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Board approves Williamson Act contracts and Ag‑Preserve zoning for two ranch properties
Summary
The board unanimously approved Williamson Act contracts and accompanying zoning changes to Agricultural Preserve for two properties — a 252.42‑acre Bardsley parcel and a 132.31‑acre Garamendi parcel — after staff and advisory committees found both qualify under county rules and the California Land Conservation Act.
Planning staff presented applications to enroll parcels into the California Land Conservation (Williamson Act) program and to rezone the affected assessor parcels to the Agricultural Preserve (AP) zone.
For the first application, staff said the Bardsley property (252.42 acres) meets county standards and farm‑advisor feasibility thresholds; the Ag Advisory Committee and Planning Commission recommended approval. Trustee Edward Bardsley spoke remotely to thank the board and staff. The board found the project categorically exempt from CEQA under Section 15317 and adopted Williamson Act contract number 394 and the AP zoning amendment by unanimous vote.
The second application covered a 132.31‑acre parcel proposed by the Garamendi family. Planning staff reported a feasibility study showing the parcel met the minimum agricultural revenue criteria and that the property’s surrounding land uses are principally grazing and watershed lands. The Ag Advisory Committee and Planning Commission recommended approval; the board adopted Williamson Act contract number 395 and the required zoning change, again finding the action exempt under CEQA Section 15317.
Planning staff cited the county’s Resolution 75‑4‑89 and the general plan’s Resource Production designation as the policy basis for the actions. The approvals preserve long‑term agricultural use and keep the parcels on a lower assessed basis under state law in exchange for recorded land‑use restrictions.
