The Future of Ahmanson Ranch

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A decade of lawsuits and public protests may have put an end to what was originally billed as a state-of-the-art example of -smart growth- in burgeoning Ventura County. After 8 years of planning, followed by 10 years of legal action and public protest, developers of the Ahmanson Ranch appear to be giving up. Washington Mutual has laid-off the executive who spent almost two decades guiding the project, and may now open negotiations with the State of California to create a 13,000-acre park in the Santa Monica Mountains. Is it a victory for the environment or the property values of nearby neighbors? Where would the state get the money to buy the land? Where else can new housing be built? We hear from the secretary of the California Resources Agency, the development's original architect and the head of a Ventura County-based land-use research organization.
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    A case with shades of the Rodney King beating came to trial today in Los Angeles. Last year, a white Inglewood police officer was videotaped punching a handcuffed black teenager and slamming him into a car. Jeremy Morse could get three years for assault under color of authority. The first witness against him was Donovan Jackson, the alleged victim. Gina Keating covered the testimony for Reuters News Service.

Keating's article on today's trial

Ahmanson Ranch

The Nature Conservancy

Newhall Ranch

Playa Vista

Proposition 50 (2002)

Santa Monica Conservancy

Save Ahmanson Ranch

Tejon Ranch

Credits

Host:

Warren Olney

Producer:

Frances Anderton