| Conaway Ranch |
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Information About ™Conaway Ranch |
| CATEGORIES ABOUT CONAWAY RANCH | |
| ranches | |
| yolo county, california | |
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Conaway Ranch is a 17,300-acre ranch in Yolo County , California . The vast property is located between the cities of Woodland , Davis , and West Sacramento in a triangle formed by California State Route 113, Interstate 5 , and Interstate 80 . LAND USES Conaway Ranch currently supports heavy agricultural uses, contains rich wildlife habitats along the Sacramento River , and contains Yolo County's largest gas fields and has the rights to over 50,000 acre feet (61,000,000 m³) of surface water rights, including groundwater and riparian rights that go with the land. Half of the property lies within the Yolo Bypass , a vast flood basin that holds waters from the Sacramento River during peak floods. Though called a Ranch , it is used principally for Crops , not Ranching . The property is owned by the Conaway Preservation Group, LLC, a Sacramento-based consortium led by real-estate developer Steve Gidaro ; several other developers are among the other owners of the LLC . Conaway Preservation Group purchased the Conaway Ranch in closed bidding in 2004 when the previous owner, National Energy & Transmission, Inc. went bankrupt and put it up for bidding. Two members of the Conaway Preservation Group are previous owners of the Ranch - see below - and are avid waterfowl enthusiasts. BACKGROUND 1990: Conaway Conservancy Group, a joint venture between local landowners and PG&E Properties, Inc., buys the Ranch. The group, which includes current owner Steve Gidaro, proposed a housing and commercial development on the property’s northwest corner, next to the City of Woodland. The city government ultimately denied the plan, deciding to grow in a different direction 1991 – 1992: Conaway Conservancy Group sells $6.5 million worth of water to state Drought Water Bank. Yolo County Board of Supervisors, including current Supervisor Helen Thomson, vote to support water transfer on a 4-1 vote. December 1994: PG&E buys interests of local landowners, including ownership share held by Steve Gidaro and John Reynen. Both Steve and John plan to re-purchase the property at some point in the future. 1996: PG&E drops development plans, places Conaway Ranch on the market for $68.5 million. Steve and John consider re-purchasing the property. Local elected officials discuss forming a Joint Powers Authority to secure funding to purchase Conaway. PG&E Properties pulls property off the market. 2001: Property is transferred from PG&E to National Energy and Gas Transmission (NEGT) as part of PG&E restructuring during bankruptcy proceedings. March 2004: NEGT announces it will sell the property. Sets up closed bidding process to sell ranch. Steve and John request bid package and begin process of putting investment group together. Local elected officials form Joint Powers Authority in an attempt to secure financing to bid for the Ranch. May 2004: Yolo County supervisors decide to not participate in closed bidding process and, instead, start eminent domain proceedings to acquire property. July 8, 2004: Yolo County supervisors vote 4-0 to adopt eminent domain resolution to acquire property. December 15, 2004: After NEGT’s bid process closes, Conaway Preservation Group, LLC, awarded ownership of Conaway Ranch. Ownership includes Steve Gidaro, John Reynen and other prominent investors/developers in Sacramento. CPG conducts outreach to County supervisors to reach compromise that would keep property in private ownership but place greater public controls on land and water. February 2005: CPG offers to conduct tours of property with County supervisors. Yolo County suspends public Joint Powers Authority meetings. May 2005: Yolo County officials announce ‘stringless deal’ agreement with Rumsey Band of Wintun Indians who agree to provide financing for condemnation action. November 30, 2005: Yolo County Superior Court Judge Timothy Fall rules that the county can use its power of eminent domain to take the ranch, despite CPG’s argument that the county did not adequately specify what it intended to do with the property. CONAWAY'S FUTURE June 13, 2006: A Yolo County Superior Court jury is scheduled to begin hearing evidence of how much the county will have to pay for the property. Estimates range from $50 million to more than $389 million. |
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