After 27 years fighting to change oil field into massive Orange County nature preserve, initial plans released
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Conservationists and people of coastal Orange County communities have been working for nearly three decades to transform a former 387-acre oil field into at the border of Costa Mesa, Huntington Beach and Newport Beach into one of the largest protected green spaces in the county. Now, the coalition of agencies setting the foundation to transform that dream into a reality have published initial plans describing what Randall Park will eventually look like, and are asking for more input from the public.
Those documents and additional resources are available at RandallPreserve.org. They lay out how how the collaborating agencies intend to balance the restoration of habitats for the 18 unique sensitive or threatened species that live there, the reclamation of culturally significant sites located on the property by native tribal government of the Tongva as well as access to the general public. The plans contain details about what kind of work must be done and what facilities and amenities will eventually be available.
The planning process for the preserve is currently in a public input phase that ends July 16. Those interested in helping shape the future of Randall Preserve have until then to formally submit questions, comments and suggestions.
“We’ve literally waited 27 years for this day, in terms of those who fought this battle,” said Melanie Schlotterbeck, stewardship consultant for the Coastal Corridor Alliance. “This is an opportunity for them to realize the vision, the dream they had, the reason they showed up to the Coastal Commission and held the signs up saying ‘Save Banning Ranch,’ this is how it has payed off.”
She said the conservancy had already received hundreds of responses before plans were released. Since then, many community members have taken the opportunity to go over the documents, which are hundreds of pages long, and returned with well-informed followup comments.
About two dozen people showed up to an open house in Costa Mesa showcasing the progress that has been made to date. Attendees examined where proposed trails and entrances would go, as well as photos of what it looked like in the past and graphics describing what might be there in the future. They also filled out comment cards, watched a presentation available on the corridor alliance’s website and got to know those involved in planning the preserve.
One person attending Tuesday’s open house was Bridget Gleason. Her father was among those who pleaded before the Coastal Commission for the preservation of what was formerly known as Banning Ranch, and she eventually wound up buying a home nearby.
“I’ve been aware since it was the Banning Ranch effort, and my dad was going to Coastal Commission meetings and helping with that effort,” Gleason said. “It’s kind of come full circle now that I’ve bought on that side of town and it’s in my backyard and evolved into the actual restoration part of it. Doing it right truly does take time.”
Two more open houses are scheduled. One will be held Monday, June 2, at the Norma Hertzog Center in Costa Mesa, and the other one is set for Saturday, June 21 at the Newport Beach Civic Center. Those who turn out are eligible for $25 gift cards. And transportation as well as Spanish translation services may be available for people who RSVP ahead of time.
“We realize maybe they have to take time off of work,” Schlotterbeck said. “Maybe they work two jobs, and we wanted to help somewhat make it worth their while.”
How and where people will be able to gain entry to the park has been one of the most popular topics among comments received since plans were released, Schlotterbeck said.
The preserve will be opened to the public in phases. The first portion that people will be able to step foot on will feature a 1-mile hiking loop with an entrance at eastern edge of the preserve, near 17th Street and Whittier Avenue.
Open house attendee Maria Irma Hernandez told the Daily Pilot she lives around the corner from the first proposed entrance of the preserve. Once it opens, she’ll be able to take her morning walks surrounded by nature, rather than pounding pavement alongside the din of passing traffic.
“The infrastructure does not exist there right now,” Schlotterbeck said. “We need to get it up there because it wouldn’t be prudent to open a property without having trash cans and restrooms, things like that.”
But before that can happen, the former owners of the property must cleanup after decades of use as an oil field. That means the removal of chemical deposits and decommissioning of old access roads.
That work should allow for large uninterrupted patches of restored green space. Planners looking ahead at the impacts of climate change intend to reshape parts of the acreage to allow water to flow into what will hopefully become habitats for saltwater and freshwater species.
“The lowland will be impacted in 100 years with 4.9 feet of sea level rise; all of it will be under water,” Schlotterbeck said.
Planners expect the cleanup process to end in 2026, with the formal decommissioning of oil wells by 2027. That’s the earliest it might be feasibly possible to start opening the Randall Preserve to the public.
Once it’s open it will be managed by the Mountains Recreation and Conservation Authority. The agency handles maintenance, security and a wide variety of other services at dozens of preservation sites across Southern California, including a wildlife crossing over the 101 Freeway. Randall Preserve will be the first property they manage in Orange County.
“It is a big lift to open a new park [and] this is a significant property,” the conservation authority’s deputy executive officer Brian Balduf said. “It is in a new territory that MRCA hasn’t been operating, so we’re going to be learning a lot working in Orange County. But also, we’re a park agency. We manage parks. We have a great team. This is what we do.”
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