Acquisition of Second Amended McCormick Ranch Conservation Easement and Recreation Covenant
Summary
SCH Number
2023120335
Public Agency
Sonoma County Agricultural Preservation and Open Space District
Document Title
Acquisition of Second Amended McCormick Ranch Conservation Easement and Recreation Covenant
Document Type
NOE - Notice of Exemption
Received
Posted
12/13/2023
Document Description
The District proposes to contribute funds toward the purchase of the 253.18-acres property by Sonoma County Regional Parks, conditioned on an amendment to an existing conservation easement to enhance protections for the scenic, open space, natural resource, and recreational and educational values of the property, as well as recordation of a recreation covenant ensuring the property is made available for public access once a management plan has been prepared in accordance with CEQA.
Contact Information
Name
Jennifer Kuszmar
Agency Name
Sonoma County Agricultural Preservation and Open Space District
Job Title
Acquisition Manager
Contact Types
Lead/Public Agency
Phone
Location
Counties
Sonoma
Regions
Countywide
Cross Streets
The property is located beyond the terminus of Langtry Road.
Total Acres
253.18
Parcel #
APNS 030-040-003, 030-040-008, 030-040-009, 030-040-010, 030010-011, 030-010-012, 051-010-090, a
Other Location Info
The property is located along the ridge of mountains between the cities of St. Helena and Santa Rosa in Sonoma County, California. The property is in the North Coast, Sonoma Valley, and Spring Mountain District American Viticultural Areas.
Notice of Exemption
Exempt Status
Categorical Exemption
Type, Section or Code
pursuant to Section(s) 15378 & 15317, title 14, of California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA).
Reasons for Exemption
The provision of funding towards the acquisition of fee title by Regional Parks, as well as the District’s acquisition of the Conservation Easement and Recreation Covenant, is exempt from the requirements of the California Environmental Quality Act (Public Resources Code Sections 21000 and following) pursuant to Public Resources Code Section 21080.28(a)(1)(A) & (C) and Cal. Code of Regs. Tit. 14, § 15325(a) & (b)), which exempts from CEQA the acquisition, sale, or other transfer of interest in land by a public agency for the
preservation of natural conditions existing at the time of acquisition, including plant and animal habitat, even if physical changes to the environment or changes in the use of the land are a reasonably foreseeable consequence of the acquisition, sale, or other transfer of the interests in land, or of the granting or acceptance of funding, provided that environmental review otherwise required by the Public Resources Code occurs before any project approval that would authorize physical changes being made to the land. This project is also exempt from CEQA pursuant to Section 15317 of Title 14 of the California Code of Regulations, because the purpose of the acquisition is to maintain the open space character of the area.
Exempt Status
Statutory Exemption
Type, Section or Code
Statutory Exemption pursuant to Section 21080.28 of the Public Resources Code
Reasons for Exemption
The provision of funding towards the acquisition of fee title by Regional Parks, as well as the District’s acquisition of the Conservation Easement and Recreation Covenant, is exempt from the requirements of the California Environmental Quality Act (Public Resources Code Sections 21000 and following) pursuant to Public Resources Code Section 21080.28(a)(1)(A) & (C) and Cal. Code of Regs. Tit. 14, § 15325(a) & (b)), which exempts from CEQA the acquisition, sale, or other transfer of interest in land by a public agency for the
preservation of natural conditions existing at the time of acquisition, including plant and animal habitat, even if physical changes to the environment or changes in the use of the land are a reasonably foreseeable consequence of the acquisition, sale, or other transfer of the interests in land, or of the granting or acceptance of funding, provided that environmental review otherwise required by the Public Resources Code occurs before any project approval that would authorize physical changes being made to the land. This project is also exempt from CEQA pursuant to Section 15317 of Title 14 of the California Code of Regulations, because the purpose of the acquisition is to maintain the open space character of the area.
County Clerk
Sonoma
Attachments
Notice of Exemption
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