Collegues,
A new owner of the Dos Pueblos Ranch on the Gaviota Coast will preserve part
of the Gaviota Coast just southeast of the proposed Chumash Heritage National
Marine Sanctuary.
Dos Pueblos Ranch Gets New Owner
Plans Are for Outdoor Teaching and Chumash Ceremonies
Credit: Courtesy
By Nick Welsh <https://www.independent.com/author/nickindependent-com/>
Wed Jan 05, 2022 | 12:29pm
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Dos Pueblos Ranch, one of Santa Barbara County’s most historic ranches, was
just sold to the family of Roger Himovitz for an as-yet-undisclosed sum by its
longtime owners, the Schulte family. The 214-acre property, which spreads along
the Gaviota Coast on the ocean side of the freeway, will be operated by the Dos
Pueblos Institute as an outdoor classroom teaching sustainable agriculture and
as a site for Chumash bands to use for ceremonies, according to the Institute
representative Geoff Alexander. The property, on the market for many years,
listed for $40 million.
“Dos Pueblos” refers to two Chumash villages that existed across the creek from
each other. Spanish explorer Juan Rodríguez Cabrillo first wrote about seeing
them in 1542. Later, in 1769, when members of the Portolá expedition arrived,
the Chumash reportedly greeted the colonists with enthusiasm and generosity. By
1842, the land was part of a much larger holding — 15,000 acres — given by the
Mexican government to Nicolas Den, an Irish immigrant and doctor who is
credited for saving the Santa Barbara Mission from terminal neglect.
Himovitz, a politically liberal developer who has lived in Santa Barbara for
more than 25 years, helped start the El Capitán campground — famous for its
luxury yurts. It sold last year to a publicly traded company specializing in
senior living communities and RV parks. According to Alexander, Himovitz has no
plans to open Dos Pueblos to camping, or to commercial development, or to
building a private home. The existing structures — about 10 — date back to the
1920s and are in need of serious work. “In many ways, the property’s a
magnificent wreck,” he said. Current renters will be allowed to remain, and he
suggested the property could become part of California’s network of Coastal
Trails. Any development would have to comply with the county’s recently passed
Gaviota Coast Plan and could be appealed to the California Coastal Commission.
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