Trust for Public Land grants $375,000 for Stewardship of Estero Bay Property (CA)

CAYUCOS, CA–The Trust for Public Land (TPL) announced today that it will grant a total of $375,000 in stewardship funds, including $300,000 to the California Department of Parks and Recreation, $60,000 to the Cayucos Land Conservancy, and $15,000 to the Land Conservancy of San Luis Obispo County. These grants are designated for the care and restoration of the 355-acre Estero Bay property. Last March, TPL donated the Estero property’s fee title to State Parks and the Estero Bay conservation easement to the Cayucos Land Conservancy with the Land Conservancy of San Luis Obispo County as the back-up holder of the easement. The property is the newest state park land in San Luis Obispo County and encompasses nearly four miles of pristine San Luis Obispo County coastline.

TPL will present checks to the three organizations at a public workshop to gather public input regarding the future of the Estero Bay property. The workshop will be held on Wednesday, September 27 from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. at the Cayucos Veterans Hall.

“TPL is very pleased to be able to reinvest these funds back into the long-term management of the Estero Bay property. These grants were made possible only through the generosity and diligence of our private and public funding partners,” said Pamela Iguchi, field representative for TPL.

In December 1998, TPL purchased the $7.4 million property along Estero Bay from two different landowners. The property, once threatened with residential development, is located a half-mile west of Cayucos State Beach along scenic Highway 1 on route to the world famous Hearst Castle.

Funding for the purchase included $2.5 million from the California State Coastal Conservancy, $2.2 million from the David and Lucile Packard Foundation, a $300,000 Transportation Enhancement Act (TEA) grant from the California Transportation Commission awarded to San Luis Obispo County through the San Luis Obispo Council of Governments, and generous donations from both the Gabilan Foundation and an anonymous donor.

The Trust for Public Land is a nonprofit land conservation organization that works to conserve land for people as parks, gardens, playgrounds, and wilderness. Founded in 1972, TPL has protected more than 1.2 million acres nationwide.