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What is the
Mountclef Ridge
Wildlife Corridor?
This Habitat Linkage runs along the north side of
the City of Thousand
Oaks in the County of Ventura. It has been scientifically
documented for many years.
The most recent report was a major new study named South Coast Missing
Linkages, (Santa Monica-SierraMadre connection) that was published in
June 2006 by South Coast Wildlands in partnership with the National
Park
Service, the US Forest Service, California State Parks and a large
number of conservation groups.
The full report can be seen and/or downloaded at:
http://www.scwildlands.org/reports.aspx
(Santa Monica-Sierra Madre connection)
The aim is to create a design for the protection of habitat linkages
that will connect the Santa Monica Mountains to the Los Padres National
Forest. Mountclef Ridge is part of an extended habitat linkage
that runs from Point Mugu State Park to the Los Padres National Forest.
These biologists and conservationists recommended a minimum width from
for this wildlife corridor of 2 kilometers or about 1.2 miles.
Mountclef is the chokepoint on this extensive habitat linkage. It has
already been reduced to only 800 hundred feet.T
This wildlife corridor provides habitat connectivity for a large number
of species. Most importantly it has been described by the
National Park Service as one of the last remaining possible connection
for the mountain lions in the SantaMonica Mountains. The limited
population of cougars in that area has few opportunities for adding
genetic diversity and is already showing a high rate of intra-species
killing due to limited habitat.
Any further isolation
of these animals could ultimately lead to their
extinction in the Santa Monica Mountains.
Reduction of
Habitat Linkage.
Due to expanding development, the Mountclef Ridge
Wildlife Corridor has
been gradually reduced in recent years. Then in 2004 two houses were
completed on the ridgeline where the habitat linkage was already at its
thinnest point. The developer, S.D. Development, next applied to build
four more houses that would have cut right across the wildlife
corridor. These houses would have connected existing development from
Thousand Oaks on the south side of the ridge to existing development in
Santa Rosa Valley on the north.
In 2004, Save Our Ring Of Green (SOROG) met with the developer and he
agreed to sell the properties for an amount to be determined but based
on his recent appraisal. SOROG lobbied for two years to get the City of
Thousand Oaks and other agencies to purchase the properties. The City
eventually purchased lots 1, 2 and 3 for $825,000 each. Most of the
money came from the City of Thousand Oaks. The Santa Monica Mountains
Conservancy, SMMC, donated $500,000 and the Conejo Open Space
Conservation Agency, COSCA, donated $100,000 towards the purchase price.
Despite questions from the boards of both SMMC and COSCA, the city
declined to purchase Lot 4. The stated reason was that they did not
have enough money to purchase the last lot.
In October 2006, the Thousand Oaks Planning Commission voted to approve
an application to build a 7.700 sq. ft. building on Lot 4. SOROG has
appealed this approval to the Thousand Oaks City Council.
At the same time, SOROG has partnered with the Mountains Restoration
Trust (King Gillette Ranch purchase) and Save Open Space (Ahmanson
Ranch) and is starting negotiations with the developer to get an option
to purchase lot 4. SOROG has raised private donations as the down
payment or option to purchase the lot.
When these negotiations are successfully concluded, an application will
be made to the Wildlife Conservation Board, WCB, for funding under
Proposition 117 or other state funding to complete the purchase. SOROG
will also continue to seek other funding from private and public
sources.
The
following people and groups are supporting SOROG in this application to
the
Wildlife Conservation Board to save the Mountclef
Ridge Wildlife Corridor:
US
Congressman Brad Sherman
State
Senator Sheila Kuehl
State
Assemblymember Fran Pavley
Ventura
County Supervisor Steve Bennett
Ventura
County Supervisor Linda Parks
Richard
Francis, Co-founder of SOAR, Save Open-Space and Agricultural Resources
Mountain
Lion Foundation (Lynn Sadler)
Mountains
Restoration Trust (Steve Harris)
Save
Open Space (Mary Weisbrock)
South
Coast Wildlands (Kristeen Penrod)
Sierra
Club Conejo Group (John Holroyd)
Sierra
Club Angeles Chapter (Rosemary White)
Save
the Conejo
Thousand
Oaks Citizens Action Network
Santa
Rosa Valley Municipal Advisory Council
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