City not giving up on ranch

Newport Beach city officials said Tuesday they will continue to try to sniff out sources of public money to buy Banning Ranch, even after hearing from a hired consultant who called the potential for funding “bleak.”

“This is not the end of the process. It’s a way station along the process,” Councilman Steve Rosansky said Tuesday at a study session. “As opportunities present themselves, we will go along with them. We’re still on that path.”

In a newly released, city-commissioned report, consultant David Meyerson found there probably isn’t enough public money to purchase the 400-acre Banning Ranch to preserve it from developers who want to put homes, shops and a hotel there.

“It does not appear that sufficient funds would be found in any reasonable time frame,” Meyerson told the council at the study session.

He went on to tell city leaders that the possibility of finding funds from conservation groups and governmental agencies to buy Banning Ranch were “bleak.”

Agencies like the California Coastal Conservancy are unlikely to pony up money to buy the land, because land developers probably won’t be allowed to build on the wetlands and other fragile ecosystems there anyway, Meyerson said.

There would be no reason for groups to fund the purchase of all 400 acres, he said.

The consortium of three landowners who control Banning Ranch has put forth a plan that would preserve about 70% of the area as open space, which includes wetlands and other critical habitats for birds like the California gnatcatcher and develop the rest.

Economic uncertainty, the inability of many agencies to sell bonds and the state budget crisis have exacerbated the problem, Meyerson said.

A large piece of undeveloped land that butts against West Coast Highway, the land could cost as much as $158 million.

Meyerson recommended seeking sources of public funding for Banning Ranch in smaller pieces instead of as a whole.

“This is a long haul here,” Meyerson said. “If we’re going to make this happen, it’s going to be with creative solutions.”

Steven Ray, executive director of the Banning Ranch Conservancy, which wants to preserve the area as parks and open space, spoke in favor of a continued search for funding to buy the land.

The conservancy has already applied to state agencies to obtain funding, he said.

“There is money out there,” Ray said. “Right now, the biggest problem everyone has is the uncertainty of the economy . . . The minute you put these things together, they work out in the end.”

Banning Ranch Facts

 Banning Ranch is owned by Newport Banning Ranch, a consortium of three landowners: Aera Energy, Cherokee Investment Partners and Brooks Street.

 Newport’s General Plan makes acquiring Banning Ranch as open space a priority.

 There are about 100 active oil wells on Banning Ranch.

 Banning Ranch is home to several protected wildlife species, including the California gnatcatcher and the coastal cactus wren.