LAST
CHANCE TO SAVE THE BALLARDINI RANCH
THANKS
TO THE MORE THAN 250 WHO ATTENDED!
WASHOE COUNTY COMMISSION
TUESDAY, JULY 27, 2004
3:30 P.M.
WASHOE COUNTY COMMISSION CHAMBERS
1001 EAST NINTH STREET AT N. WELLS AVENUE
RENO, NEVADA
Commission
agenda
County
staff report, analysis and recommendations
Sign
and circulate a petition to the commission
TRANSCRIPT,
Washoe County Commission, 7-27-2004
TRANSCRIPT,
Washoe County Planning Commission, 6-29-2004
TRANSCRIPT,
Southwest Truckee Meadows Citizen Advisory Board, 5-20-2004
This is our last chance to save the Ballardini Ranch, so please come
to
this critical public hearing. Please let everyone know that it's now
or
never and that attendance is crucial to the outcome.
On
July 19, former Washoe County Commissioner Ted Short wrote the following:
AN
OPEN LETTER TO THE PUBLIC AND TO OUR PUBLIC OFFICIALS
The time has finally come for the Washoe
County Commissioners, consistent with the near unanimous support
of our public citizens, support that has been stated and restated
for over 20 years, to acquire the entire 1,019-acre Ballardini Ranch,
using any and all legal tools that are appropriate.
The Ballardini Ranch has long been sought by the public, supported
by elected officials, as a critical piece of the open space puzzle
to implement along the western foothills of the Truckee Meadows.
A plan has been envisioned for many years to link approximately
1,400 acres of property then belonging to the Redfield/ArrowCreek
Development (which has since been dedicated or committed to be dedicated
by the Redfield/ArrowCreek Development to Washoe County) with the
1,019-acre Ballardini Ranch. The two properties, upon acquisition
for public use, would provide approximately 2,500 contiguous acres
of majestic, serene, and a completely unique haven for deer and
other critical wildlife, and, of course, for people, the most important
of whom are our future generations. This opportunity will not return.
After much work by public citizens, cooperation with Redfield/ArrowCreek
Development, and the full support of the public officials, the 1,400-acres
have been dedicated by ArrowCreek to fulfill this plan. Now it is
up to the Washoe County Commission, which has shown steadfast support
for the acquisition of the entire Ballardini Ranch for many years,
to take the final step to acquire the entire 1,019-acre Ballardini
Ranch. If exercise of the right of eminent domain becomes the only
option, it should be undertaken. It is a process used consistently
by public entities, and is based upon priorities for public use.
Certainly the Ballardini Ranch should have the highest priority.
The process also guarantees the owner of property full fair market
value, and as the counsel for the Evans Creek, LLC has stated publicly
in the past, it is only a matter of price. Accordingly, this is
a fair option to undertake.
The public and our public officials
should consider the following:
The Ballardini Ranch is an extraordinarily
beautiful, environmentally pristine parcel, rich with Nevada’s
heritage, which provides tremendous access for our citizens to the
U.S. Forest Service and the mountains to the west, access which
is unparalleled by any other land in the Truckee Meadows.
In 1998, the Ballardini family sold the Ballardini Ranch for $8.5
million. Thereafter the County determined to take steps to acquire
the entire 1,019-acre Ballardini Ranch and placed the issue before
the voters to approve bond funds for its acquisition. In 2000 the
voters approved $4 million in a public vote to acquire the Ballardini
Ranch. It amounted to a decision by the voters that this acquisition
was of paramount interest to the public.
Efforts have been made to negotiate with the current owner of the
Ballardini Ranch, Evans Creek LLC, a Minnesota entity, but all such
efforts have been completely unsuccessful.
To augment the $4 million in bond funds, Washoe County applied for
federal funds under the Southern Nevada Public Land Management Act
for $15 million. The funds were approved for use by the County to
acquire the Ranch. Technically, an additional 10% was part of the
commitment, allowing for a total of $16.5 million of federal funds;
together with the $4 million bond money, a total of $20.5 million
was available for purchase of the Ranch.
Last fall, the owner of the Ballardini Ranch thereafter publicly
notified the federal government that it was not a "willing
seller", which notice disqualified the County from those funds,
and therefore prevented the County from making an offer at fair
market value to purchase the Ranch.
An individual has come forward to loan the County $20 million, on
flexible terms, to augment the $4 million to acquire the Ballardini
Ranch, making approximately $24 million available for that purpose.
This is a unique and extraordinary gesture, which has never before
occurred in Washoe County.
The recently released staff report of Washoe County reveals that
the entire Ballardini Ranch has been appraised at approximately
$19 million. Considering the fact that $24 million is now available
for its purchase, it should be purchased quickly, without delay.
Remember, it was acquired in 1998 for $8.5 million.
If the Ballardini Ranch is not acquired by the public but is developed
in the densities previously sought by the current owner, those densities
would require Skyline Boulevard, McCarran Boulevard, and Ridgeview
to be widened, causing a traffic nightmare and snarl of the kind
our valley has never seen.
We were saddened by the loss of the opportunity to purchase the
Ponderosa Ranch. We should not let this happen with respect to the
Ballardini Ranch. Let’s do it right this time, with no delay.
There comes a time when our quality of life
values must take precedence. Now is the time.
I urge the Washoe County Commissioners, working with the City of Reno,
to the extent joint efforts will assist in achieving success, to acquire
the entire 1,019-acre Ballardini Ranch once and for all, by any legal
means possible, including exercise of the right of eminent domain.
The County Commission will be presented with three options; Option
1, to purchase the entire Ranch; Options 2 and 3, to purchase less
than the entire Ranch. Only Option 1 should be exercised by the Washoe
County Commissioners. If the County Commissioners are going to do
it right, do it completely right. To acquire anything less than the
entire Ranch would be like acquiring only half of Central Park, or
locally, half of Rancho San Rafael. Let’s do it right this time,
and do it now.
It is up to the County Commissioners, the guardians of the public
trust, to at this time take the steps to achieve the will of the public.
Now is the time. Please do it
Ted
Short
|
