Escondido Creek Conservancy Founding Anniversary! A look at our progress and future plans
The Conservancy’s official founding day is June 19, 1991. That makes the Conservancy thirty-two years old this month, barely middle aged and just catching its stride. Thanks to a small group of visionary Elfin Forest neighbors–Steve Barker, Martha Blane and Leonard Wittwer–the Conservancy was formed and has thrived ever since.
“You know it was a lot of work, but it was definitely a passion,” said Martha Blane, the Conservancy’s founding president. “Nothing was going to stop me from trying.”
Three plus decades later, the Conservancy has helped preserve over 7,000 acres of now-protected and now manages 3,000 acres of native wildlife habitat, including the Keithley Preserve in Elfin Forest Keithley Preserve. The Conservancy has also educated thousands of youth and adults every year since its founding.
The mission of the Conservancy is to Preserve and Restore the Escondido Creek Watershed. With 26 miles of creek and an incredible diversity of geography, including urban, rural and semi-rural areas, fulfilling the mission is no small task. To do so, the Conservancy works extensively with hundreds of supporters and volunteers and key partners to accomplish its conservation goals, partners such as the Olivenhain Municipal Water District, Camp Pendleton, SDG&E, the Friends of Daley Ranch, Palomar Audubon Society and San Diego County Parks and Recreation.
The Conservancy manages eleven wildlife preserves in North County. These include:
Bumann Preserve (1998), Quarry Preserve (2002), San Elijo Ridge (2007), Bottle Peak (2010), MJM Ranch (2013), Harmony Heights (2016), Greenlands Preserve (2007), Onyx Ridge Preserve (2007), Cielo Del Norte, Phase A (2012), Cielo Del Norte, Phase B (2015), Cielo Estates (2015), Rancho Cielo Parcel 1 (2018), (now part of the Keithley Preserve), George Sardina, MD Preserve (2019), LeoMar Preserve (2021).
We are forever grateful to all of our wonderful partners, donors, volunteers, Board of Directors, and Staff (both past and present) for allowing the Escondido Creek Conservancy to thrive now and into the future. Conservation starts in our community.
