Starting today, the public will get to do what environmental activists urged would-be developers of Ahmanson Ranch to do for years: Take a hike.
The sprawling ranch on the border of Ventura and Los Angeles counties was recently acquired by the state and is now open to hikers, bikers and equestrians.
In another boon for outdoors enthusiasts, three miles of trails on the Ventura River Preserve near Ojai are being opened Wednesday. The 1,591-acre preserve was twice slated for golf course developments since the late-1980s.
At Ahmanson, people have been ignoring no-trespassing signs and hopping fences onto the 2,900-acre ranch for a long time. But as of today, the new custodian of the ranch, the Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy, is officially welcoming all comers to the 15 miles of trails and rutted dirt roads that lace great swaths of rolling grasslands and oak-studded hills.
After more than a decade of high drama triggered by the prospective $2-billion development of the ranch, the opening is expected to be as quiet as the tread of the mountain lions that roam the vast area.
There will be no ceremony today. Signs will go up warning people away from spots that harbor rare species like the California red-legged frog and the San Fernando Valley spineflower. Within a few months, there are to be additional parking areas and opportunities for volunteers to do things like hack away nonnative plants and lead nature tours.
But even with a low-key opening, officials anticipate crowds of eager hikers trooping up and down Ahmanson's trails.
"There's so much pent-up curiosity and excitement about the place," said Rorie Skei, the conservancy's chief deputy director. "We'll probably be extremely busy initially."
Ahmanson was the focus of a bitter development conflict that led to more than a dozen lawsuits, cost developers millions of dollars in planning and lobbying expenses and galvanized environmental activists.
In 1990, Ventura County approved a proposal for a community of 10,000 residents for the property. But this year, pressure groups that included Hollywood notables such as Rob Reiner thwarted the plan for good.
Last month, Washington Mutual, the Seattle-based bank that owned the ranch, accepted $150 million for it from the state, which will maintain it permanently as parkland.
