Sand Hill Bluff, in Santa Cruz County south of Davenport purchased in a joint partnership and  jointly funded from federal, state and private partner monies, is a 5,000-year-old Native American Archeological Site. Agricultural operations and pristine beaches in an acquisition assuring public access to a location of historical significance is momentous. A portion of the land will be protected and preserved as farms, disappearing commodities eaten up by California population growth.

The California Resources Agency announced that the Trust for Public Land (TPL), a national nonprofit land conservation group, along with the California Department of Parks and Recreation, the Department of Conservation, the Coastal Conservancy, Caltrans and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), have partnered to permanently shield from development the 154-acre Sand Hill Bluff property. Part of the property valued at $12 million, will be added to the California State Parks system.

Sand Hill Bluff is wedged between Coast Dairies—a vast 7,000-acre property protected by TPL in 1998—and Wilder Ranch State Park. Located off Highway One south of Davenport, Sand Hill Bluff is one of the last links in a series of acquisitions adding up to more than 13 miles of coastline and nearly 12,000
acres of land.

What to expect:   The property will eventually be open to the public and visitors will be able to view the ocean from the high coastal bluffs, enjoy clean, protected beaches and visit a 5,000-year-old archeological site. Left behind by ancestral Ohlone peoples, the impressive site is includes one of the oldest known human occupations and one of the best preserved archeological sites in California.

How it came about: The California Department of Parks and Recreation acquired a 90-acre portion closest to the shoreline to manage for public access and recreation. Arranged by TPL, protection of the coastal resources is possible due to voter-approved Proposition 40 state bond funds, $3.1 million from California Department of Parks and Recreation Caltrans Environmental Enhancement and Mitigation program contribution of $500,000. The State Department of Conservation’s Farmland Conservancy Program and the State Coastal
Conservancy also contributed $2 million each, from voter-approved Propositions 12, 40, and 50, toward the purchase of the remaining 64 acres with the intent that this land stay in agricultural production as it has for more than 100 years.

TPL transferred this portion of the property to Agri-Culture who will own and
manage it until they find a farmer to purchase the property restricted with an agricultural conservation easement. Similar coastal lands have been set aside for agricultural use in Sonoma County and have provided a living zoo of sorts with cattle, other livestock and fields of fruits and vegetables not seen in huge cities along the coast. Much of Sand Hill Bluff is designated farmland of statewide importance to ensure that the farming of a variety of crops, such as Brussels sprouts and artichokes, could continue on the land. Sand Hills Bluff is an example of farmland under pressure from development.

SANTA CRUZ