The Cambria Community Services District (CCSD) is moving forward with the first update to the Fiscalini Ranch Preserve Management Plan in more than 20 years.
The 437-acre coastal preserve stretches along the Pacific Ocean, with rolling grasslands, dense groves of Monterey pines and oaks, and cliffside trails that offer sweeping views of the bluff and ocean below.
“Updating the Fiscalini Ranch Preserve Management Plan is an essential step toward ensuring the long-term, sustainable stewardship of one of Cambria’s most significant public assets,” CCSD General Manager Matthew McElhenie told New Times in an email.
District staff say the existing plan, adopted in 2003, has grown outdated and questions have periodically arisen with regards to maintenance responsibilities, staff and volunteer roles, contracting procedures, and how work on the preserve should be prioritized.
“An updated plan will allow the district to clearly define operational roles and responsibilities, establish appropriate maintenance and oversight expectations, and align these duties with the financial realities of the CCSD, particularly given the limitations of the district’s finances,” McElhenie said.
The board voted unanimously on Nov. 13 to begin the amendment process. Any revisions must be approved by two outside partners: Friends of the Fiscalini Ranch Preserve, which holds the conservation easement, and the California State Coastal Conservancy, which helped fund the land purchase and trail system.
Under the original agreement, the CCSD owns and manages the coastal preserve, while the Friends organization serves as the easement holder responsible for ensuring the land is protected. Because the management plan functions alongside that easement, both Friends and the conservancy must concur with any updates.
Friends Executive Director Kitty Connolly said most of the document still functions well, but parts no longer reflect current on-the-ground conditions.
“One of the things the management plan touches on is how to manage the cattle on the land,” Connolly said. “Nobody has cattle on the land anymore, so there are certain parts of the management plan that have gone out of date.”
California State Coastal Conservancy Project Manager Tim Duff confirmed that the agency is aware of the revision and expects to review language as it moves forward. He said the plan is intended to evolve, unlike the conservation easement, which is recorded to title and remains permanent.
“It’s 20 years old, so I think it’s due,” Duff said.
He added that the conservancy has suggested the district address climate-driven changes—including sea-level rise, heavier storm impacts, and accelerated bluff erosion—in the updated plan.
District board members acknowledged during the Nov. 13 meeting that reopening the document is sensitive and will require careful collaboration.
“This board has been gifted with a certain amount of responsibility, along with the ad hoc committee, to find a sense of balance moving forward with regard to funding the care of the ranch,” CCSD board member and Vice President Harry Farmer said. “Let’s hope we all have enough reverence for Mother Earth and the quality of life she brings. … We have a priority for caring for the ranch in a cooperative fashion.”
Board member Michael Thomas noted the preserve is “the No. 1 tourist draw in Cambria,” underscoring the importance of maintaining its ecological integrity and public access.
The board voted unanimously to direct the general manager to begin drafting proposed revisions for review by all parties.
“We will work through it until the first quarter of 2026 and eventually bring it to the board for discussion and consideration for adoption,” McElhenie said. ∆
This article appears in Dec 4-14, 2025.
I live on Lodge Hill and love walking my dog on the Ranch, but FFRP pulls in over a million a year, sits on $6.6 million in assets, and pays their executive director six figures. CCSD should just gift-wrap the Ranch and hand it over.
I’m curious as to why FFRP hasn’t requested to assume responsibility for it.