Palos Verdes Purchase
The Palos Verdes Nature Preserve in Los Angeles County will expand with the acquisition of the 190-acre Upper Filiorum property and the 28-acre Plumtree property by the City of Rancho Palos Verdes. This will link the Three Sisters Reserve on the west with the Portuguese Bend Reserve to the east, and will provide long-term protection of coastal sage scrub habitat that supports the California gnatcatcher, cactus wren, Palos Verdes blue butterfly, and other special status species. It will also provide trail connections and habitat linkages to other parts of the Preserve. The Conservancy approved $5.5 million of Proposition 84 funds to the City, which will own the land, with a conservation easement over both properties held by the Palos Verdes Peninsula Land Conservancy (PVPLC), which will manage these and other parts of the Preserve. Management is also being coordinated with the California Department of Fish and Game and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service under the state's Natural Communities Conservation Planning process. The City, the PVPLC, and the Wildlife Conservation Board will also contribute funds to the purchase. The City and the PVPLC are working on a plan for better public access, trails, parking, and fire and brush management for when these properties are added to the reserve.

Montaña de Oro State Park to Expand
Montaña de Oro State Park will expand from 8,000 to 13,500 acres with the addition of 2,400-acre Wild Cherry Canyon and other protected lands near Avila Beach, in San Luis Obispo County. The American Land Conservancy (ALC) will buy the 160-year leasehold on Wild Cherry Canyon from the San Luis Bay and Pacho Limited Partnerships in early 2009, and immediately transfer these rights to State Parks for public recreation and resource protection. Then, by no later than 2025, the Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E), which operates the nearby Diablo Canyon Nuclear Power Plant, will transfer the underlying fee title, while retaining some access rights.

The Coastal Conservancy approved $5 million of Proposition 84 funds toward the $24-million purchase price in November. Also contributing are State Parks, the Wildlife Conservation Board, California Transportation Commission, Central Coast Regional Water Quality Control Board, San Luis Obispo Council of Governments, Hind Foundation, and other private donors.

Wild Cherry Canyon lies within the southeastern portion of the area known
as the Irish Hills, a largely undeveloped, 60,000-acre rugged and mountainous coastal landscape southwest of San Luis Obispo. With rolling hills of maritime chaparral, grasslands, and dense coast live oak woodlands, the property provides habitat for several threatened and endangered species, including the California red-legged frog, western pond turtle, and pallid bat. The land was considered likely to be developed due to its proximity to roads and services and its ocean views.

Eventually, environmental campsites may be established in Wild Cherry Canyon, and a 20-mile stretch of the California Coastal Trail is to be built between the communities of Los Osos and Avila Beach. New trail links are also being considered between the park and both the Port San Luis Lighthouse and the Bob Jones City-to-the-Sea Trail.