Open Space Agency Favors 20-Acre Olympia Farms Site for Equestrian Center

After a five-month analysis of nine potentially horse-friendly spots, the Conejo Open Space Conservation Agency recommended that only one site--at the southwestern edge of Broome Ranch--become a permanent equestrian center.

The recommendation to further analyze the old Olympia Farms site, a 20-acre parcel at the 325-acre ranch, will be formally announced tonight at the agency’s board meeting.

The agency--which is made up of two city officials, two park officials and a member of the public--will make a final vote Sept. 10 on whether to pursue developing the equestrian center there.

Marke Towne, coordinator, said the agency would have “ideally liked to have two or more sites” for permanent equestrian centers at opposite ends of the city.

As part of the agency’s analysis, eight potential sites were ruled out because they either included rare and endangered plants or would have been too costly to build fire access roads.

The agency hopes that the new equestrian center will eventually be home to 200 horses and other animals, a place where people can rent horses, take riding lessons, and watch rodeos and jumping competitions.

The agency found that the Olympia site, a horse-breeding operation until it was abandoned in the 1980s, has good soil, existing roads and less “likelihood of conflicts with residents along Lynn Road” because of its remote location.

Three of the sites considered--but ultimately rejected at this time--were also at Broome Ranch. The five remaining sites were spread throughout the city--from Wildwood Mesa in northwest Thousand Oaks to Lang Ranch at the northeast end.

Homeowner opposition, concern over the potential loss of an endangered plant called Lyon’s pentachaeta and lack of access roads for fire protection were listed as some of the problems with the other sites, according to the agency’s report.

The site now used as an equestrian center is Two Winds, situated at the northeast corner of Broome Ranch. But the agency deemed this site too costly for further development.

One of the Broome Ranch sites, adjacent to the Olympia site, was rejected from further analysis because it would preclude building a golf course there, the report stated.

Towne explained that when the city and park district bought the ranch for $2.9 million in 1993, they decided that the 325 acres would be used for natural open space, equestrian centers and golf courses that could help pay off the investment.

While no immediate plans have been made to build a golf course at the Olympia Farms site, a golfing green could definitely be part of the landscape, Towne said.

A golf course is a concern for some state parks officials, who applied for funding in April to buy the ranch from Thousand Oaks and turn it into a state park.

“A golf course is open space for recreation,” said Neil Braunstein, state park district planner. “But [the unnatural grass] doesn’t do much for wildlife.”

Towne said that while it’s possible the state will offer Thousand Oaks and the park district an attractive bid to buy the ranch, plans to analyze the best spot for an equestrian center--and perhaps a golf course--will still move forward.