NEWBURY PARK : Escrow Closes on Part of Ranch

Formalizing a deal made months ago, the National Park Service has closed escrow on nearly half of the 640-acre Broome Ranch in Newbury Park.

The Park Service bought 312 acres, including the eastern third of the ranch and the rocky ridges along the southern edge. Total price was $1.3 million, said David Gackenbach, superintendent of the Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area.

“Escrow’s closed,” Gackenbach said. “It’s great. We’re excited any time we buy more property.”

The Park Service has not yet determined whether to build trails through Broome Ranch or how best to provide access to the rugged terrain, Gackenbach said. The acquisition links with existing parkland known as Rancho Sierra Vista.

The Conejo Open Space Conservation Agency, a joint board including the city of Thousand Oaks and the Conejo Recreation and Park District, will soon take control of the remaining 328 acres of Broome Ranch.

The recreation and park district has already paid for the land--with $1 million coming from the city and another $1.9 million from the park district--but has not yet taken formal title from the purchasing arm of the Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy.

“That’s a very simple transaction,” said Rorie Skei, a conservancy official who sits on the COSCA board. She said the move could come soon.

To cover the cost of buying Broome Ranch, city and park district officials have proposed building a golf course on the flat field along Potrero Road.

But so far, plans for a golf course have not moved past the conceptual stage.