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Rancho Ortega Blog discusses matters of public interest in South Orange County, including the communities of San Juan Capistrano, Ladera Ranch and Rancho Mission Viejo.

The writings of Don Juan Ortega on the Rancho Ortega Blog are the personal views of the author. This blog is not authored by nor does it have any affiliation whatsoever with any other person, place or entity using the name "Rancho Ortega" (or any similar name).

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Archives

http://www.ranchoortega.com/blog/archives/4478

A Topographical View of Planning Area 2

Google Maps has a cool new feature where you can tilt the map and get a topographical view of an area. We decided to have some fun and lay the boundaries for Planning Area 2 over a topographical map of the region. Below is the result — note the boundaries aren’t perfect. We were just [...]

http://www.ranchoortega.com/blog/archives/4383

Updating What We Know About Planning Area 2: The Village of Esencia

We have noticed a sudden, recent uptick in the number of internet searches related to Planning Area 2 of the Ranch Plan, what Rancho Mission Viejo has named the Village of Esencia.

We are also learning more about Rancho Mission Viejo’s plans for Planning Area 2 of the Ranch Plan. It is being called “Esencia” [...]

http://www.ranchoortega.com/blog/archives/3642

Updated Map of the Ranch Plan

We recently came across a high-resolution, updated map of the Ranch Plan, embedded below. The map includes details for Sendero and a nice overlay of the Ranch Plan roadways (we’ve annotated Chiquita Canyon Parkway at “A Street” where we believe it will be). You can click here for the full size image.

Image source: [...]

http://www.ranchoortega.com/blog/archives/3584

Visions of South County Cityhood Dancing in our Heads

Susan Wilson is the Chairwoman of the Orange County Local Agency Formation Commission. What is LAFCO? Well, if you’ve been reading our blog, you would know that when it comes to South County local governance and cityhood, LAFCO is the most important government agency you’ve never heard of. Wilson has written a guest opinion piece, [...]

http://www.ranchoortega.com/blog/archives/1150

More Speculation on the Ranch Marketplace

We discussed the size and potential tenants of the Ranch Marketplace (the proposed ten acre retail center at the corner of Ortega Highway and Antonio Parkway) in this post. We’ve done some more thinking and researching and wanted to further explore two questions relating to the layout of this new retail center.

First, will the [...]

http://www.ranchoortega.com/blog/archives/649

The Ranch Plan Promises New Trails and Bikeways

As you may know, Orange County has a “General Plan” that describes its long-term goals for growth and development. The General Plan is comprehensive in that it covers seven core aspects of County life: land use, transportation, housing, conservation, open space, noise and safety. Today, we are going to look at the impact of the [...]

http://www.ranchoortega.com/blog/archives/415

Speculating on a Revised Ranch Plan Timeline

Like most major real estate projects, the Ranch Plan was a victim — at least temporarily — of the Great Recession and real estate crash. Originally, the Ranch Plan was scheduled to break ground in 2005 with an estimated date for completion in 2025. While we don’t pretend to know Rancho Mission Viejo’s revised development [...]

http://www.ranchoortega.com/blog/archives/405

The Impact of the Ranch Plan Development on Area Views and Ridgelines

For many current residents, one of the most treasured benefits of living on the Ranch is the ability to enjoy vast, panoramic views of unspoiled mountainous wilderness. Indeed, where other Southern California cities have allowed their ridgelines and hilltops to be cut, flattened and terraced in pursuit of more real estate for development, we have [...]