Pismo Preserve could open by the end of the year, thanks to $340,000 funding boost
A new land preservation partnership will give a funding boost to four popular San Luis Obispo County conservation projects — including the Pismo Preserve and Toro Creek Ranch.
The Land Conservancy of San Luis Obispo County announced on Tuesday that it will partner with the Harold J. Miossi Charitable Trust to leverage grant funds from the purchase of a 130-acre conservation easement at the base of the Cuesta Grade.
The Land Conservancy will use state funds from the Sustainable Agricultural Lands Conservation Program to buy the easement, which will be preserved for cattle grazing and wildlife and watershed protection, executive director Kaila Dettman said.
The Miossi Charitable Trust will then contribute that money to three additional projects:
- The acquisition of an orchard south of San Luis Obispo to help finish the Bob Jones City-to-Sea Trail connection.
- Toro Creek Ranch preservation efforts on the North Coast, including the dog beach between Morro Bay and Cayucos.
- Pismo Preserve amenities to help open the 900-acre South County space to the public.
“Environmental stewardship is one of the core objectives of the Harold J. Miossi Charitable Trust,” Howard Carroll, trustee for the Charitable Trust, said in a statement. “The idea that we could not only forever protect a part of the scenic gateway to San Luis Obispo, but to also help make additional conservation happen is in keeping with Harold’s vision.”
Dettman decline to disclose the total amount of the easement purchase and project contributions, citing ongoing negotiations.
However, the Pismo Preserve construction effort will get $340,000 — the single largest private contribution to the project to date, according to a Land Conservancy news release.
That means the Land Conservancy is $750,000 shy of its fundraising goal, putting the Pismo Preserve on track for completion by the end of the year. An anonymous donor will help fill the fundraising gap by matching up to $100,000 in contributions, the news release said.
The Land Conservancy began phase two of construction on the public park in July. The nonprofit originally intended to complete Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) accessible trails during this phase, but now plans to push that construction back.
“We really hoped to complete the preserve as designed, including the accessible pathway,” Dettman said. “When it became clear that the timeline for grant funding would delay opening the preserve, we made the decision to prioritize getting the preserve open and, with approvals from the permitting agencies, pushed the pathway construction to a future phase.”
To donate or learn more, visit the Land Conservancy’s website at lcslo.org.
