A Chance to Preserve an Asset

It could have been a shopping center. It could have been a housing development. It could have been a lot of things but, thanks to the Ojai Valley Land Conservancy and some generous local residents, the Ojai Meadows will remain meadows.

The organization announced this month that it has agreed to purchase the 32-acre parcel on Highway 33 just north of Nordhoff High School for $525,000, ensuring that the grasslands and wetlands will remain open space.

Contributions of $200,000 from the Toarmina Theosophical Community Inc. and $100,000 from the Ojai City Council will put the conservancy more than halfway to the purchase price. It has until Dec. 31 to raise the remaining $225,000.

The land is dotted with centuries-old oak trees. Its relatively flat landscape and central location have inspired numerous development plans over the years, but local environmentalists always rallied to its defense.

Now the conservancy has struck an agreement to acquire the privately held land. It then plans to replace European varieties of grass and vegetation with indigenous plants. Other restoration projects, such as an extension of the wetland channel that runs across the property, will likely follow.

Nearby elementary and high schools already use the meadows and wetlands for environmental field trips, a use the conservancy plans to encourage and expand.

Conservancy leaders are inviting others in the community to chip in and help save an area that many residents already use for walking and observing nature. This is a good example of how people working together can preserve a popular community asset for future generations to enjoy.