ONE OF the most scenic pieces of private property on 17 Mile Drive was acquired last week by the Del Monte Forest Conservancy for $4.1 million and will be protected “forever” by an open space easement, according to the conservancy’s president.

The two-acre lot, which is adjacent to the Cypress Point Club’s 13th Hole and overlooks Fanshell Beach, has been zoned for decades for a single-family home and could have been the site of a magnificent mansion.

“Now, it’s going to be held in open space,” said the conservancy’s president, Rick Verbanec. “Nothing’s going to be done with it.”

He said the property had probably been held by the same family since it was originally subdivided in the early days of the Pebble Beach Company. But, despite its stunning location and obvious value, it has never been developed.

According to records on file at the county courthouse, the sellers, Stephen and Geoffrey Peters, and their sister, Anne Battle, inherited the property from their parents, prominent Palo Alto attorney Colin Peters, who died in 2008, and his wife and fellow Stanford Law graduate, Carol Peters, who died in 2009.

The kids still own another prominent piece of property on 17 Mile Drive, this one with an existing home, they also inherited from their parents. It is just up the street from the vacant property, which they decided to sell.

Donors with a lot on their minds

Verbanec said the two-acre open space had been put “on the market and off the market a couple times” in recent years. But the idea of it being acquired by the conservancy began when a group of what he called “anonymous donors” offered to pay for it.

“Some of the donors contacted the sellers, who saw the possibility of doing something here, and then they involved the conservancy to make sure we could do the deal,” Verbanec said.

“We were contacted by the donors’ representative, and then we negotiated with the family,” said Paul Gullion, the conservancy’s attorney. “It took time to get everybody together on all the issues.”

In addition to the $4.1 million purchase price, the donors also contributed money for an endowment to maintain the scenic property and keep an eye on it, Verbanec said.

Escrow closed Dec. 28.

The land is right next door to the home owned by Robert Feduniak which was the subject of a lengthy battle waged by the coastal commission to force the removal of a mini golf course in the front yard in order to protect the neighborhood’s environment, and especially its scenery.

Gullion said the acquisition is not only the most significant in the history of the Del Monte Forest Conservancy in dollar terms, but also in importance.
“It’s a beautiful piece of property,” he said.

Verbanec said it would become an integral part of the vast acreage in Del Monte Forest under the conservancy’s protection — acreage that’s about to get a lot bigger.

“We have 690 acres now, and in a few months, we’re going to get another 635 acres,” Verbanec said.

The additional property is being donated in the form of a conservation easement by the Pebble Beach Company as part of its build-out plan for the forest, which includes new hotel rooms and conference facilities at The Lodge and the Inn at Spanish Bay, and about 90 new homes in various locations.

But the most important open space, including Pescadero Canyon and Huckleberry Hill, will be protected, Verbanec said.