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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/3646

What is the Ortega Reservoir Project?

Earlier this week, we published an updated map of the Ranch Plan. You might have noticed a large body of water noted on the map and labeled the “Ortega Reservoir.” See the map excerpt below:

Image source: OC Public Works

What is the Ortega Reservoir Project? It is a joint development between the Santa [...]

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/2550

An Introduction to Planning Area 2

With the success of Sendero (originally known to some of us as Planning Area 1), Rancho Mission Viejo is already working on Planning Area 2:

For those who are just starting the home shopping process, Rancho Mission Viejo would still welcome you out. As Johnson explained, “We’re already working on Planning Area 2 to begin [...]

http://www.ranchoortega.com/blog/archives/3223

Developers Retaining Mineral Rights Under Residential Developments and What That Means for Ladera Ranch

Reuters News has published an article about the trend of master planned community developers to reserve the minerals rights beneath the properties they sell to homebuyers. According to the Special Report, entitled U.S. Builders Hoard Mineral Rights Under New Homes:

[T]ens of thousands of families … have in recent years moved into new homes [...]

http://www.ranchoortega.com/blog/archives/2965

Cityhood or Annexation: A South County Tug of War Begins

In a way, we blame the Ladera Ranch Civic Council for starting this. They started talking about Rancho Mission Viejo/Ladera Ranch cityhood before the first resident had moved into Sendero. The Ladera Civic Council had a roadmap for cityhood and began pursuing it. Don’t get us wrong — cityhood is an important issue. We’ve been [...]

http://www.ranchoortega.com/blog/archives/2676

Transportation Corridor Agency to Appeal San Diego Water Board’s Denial of Proposed 241 Tesoro Extension

At first it looked like the Tesoro Extension of the 241 toll road would begin this summer. Then the San Diego Regional Water Quality Control Board denied a permit for the 5.5 mile extension of the 241 located entirely within Orange County. We lamented that decision as a failure of local government here. That denial [...]

http://www.ranchoortega.com/blog/archives/2617

Sendero Offers Public EV Charging Stations

If you’ve driven around Sendero, you might have noticed these units installed in front of some of the public parking spaces:

EV Charging Station in Sendero

Those are electric vehicle charging stations, and we think it’s a great idea that they’ve been installed in a couple locations throughout Sendero. The photo above is outside [...]

http://www.ranchoortega.com/blog/archives/2562

Does Trouble for the Toll Road Mean Trouble for the Ranch?

With the recent defeat suffered by the 241 and Transportation Corridor Agencies at the hands of the San Diego Regional Water Quality Control Board, some are wondering whether there will be an impact on the future development of the Ranch Plan. Does trouble for the toll road mean trouble for the Ranch? The short answer [...]

http://www.ranchoortega.com/blog/archives/2537

Capistrano Dispatch Article on Rancho Mission Viejo Grand Opening

There is some early media coverage of this weekend’s big grand opening in Rancho Mission Viejo. The Capistrano Dispatch published a lengthy and well-written article that is full of information and updates. Below are some key excerpts about some of the subjects we have been discussing lately, but we have only scratched the surface. Please [...]