John Muir Land Trust Makes Major Acquisition Along Franklin Ridge
Purchase southwest of downtown Martinez will permanently protect hundreds of acres of open space; also, city officials to address latest marina developments with community on Saturday morning
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By Tom Lochner
The John Muir Land Trust is poised to acquire two additional properties along the Franklin Ridge southwest of downtown Martinez.
The Martinez-based trust has raised the $6.5 million needed to permanently protect the 134-acre Barnett Ranch and 100-acre Kenneth Gerlack Preserve as part of its Franklin Ridge Expansion, it announced in a news release. The two tracts, which the trust describes as pristine, will be added to the Franklin Ridge Wildlife and Trail Corridor, "a beautiful natural landscape…that is a vital refuge for native wildlife and a treasured recreational haven for outdoor enthusiasts."
“The importance of adding these two new properties cannot be overstated," the trust's executive director, Linus Eukel, said in the release. "Along these stunning ridgelines is a nexus for some of our most important regional trails, including the Bay Area Ridge Trail."
Putting together the Franklin Ridge corridor has been a 35-year project. Protected tracts along the ridge administered by JMLT include Fernandez Ranch east of Hercules; Gustin Ranch, Dutra Ranch, Sky Ranch and Almond Ranch; and Mt. Wanda and West Hills Farm south of Highway 4 — Alhambra Avenue junction. Barnett Ranch and Kenneth Gerlack Preserve are along the central section of the ridge.
The corridor is "home to over 20 local species, including vital predators such as mountain lions, and endangered and threatened species such as the iconic California red-legged frog," Eukel said in the release. "Here it is possible to walk in the footsteps of famed naturalist John Muir himself, who lived nearby and hiked and wrote about its delightful ravines, hilltops, plateaus, open grasslands, and stunning panoramic views.”
The news release also includes comments from the landowners whose properties will be acquired.
“There is so much at the top of the ridge to see and experience all of God's creation," Carolyn Barnett said. "My children and their children will be immensely proud to visit. We're preserving it for them and for everyone in the public at large."
Gay Gerlack said: “As our lives changed and our children grew up, we always maintained a reverence for the property and the land. Once it’s gone, you can’t get it back. My late husband Kenneth and I dreamed about this wonderful outcome.”
Funding for the Barnett and Gerlack acquisitions includes a $2 million grant from the California Wildlife Conservation Board; $1.23 million from the State Coastal Conservancy; $500,000 each from two anonymous donors; $300,000 generated by a challenge match from David and Janice Hammond of Alamo; and, "most importantly from thousands of local residents who contribute regularly to support JMLT’s conservation work in Alameda and Contra Costa counties," the news release noted.
Said Eukel, “We are so grateful to the donors, volunteers, and to all of JMLT's generous and passionate community of supporters who came together to secure this important win in local conservation. It is ordinary people with extraordinary vision who make such achievements possible.”
More information about Franklin Ridge, including a trail map, can be found at jmlt.org.
The following items were written by Craig Lazzeretti
City officials to address Marina developments Saturday
Mayor Brianne Zorn and Community and Economic Development Director Jill Bergman will be available at the Martinez Marina from 10 a.m. to noon on Saturday morning to answers questions from the community about the future of the marina in the wake of this week’s announcement that the marina’s longtime operator will end its contract with the city next month.
In a Thursday news release, the city announced that Suntex Marinas, the company that recently acquired longtime marina operator Almar Marina Management, will exercise its option to terminate its marina management contract effective Aug. 21.
The city said Suntex’s action will have “several significant impacts related to marina operations” and that it is “diligently working on short-term and permanent solutions.” The move also follows the recent closure of the marina bait shop because of safety-related concerns.
Zorn and Bergman will be available to answer questions in front of the harbormasters office.
A detailed presentation on the status of the marina is also planned at Wednesday’s City Council meeting, which begins at 7 p.m.
Look for a complete story on the marina situation in a future edition of Martinez News and Views.
Water board approves new rule on wastewater discharges
Following up on Sunday’s post about efforts to protect the Bay’s sturgeon population, the San Francisco Regional Quality Control Board on Wednesday adopted a permit that will require nutrient reductions for all wastewater treatment plants that discharge into the bay, including along the Carquinez Strait.
The required 40% reduction in nitrogen discharges over the next 10 years is designed to curtail harmful algal blooms that have been linked to fish kills in the Bay, including of white sturgeon, whose population in California has fallen by an estimated two-thirds since the early 2000s.
Look for a complete report on Wednesday’s water board decision in an upcoming post from Martinez News and Views.