not say whether they will buy Fitch Mountain.
Maria Cipriani, assistant general manager, said she is evaluating the land and could make a recommendation in the next year.
The land will be appraised and balanced against several other projects the district is considering.
A commitment from Healdsburg and county parks to pay for improvements and maintenance would help close the deal, she said.
``If we are going to pursue it, we will need to identify partners,'' Cipriani said.
But the county may not want to invest in land that is already protected, especially after spending money on other Healdsburg projects such as Fox Pond, north of town.
However, Kelley said it might be possible to buy only the unprotected portion of Fitch Mountain.
``This land has some merit because of its high visibility,'' Kelley said. ``But there are definitely some challenges with it.''
You can reach Staff Writer Paul Payne at 521-5250 or ppayne@pressdemocrat.com.
The following article appeared in the Healdsburg Tribune for the week of January 20, 2003. The original link is http://www.sonomawest.com/articles/2003/01/21/healdsburg/news/nws-4.txt
Fitch Mountain to be studied for open space acquisition
258 acres could become county parkBy RAY HOLLEY - Tribune Editor
The Sonoma County Agricultural and Open Space Preservation District Advisory Board voted last week to begin the negotiation and appraisal process in preparation for a possible purchase of 258 acres of Fitch Mountain.
The land was put up for sale in October by members of the Zelma Ratchford Trust. Ratchford, who died five years ago, acquired the land over a period of decades in the middle of the last century.
Eric Drew, a Healdsburg real estate broker who is handling the transaction, negotiated a $1 million easement with the open space district over 180 acres of the property in 1994, but the easement did not provide for any sort of public access to the land. The open space district staff is recommending that the land now be purchased and converted to a county park, with hiking trails. "The intent of the family has been for it to be a park," said Drew. "The goal originally was to sell off seven lots and come back to the open space district with the 180 acres for sale."
According to Drew, certain members of the trust have financial and health concerns that necessitate the sale of the entire 258 acres, which include seven lots that could be developed along the mountain's east side. Drew's wife is the granddaughter of Ratchford, and is the only locally-residing member of the trust.
The Advisory Board voted to add Fitch Mountain to its "work plan" meaning that an appraisal and negotiations can now begin. The board, which acts in an advisory capacity to the Sonoma County Board of Supervisors, split over the plan.
Denny Murphy and Helen Bacigalupi, both from Healdsburg, did not come out in favor of the purchase, both saying "abstain" when the vote was called.
Murphy said that he had, "come to the meeting ready to vote no" but softened his position to an abstention after hearing from the staff. Murphy said that he prefers conservation easements over outright purchases. "That gives you more bang for the buck."
Bacigalupi said that she abstained because the extra 78 acres may be the only land left available for Healdsburg's future expansion, and that buying just the original 180 acres would be a better project.
Healdsburg City Councilmember Kent Mitchell, who also sits on the advisory board, urged the board to support the entire acquisition. "This is a fantastic opportunity both for the city of Healdsburg and for outlying ares," said Mitchell. "this will serve a whole range of people."
Royce Meyerott, a Healdsburg resident who is supporting the acquisition plan, is organizing a free public forum the future of Fitch Mountain on Friday, January 24 at 7 p.m. at the Raven Theater.
The following editorial appeared in the same issue of the Healdsburg Tribune, and also in the Windsor Times. Original link is http://www.sonomawest.com/articles/2003/01/21/healdsburg/letters_opinions/edt-1.txt
One small correction: While the formal minutes have not yet been published, our understanding is that the vote by the OSD's Advisory Committee was 6-0-3 (six in favor, none opposed, 3 abstentions), not 6-3.
EDITORIAL: Acquiring Fitch Mountain a once-in-a-lifetime chance
The opportunity to acquire the 258 acres atop Fitch Mountain could be the last chance a public agency ever has to keep the land open to the public.
The Sonoma County Agricultural and Open Space Preservation District's Advisory Board took the first step toward buying the property last week. It was the right decision.
While the vote was not unanimous, the 6-3 majority puts the property on the Open Space District's work plan, which allows an appraisal and negotiations to begin. We encourage the district and the willing seller to negotiate quickly and in good faith to put this property into the public trust.
Acquiring the top of Fitch Mountain fulfills the mission and the vision of the Open Space District approved by voters in 1990. Placing the 258 acres of Fitch Mountain into public hands would protect wildlife habit, prevent further development and maintain the integrity of a scenic landmark. It would also open up the area to public access, an opportunity now afforded to only a handful of locals in the know.
Local residents supporting acquisition of the mountain for open space and park land are hosting a public forum on Friday, January 24 at 7 p.m. at the Raven Theater. If you are interested in the future of Fitch Mountain, you should probably attend.
