RRM Design Group is the lead planner, trail consultant and mapping specialist for the 82,000-acre Hearst Ranch conservation effort on California’s central coast. For this project, RRM assisted the Hearst Corporation with a significant conservation transaction involving the acquisition by the State of California of 13 miles of pristine coastline, and a conservation easement protecting the environmental quality of the remaining acreage.
RRM worked closely with biological and agricultural consultants to explore multiple alignments for the California Coastal Trail trailheads and vertical access points. Our team coordinated with Coastal Conservancy staff and the American Land Conservancy to negotiate and plan for the management of resources. RRM’s consulting role was instrumental to understanding the sensitivities and natural systems on the ranch. Ultimately these services facilitated the almost $100 million open space acquisition by a number of state agencies, which has opened up a significant stretch of coastal lands to trails and public access areas.