Developers corral ranch ideas

A land developer has begun its own appraisal of Banning Ranch, one of the last large chunks of undeveloped coastal land in Orange County, a representative of the company said today at an Orange County Coastal Coalition meeting.

The Newport Beach City Council formed a committee earlier this year to appraise the more than 400-acre piece of land. The land developer Newport Banning Ranch, made up of three owners of the land, claims much of the land is scarred by oil wells and pipelines. The developer wants to preserve about 70% of the area but build housing, shops and an inn on part of the land.

“The site is run-down and dirty, and it needs a cleanup,” said Mike Mohler of Newport Banning Ranch. “There is a substantial cleanup of old wells and miles of interconnecting pipelines.”

Environmentalists want to preserve the land as parks and open space. Several environmental groups want Newport Beach to find a way to purchase the site.

“This piece of land can be transformed into something else,” said Kevin Nelson of the Save Banning Ranch Task Force. “There is a large arroyo there that is really a wellspring of life. The elements are there to create a great park.”

Newport Banning Ranch submitted plans last month to the city for 1,375 homes, a hotel and retail space on the site.

Getting an accurate assessment of how much Banning Ranch is worth would be the first step for Newport Beach to buy the land.

The city hopes to secure funding from sources, including private donations and bonds, to preserve the area as parks and open space, but developers continue with their plans to build in the area.

About 53 acres of Banning Ranch lie within Newport’s city limits.

Although the rest of the land is in the county’s jurisdiction, Newport Beach maintains a sphere of influence over the area, which stretches along the Santa Ana River and West Coast Highway.

BRIANNA BAILEY may be reached at (714) 966-4625 or at [email protected].