County officials now have a rare opportunity to put a Healdsburg treasure into the public trust forever. The district's advisory board has set the process in motion. If negotiations are successful, it will be up to the Board of Supervisors to approve the final purchase. We encourage local supporters to convey their opinions and sentiments about the future of Fitch Mountain to supervisors, particularly to Fourth District Supervisor Paul
Kelley.There may never be a better chance to preserve Fitch Mountain and put it into public ownership. It is a hallowed landmark and a local treasure that should be owned and enjoyed by everyone.
-- B.W.D.
The following coverage of Friends of Fitch Mountain's Community Forum on January 24 was published the following day in the Press Democrat. The original link is http://www.pressdemocrat.com/local/news/25fitch.html See also FFM's flyer for this event.
Hundreds rally for Fitch Mountain park
Proponents call for outright purchase of Healdsburg land
January 25, 2003
By MARY CALLAHAN
THE PRESS DEMOCRATAbout 500 people attended what amounted to a campaign rally Friday night in Healdsburg promoting public acquisition of land for a park at the top of Fitch Mountain.
The scenic 991-foot peak and 258 surrounding acres are on the market -- with a price tag of $2.95 million -- and are being evaluated for possible purchase by the Sonoma County Agricultural Preservation and Open Space District.
The district already owns development rights to 180 acres of the listed property, for which it paid $1 million in 1994.
Proponents say an outright purchase of land is necessary to secure public access and ensure that eight developable lots never host construction crews.
"It's really your interest and support that will make this happen," Healdsburg Mayor Jason Liles said, identifying Fitch Mountain as central to hopes for amassing publicly-owned land and trails that would stretch to the Alexander Valley.
For years, park supporters have coveted Fitch Mountain's redwood forests and sweeping vistas, which have remained mostly untouched.
The late Zelma Ratchord, whose heirs own the land, approached the district before her death, and the 1994 deal included provisions encouraging eventual transfer of at least some of the land for use as a public park, open space chief Andrea Mackenzie said.
Interest was renewed when the property was listed in November and initial discussions got under way. The purchase price would be paid from a $50 million pool of public money created by a quarter-cent sales tax approved by voters in 1990.
Friday's event, billed as a public forum on the proposal, attracted an overwhelmingly pro-purchase crowd whose periodic applause demonstrated a desire to open the land to hikers, cyclists and others without major changes or park development.
But even as proponents, including city officials and a grass-roots group called Fitch Mountain Forever, urged supporters to lobby over the next several months, they acknowledged several challenges, including a lengthy process to which any open space purchase is subject and the urgency of the landowners to sell the property.
Liles and Mackenzie acknowledged that the property remains listed with no guarantees that Ratchford's family will wait for the cumbersome political process, but also said the owners want to negotiate a sale that would put the property in public hands.
"That is the family's first priority," Liles said.
Another piece of the puzzle involves potential partnerships with the city, county, nonprofit groups and volunteers to make development, maintenance and operation of any future park affordable, they said.
Also needed is approval of any deal by the Sonoma County Board of Supervisors, whose members serve as the Open Space District board.
Some believe the board's willingness to spend tax funds on the property could be undercut by the fact that 180 acres of it already are protected from development by the 1994 easement.
Supervisor Paul Kelley, whose district includes the Healdsburg area, has said the property isn't a high priority and didn't attend Friday's meeting at the Raven Theater.
One woman in the audience said supporters would do well to make clear to Kelley their interest in a park. "He's very into baseball fields and soccer fields, and he needs to know that this is what you want," Karen McMillen said.
Friends of Fitch Mountain founder Royce Meyerott said nearly 3,000 signatures already have been collected on petitions toward a goal of 10,000.
But even with growing support, he said, "the mountain is at risk."
Letter to the Press Democrat editor published January 27, 2003
EDITOR: The top of Fitch Mountain is for sale. The 258-plus acres is a wild sanctuary of forested wilderness. To protect its wild and scenic status, we need to be looking ahead, for all ages.
The forested wilderness is a wild, steep, dense woods of coastal redwood, California native oak, Pacific madrone, toyon, Douglas fir, maple, bay laurel, and dozens of other flora tree species. The trails lead to 200-year old groves of redwood and oak trees. You see burnt, blackened trees of yesteryear, yet this mountain's wildness renews itself, an ongoing preservation from its own foliage of forest food.
The forest harbors many varieties of shrubs and flowering plants: yellow forsythia, red rhododendron, white photinia with its red and green leaves, violet vinca cover, red-berry holly, blue iris, blackberry and countless others which help feed the wild life the wildlife. Thousands of light green ferns dress up the forest floor like a flower arrangement at a banquet, planted and displayed by nature.
It is a natural habitat reserve for the great blue heron, great egret, scrub jay, turkey vulture, red-tail hawks, mergansers, owls, thrushes, robins, starlings, California quail and dozens of other bird species. The deer, squirrel, rabbit, a variety of salamanders, and numerous fauna species live here in a balance. For this wildlife Fitch Mountain has been their home. I encourage the Sonoma County Board of Supervisors open space district to purchase and keep this living wilderness classroom forever wild.
TED CALVERT
Healdsburg