Defending Open Space in Antioch

One of Save Mount Diablo’s (SMD) highest land use priorities recently has been defending four square miles of open space in south Antioch from massive development. Since early 2015, when a 1,600+ house subdivision called ‘The Ranch’ was proposed in the Sand Creek area, we’ve been informing residents about the issues and how to get involved. Now, we’re stepping up our grassroots work in the city to organize residents to protect one of the most beautiful and biologically rich areas in Contra Costa County.

The action is taking place in the Sand Creek Focus Area (map below), which runs from Black Diamond Mines Regional Preserve east all the way to Brentwood. This approximately 2,800 acre area is crossed north-south by Empire Mine Road (closed to vehicle traffic) in the west and Deer Valley Road further east, right by Kaiser Hospital. The main road in this region is Lone Tree Way, which lies north of the Focus Area and existing residential subdivisions.

The City of Antioch may be moving forward with a plan that allows for more than 4,000 houses throughout the whole Sand Creek Focus Area (decision to be made Oct. 24). About 1,200 houses are already approved east of Deer Valley Road.

‘The Ranch’ development proposal within the Focus Area includes 1,600 units on 550 acres stretching a mile and a half between Empire Mine Road and Deer Valley Road. It’s currently going through environmental review. Specific projects like ‘The Ranch’ would be easier to approve if the Sand Creek Plan is approved.

While going to the meetings on these various projects, we understood that although a few residents knew what was happening and were very interested in protecting the land, most of their neighbors and the general population were still in the dark. So in September of 2016, SMD, Sierra Club, Greenbelt Alliance and the League of Conservation Voters of the East Bay organized a candidates’ forum for the November 2016 election season to ask City Council candidates what they thought about environmental issues, including all this proposed development.

Great volunteers, staff, and residents, some who had never heard of SMD before, helped us drop flyers around neighborhoods to spread awareness. We managed to achieve the biggest turnout (more than 120 people) of any of the forums that election season.

With that much demand for information on how to stop rampant development, this past February Save Mount Diablo helped sponsor a forum focused on the impacts ‘The Ranch’ and thousands of houses in the proposed development area would have. More than 200 people attended to talk about the Sand Creek area and learn how SMD and allies have successfully protected large areas of open space through voter initiatives at the ballot.

Now we’re stepping things up even more. We're sending mass emails, dropping flyers and identifying passionate individuals in the community who can help us organize others— so we can take more direct grassroots actions to protect the land. A lot is going to happen in the next six months, so stay tuned!

By Juan Pablo Galván Land Use Manager Save Mount Diablo

If you'd like to help protect the Sand Creek area, please contact Juan Pablo Galván by email at jpgalvan@savemountdiablo.org or call (925) 947-3535.