A land deal in southern Colorado has added another
chapter to the tumultuous history of the Taylor Ranch. In the final
days of July, owner Zachary Taylor sold the final 54,000 acres of
the ranch to Western Properties Investors for $13 million.
The ranch has been embroiled in a bitter land
dispute since 1960, when Jack Taylor bought the 77,500-acre ranch
and closed it off to San Luis Valley locals who claim ancestral
rights to the land and its water. To local Hispanics, the ranch is
known as La Sierra. The Land Rights Council of San Luis, Colo., is
in the midst of a long-simmering legal battle to ensure that valley
residents are allowed to graze cattle and hunt on the
mountain.
Arnold Valdez, the San Luis County
planner, says the new owners’ plans aren’t known for certain. Lou
Pai of the Jaroso Creek Ranch, who bought the first parcel of the
ranch two years ago for more than $9 million, now owns the
entirety.
“The fear now is that the new owners
are going to subdivide,” Valdez said.
“We’re
bracing ourselves for the next wave of development. We’re under no
illusion that the land will remain undeveloped or as wilderness.”
Colorado Gov. Roy Romer’s Land Grant Commission
came close to purchasing the same 54,000 acres from Taylor in 1997.
But the state gave up when Taylor held out for more than the
state’s $12 million offer.
*Dustin
Solberg
This article appeared in the print edition of the magazine with the headline Taylor Ranch sells.
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