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OSA Blair Ranch Acquisition
A recent acquisition in the foothills of the Santa Cruz Mountains offers the Open Space Authority an opportunity to extend current trails and expand habitat protection. Known as the Blair Ranch, the 868-acre property lies along the southern border of Rancho Cañada del Oro Open Space Preserve. With this addition, OSA lands and the adjoining Calero County Park together protect almost 7,400 contiguous acres in a key portion of the Llagas and Uvas creeks watershed. The purchase was negotiated and partially funded by Peninsula Open Space Trust. Other partners include the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation, California Coastal Conservancy and Santa Clara County Parks and Recreation. The purchase price was $8,680,000. A working cattle ranch, the land has been in the Blair family since the 1950s. Its rolling hills are dotted with oak trees, and seasonal creeks feed several ranch ponds. Grazing will continue to be part of the management plan for this property. A number of state and federally listed plants are found on the Blair Ranch, and the ponds and grasslands provide habitat which may support California red-legged frogs, California tiger salamanders and Foothill yellow-legged frogs. OSA plans to open these beautiful hills and valleys to visitors within five years. Open Space Authority Assumes Management of VTA’s Coyote Ridge Lands
The Open Space Authority has concluded an agreement with the Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority (VTA) to take over management of important serpentine grasslands on Coyote Ridge. The area is vital habitat for the threatened bay checkerspot butterfly and also supports more than a dozen plants recognized as rare by the California Native Plant Society. The VTA purchased a 548-acre property on the ridge to compensate for environmental impacts created by construction projects on Highway 101. OSA was granted a conservation easement on the land and an endowment of $840,000 to cover management expenses in perpetuity. The two agencies worked with a consultant and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to develop a resource management plan for the land and its rare, threatened or endangered inhabitants. A number of streams provide potential habitat for the California red-legged frog. Special-status plants found there include Mt. Hamilton thistle, San Francisco wallflower, smooth lessingia, most beautiful jewelflower and the endangered Santa Clara Valley dudleya. This rich and complex environment will be the setting for guided nature walks by OSA’s interpreter, Teri Rogoway. She’ll offer opportunities to learn about the spectacular displays of spring wildflowers, relationships between plants and animals, and how humans impact our environment. One of the most urgent stories to be told about Coyote Ridge involves the interaction of soil, water, plants, caterpillars, humans and cows. It starts with geology. This includes a small, rather nondescript dwarf plantain, the primary food source of the bay checkerspot caterpillar. The adult butterfly relies on nectar plants growing nearby. But this carefully balanced interaction is threatened by the increased nitrogen in the air due to automobile exhaust. This acts as a free-floating fertilizer, adding nutrients to serpentine soils and enabling invasive non-native grasses to crowd out the native foliage. Fortunately, one ally in the struggle against these intruders is the cattle that currently graze on the ridge. Their preference for the introduced species makes them highly selective mowers, reducing the presence of wild oats and ryegrass and allowing the native plants to mature. As managers of the Coyote VTA property, the Open Space Authority will coordinate the needs and requirements of these elements and many others on the property and work to maintain them year to year as a functioning, healthy reserve for some of California’s most threatened species. Fire Clears the Way for Native Grass Rejuvenation
A controlled burn on Monday, November 6, signaled the next stage in the Open Space Authority's (OSA) plan to restore a native plant community on its lands along Casa Loma Road in San Jose. Non-native grasses went up in smoke in a meadow near the staging area at Rancho Cañada del Oro Open Space Preserve, carefully managed by OSA General Manager Patrick Congdon, OSA field staff, and firefighters from Santa Clara County Fire Department and Midpeninsula Regional Open Space District. The fire reduced unwanted plant material and will help prepare the soil for the seeding of native grasses later in the season. Firefighters set and contained small areas of fire as they moved across the meadow. Engines and water trucks stood by and the smoke was carefully monitored. “Overall things went very well,” OSA General Manager Patrick Congdon said. “The applied use of fire in land management is critical and this is a great way to start things off for the Authority.” The burn follows several years of invasive plant removal that virtually eliminated two significant plant pests: purple starthistle and yellow starthistle. Blue oak seedlings are being nurtured on the site and with the introduction of native purple needle grass and blue wild rye, the meadow will be another step closer to its former state as an oak/walnut savanna. OSA Participates in Cooperative Fire Training ExerciseWhen the Open Space Authority purchased a piece of land that has become part of Rancho Cañada del Oro Open Space Preserve, it also acquired a small, rundown house with no septic system. This week, the seemingly useless structure gave 16 recruits from the Santa Clara County Joint Fire Academy the opportunity to practice vital firefighting skills in a live setting.
Under the guidance of training captain Dave Ronco and other veterans, the firefighters-in-training practiced rescue techniques by blacking out their face masks to simulate a smoke-darkened house. They climbed to the roof to cut ventilation openings with chainsaws and axes. And they had the opportunity to hone their teamwork. It was collaboration that gave the old house by the banks of Llagas Creek one last chance to be useful. With no historic value, the structure was deemed too costly to refurbish. OSA General Manager Patrick Congdon saw its value as a fire training site, however, and recruits from Sunnyvale, Milpitas and Santa Clara County fire departments were able to benefit from the decaying building. OSA will complete the demolition and hopes to incorporate the home site into a future trail and perhaps a picnic area. General Manager Patrick Congdon Receives Award from California Department of Fish & Game
On September 28, 2006, Patrick Congdon, General Manager of the Santa Clara County Open Space Authority, was presented with the State of California , Department of Fish & Game's highest recognition, the Director's Achievement Award. The commendation, presented by Lt. John Nores and Warden Chad Alexander, acknowledged Congdon's invaluable assistance in all areas of resource protection and his ability to create and maintain effective partnerships with other public agencies. Some of the highlights of Congdon's efforts cited by California Department of Fish and Game Director Ryan Broddrick include:
The Santa Clara County Open Space Authority continues to be dedicated to the preservation, protection and management of natural resources in Santa Clara County ### Santa Clara Valley Habitat Conservation PlanThe Open Space Authority is assisting with the development of the Santa Clara Valley Habitat Conservation Plan/Natural Communities Conservation Plan (HCP/NCCP) -- A collaborative effort by local agencies to create a plan to provide a means for conservation of endangered, threatened or species of concern. Visit the Santa Clara Valley HCP/NCCP project website for more information.
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