Tag: Ventura Land Trust (VLT)

Ventura Land Trust Awarded $1.3 million FEMA Hazard Mitigation Grant

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Ventura Land Trust (VLT) has been awarded a $1.3 million grant from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) for fuel load reduction and erosion mitigation in Harmon Canyon Preserve. The funded proposal is designed to mitigate wildfire risk between Harmon Canyon Preserve and the residential neighborhood of Clearpoint.

While winter rains have resulted in robust growth of waist-high lupine, perennial bunchgrasses, California peony, and coast live oaks, invasive plant species have also had a record year.

VLT has until May 2024 to reduce fuel loads primarily made up of invasive annual grasses, thistles, tumbleweed, and mustards, while minding the structural integrity of erosive slopes and the ecological conservation of the Preserve.

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Ventura Land Trust Hosts Legacy Wall Dedication Ceremony on April 19 at Harmon Canyon Preserve

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Ventura Land Trust (VLT) will hold a special Legacy Wall dedication ceremony on Wednesday, April 19th at 9:00 am to commemorate donors who supported the Harmon Canyon Campaign for Harmon Canyon Preserve. The ceremony will take place at the Harmon Canyon Preserve trailhead.

The $10 million Harmon Canyon Campaign supported the establishment of Harmon Canyon Preserve, 2,123 acres of permanently conserved open space in Ventura, and a stewardship endowment that allows Ventura Land Trust to care for the land in perpetuity.

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Ventura Land Trust Invites Artists to Submit Original Artwork to Celebrate Nature and VLT’s 20th Anniversary

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Ventura Land Trust (VLT) invites Ventura County artists to submit 2D artwork to celebrate nature and Ventura Land Trust’s 20th anniversary.

Artists are encouraged to use the circle outline of VLT’s logo as the form for a design inspired by Ventura County’s nature and coast. Artwork can explore a broad range of themes, including protection of open spaces, Indigenous cultural heritage, climate, and how community and nature intersect.

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Ventura Land Trust Hosts Community Meeting Nov. 9 on Future Mariano Rancho Preserve Trails

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Ventura Land Trust (VLT) will host the second in its series of community meetings for the newly-conserved Mariano Rancho Preserve on Wednesday, November 9th at DeAnza (DATA) Middle School at 6:30 pm. VLT staff will present plans for trails and recreation for the 1,645-acre preserve in the hills north of Ventura, and community members will have the opportunity to ask questions and offer feedback.

VLT Executive Director Melissa Baffa and Preserve Director Dan Hulst will present parts of a conceptual trail plan developed for Mariano Rancho Preserve. The plan allows VLT to identify existing trail resources on the preserve and understand what trails can be used for public recreation, what trails require restoration, and where future trails could be developed. 

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Ventura Land Trust Hosts Annual Monarch Madness Community Restoration Event

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Ventura Land Trust (VLT), in partnership with Southern California Gas Co. (SoCalGas), will host its annual Monarch Madness community restoration event on Saturday, March 19th from 9:00 am to 12:00 pm at Hayden Teaching Preserve. Monarch Madness celebrates the importance of monarch butterflies and monarch habitat for a healthy ecosystem in and around Ventura. 

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May 21 — Ventura Land Trust Hosts Community Volunteer Event with SafePort and Topa Topa Brewing Company

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On Saturday, May 21st from 9:00 am to 12:00 pm, Ventura Land Trust (VLT) will partner with Safeport Cannabis Dispensary and Topa Topa Brewing Company for a community volunteer event at Harmon Canyon Preserve. As many as 75 community volunteers will work to remove dense stands of invasive plant species at the preserve. 

This collaborative community volunteer event is a project of VLT’s Wildlife Habitat Improvement Program (WHIP). Invasive plants like black mustard and milk thistle are choking Harmon Canyon Preserve trails and areas of the preserve recently restored with native plants. Black mustard, which grows up to six feet tall, becomes fuel for wildfires as it dries out on the summer. Community support is needed to help uproot large sections of invasive plants before seeds are produced and spread in late summer and fall. 

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Nov. 9 — Ventura Land Trust Announces Mariano Rancho Preserve Community Meetings

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Ventura Land Trust (VLT) will host a series of community meetings on topics related to the newly-conserved Mariano Rancho Preserve. At each meeting, VLT staff will provide an overview of current plans for the 1,645-acre preserve in the hills north of Ventura, and community members will have the opportunity to ask questions and offer feedback.

A meeting on Trails & Recreation will be held on Wednesday, November 9th at De Anza (DATA) Middle School in Ventura from 6:30 – 8:00. The final meeting on Land Conservation and Restoration will be held on Wednesday, December 7th at Ventura Missionary Church from 7:00 – 8:30 pm.

“The hills of Mariano Rancho Preserve are the backdrop to Ventura,” says Ventura Land Trust Executive Director Melissa Baffa, “and yet, when this preserve opens to the public in the next few years, it will be the first time many people will experience them.” 

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Bilingual report — Ventura Land Trust Plants New Oak Grove in Harmon Canyon Preserve

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Ventura Land Trust (VLT) launched a major reforestation project at its 2,100-acre Harmon Canyon Preserve with the planting of a new oak grove on Saturday, April 24th. The 4-acre grove, funded by a grant from SoCalGas, is planted in a terrace area of the preserve near the preserve’s trailhead.

With 10 miles of trails for hiking and biking, Harmon Canyon Preserve is Ventura’s first large-scale nature preserve.

SoCalGas’s grant award funded the planting of 50 coast live oak trees, as well as 150 native plants like California sagebrush, purple sage, coyote brush, bush sunflower, and Yerba Buena. A trail winds through the grove, so that the public can see and enjoy the reforested area.

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