Route County officials on July 28 said they expect to consider a county letter supporting a lease renewal request by Saddleback Ranch and Double Dollar Cattle Company, which staff said have operated on portions of state land in the Cow Creek area for decades.

County staff told commissioners that the ranching operation has leased the property continuously for about 50 years and that the state land board recently revised lease terms, shortening typical agricultural lease lengths from 20 years to 10 years and recreational leases to five years. Staff said the change has complicated renewals and raised questions about how combined agricultural and recreational uses would be administered under the new terms.

Commissioners and staff also flagged that the state land board had received a separate proposal to site a roughly 100-acre glamping operation with access from Cow Creek on state land in the same corridor. Commissioners noted that glamping or recreation uses on state land may not be permitted “by right” under county zoning and that any visitor-oriented development on state property would likely need to go through county land-use review and meet county zoning requirements, including road-access considerations.

Staff said the county had no record of complaints about Saddleback Ranch from permittees and that the county manager and one commissioner indicated they would support a letter in good faith noting the ranch’s long-term use and absence of complaints. Commissioners also noted that overlapping proposals in the same corridor could create potential land-use conflicts and that county processes would apply even on state-owned parcels within the county’s jurisdiction for zoning and access issues.

Ending: County staff signaled they will prepare a letter of support for Saddleback Ranch’s lease renewal and flagged that the county may need to review any glamping or new recreational proposals on adjacent state land through existing county land-use and access standards.