IRVINE : Fair Will Bid Goodby to Buffalo Ranch

They’re calling this weekend’s public celebration at the Buffalo Ranch “the last roundup.”

Preservationists say the name aptly describes the precarious state of the landmark ranch.

The last of the business tenants that rented space on the ranch left this month. And the Irvine Co., which owns the site, is talking with the Orange County Fair about moving all or some of the ranch’s more than a dozen buildings to the Costa Mesa fairgrounds.

The ranch has a colorful past that includes being home to an amusement park in the 1950s and the headquarters for the architects who designed parts of Irvine in the 1960s.

Before this backdrop, one of the Buffalo Ranch’s oldest tenants, Lange Financial Corp., plans a family celebration at the site today and Sunday. The event will include food, music, hot-air balloon rides, pony rides, a petting zoo and other activities. On Sunday, some bison that have grazed on the ranch since the mid-1980s will be auctioned off.

Officials from Lange said sponsoring the event is a way to bid farewell to a property beloved not just by company employees but by residents in the surrounding community.

“We just want to say goodby,” said Shelia Starnes of Lange.

The Irvine Co. said the best way to preserve the ranch buildings is to move them to a place where they can be used productively.

The County Fair proposed using the buildings as classrooms and meeting halls at the fairgrounds.

Officials said one of the reasons the Irvine Co. decided to clear out all tenants from the ranch is that the coming realignment of Ford Road will reduce vehicle access to the property.

The company hopes to eventually build homes on the ranch, situated at the corner of Ford Road and MacArthur Boulevard.

Preservationists working to have the spot listed on the National Register of Historic Places said they would prefer to have the structures remain intact at their current spots.

“The last roundup” takes place today and Sunday from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Admission is $10 for adults and $5 for children.