- 116 Contiguous acres
- 58 / 30 / 24 Acres of woodland / grassland / scrub
- 28 Special-status animal + plant species
- 500,000+ Residents shielded by the fuel break
116 acres that connect some of the East Bay’s most important open spaces.
Johnson Ranch is 116 acres of undeveloped hills, oak woodland, grassland, springs, and ridgelines overlooking the San Pablo Reservoir and the East Bay.
It sits between lands protected by the East Bay Municipal Utility District (EBMUD) and the East Bay Regional Park District (EBRPD), next to Charles Lee Tilden Regional Park. Together, these public lands form a much larger landscape for people, wildlife, and water.
Today, Johnson Ranch is still open. But it is zoned for residential development. Protecting it would keep these hills open and connect them to the public lands around them.
"Protecting Johnson Ranch significantly enhances connectivity between thousands of acres of public lands managed by both East Bay Regional Park District and East Bay Municipal Utility District. Adjacent to Tilden Regional Park and at risk for private development, Johnson Ranch is a vital link for wildlife movement and ecological resilience in the East Bay."
Max Korten, General Manager, East Bay Regional Park District
One offer has already come in. We have a chance to protect Johnson Ranch instead.
- ZONEDJohnson Ranch is zoned for residential development, and the area faces increasing pressure to build.
- OFFERED A purchase offer has already been made on the ranch.
- AGREEDThe current landowners want a different outcome. They have agreed to sell the ranch to JMLT if we can raise the funds to purchase it by December 31, 2027.
- READY JMLT has done this before: donations from thousands of supporters funded the purchase and protection of Carr Ranch (2016), Painted Rock (2019), and Harvey Ranch (2022).
Trails, ridgelines, and views across the East Bay.
From the ranch’s higher elevations, the landscape opens east across rolling hills and sparkling reservoirs toward the Delta. Mount Diablo and the East Bay Hills are visible from the ridgeline, along with distant snow-capped peaks on clear days.
The ranch is close to thousands of East Bay homes and has multiple potential access points. Protecting it means more people can experience these sweeping views firsthand. Development would change the landscape seen from below and close off the vistas from above.
Where coastal and inland habitats meet.
Johnson Ranch’s steep, undeveloped terrain contains an unusually rich mix of habitats: 58 acres of cismontane woodland, 30 acres of valley and foothill grassland, and 24 acres of coastal scrub, along with riparian woodlands, wetlands, springs, seeps, and a seasonal wetland basin.
The property is home to 15 special-status animal species and 13 special-status plant species. Biologists found what may be the largest leatherwood forest in the East Bay, along with more Mount Diablo sunflower than in any comparable survey.
Johnson Ranch would expand one of the East Bay’s most beloved parks.
Johnson Ranch borders Charles Lee Tilden Regional Park, one of the East Bay’s oldest and most beloved parks. Protecting the ranch would add 116 acres of open space directly alongside Tilden and help connect the park to thousands of additional acres managed by EBMUD and EBRPD.
Protecting the ranch would expand the protected landscape around Tilden and keep development from crowding its edge. It would also open miles of new multi-use trails connecting to the Seaview Trail, which climbs to the summit of Vollmer Peak and joins the Bay Area Ridge Trail. The Steam Train parking area could become a trailhead for Johnson Ranch as well as a stop for the vintage railway.
This land protects water and nearby communities.
Johnson Ranch’s steep terrain, rolling hills, and ridgelines contain perennial and seasonal streams, seeps, springs, and riparian wetlands. These waterways sustain tributaries within the San Pablo Creek, Wildcat Creek, and Pinole Valley watersheds. Keeping the ranch undeveloped protects the natural systems that support clean drinking water for thousands of East Bay homes.
"Permanently protecting Johnson Ranch offers a unique opportunity to secure an important piece of the San Pablo Creek Watershed and ensure the continued health of the natural systems that support our region's water supply."
Clifford Chan, General Manager, East Bay Municipal Utility DistrictJohnson Ranch also lies within the North Orinda Fuel Break and is designated a Very High Fire Hazard Severity Zone. Reducing fire fuels on terrain this steep is difficult and costly, often beyond the means of a private landowner. JMLT already stewards similar land across the East Bay.
"Long-term conservation of this property, combined with active vegetation management, can help reduce wildfire risk and protect neighboring homes."
Jeff Isaacs, Fire Chief, Moraga-Orinda Fire DistrictFossils, volcanic clay, and centuries of human history.
Johnson Ranch holds clues to a much older East Bay.
- FOSSILS Rich fossil beds have yielded what may be the smallest mammalian fossil ever found in California, resembling a tiny horse, as well as a giant beaver-like creature.
- CLAY The ranch's volcanic muds are prized by potters.
- HISTORY Historic rock walls, built by Basque shepherds to manage their sheep, have long sparked stories about who built them and where they came from, including among Native peoples and early Chinese immigrants.
Johnson Ranch is still undeveloped. Your gift can help JMLT protect its wildlife habitat, waterways, and connection to Tilden and the surrounding open space.
Give Now to Protect Johnson Ranch