A Summary of our Ojai Meadows Preserve Tour
Channel: Sean Anderson
Date: 08/10/2016

We had a great tour today by Ojai Valley Land Conservancy Executive Director Brain Stark.  We spent a great two hours meandering around the perimeter of this grassland/riparian/seasonal wetland restoration and hearing about both what has been done and the business of restoring landscapes within urban settings.  See our full video for more of the actual tour.  This video is a brief post-visit summary.

History has not been kind to the meadows with tree clearing and growing development. For decades the historic wetland was buried under sediment and fill dirt from nearby construction. A grove of non-native Eucalyptus trees were planted in the 1950s, eroding the possibility of  native habitat returning on its own. Also the property was threatened with the possibility of a shopping center and parking lots. The meadows were acquired in 2001 by the Conservancy with an outpouring of community support to protect them.  Most of the 1.35 million dollars came from 140 citizens and businesses, who demonstrated their commitment to preserve the meadows’ natural beauty.