Save Davis Greenbelts
Friends of the Greenbelts / Davis, California
City Council approves compromise, grants landmark designation
to pine grove
Habitat for wildlife
Shady, traffic-free path to Birth Lane Elementary School
Mature trees offer canopy of leaves
Habitat for wildlife
Multimedia gallery
Learn more about the "Paso Fino" project
More than 70 trees grow in the South Wildhorse Greenbelt. Here is the western stretch of the greenbelt.
All of Wildhorse was once a walnut orchard. These trees are rare and shady remnants.
More than 70 trees grow in the South Wildhorse Greenbelt. Here is the western stretch of the greenbelt.
Take a tour
The South Wildhorse Greenbelt was created at the same time Wildhorse was developed, about 15 years ago. Its .75 acres are home to some 70 trees, including a grove of Canary Island pines that are among the oldest and tallest in the area.
Neighbors use the greenbelt as a traffic-free, shady connector between Covell Boulevard and Moore Boulevard. Every autumn, people come to harvest walnuts. It is a favorite destination for neighborhood bird watchers.
View our slideshow to appreciate this irreplaceable stretch of urban forest for yourself.
What's at stake
Ceding public greenbelt to a private developer without compelling public benefit is a terrible precedent.
At an Oct. 9, 2014, hearing, Davis Planning Commissioner Marilee Hanson showed sldies of other patches of public open space within the city that will be vulnerable if the South Wildhorse Greenbelt is ceded to Taormino & Associates.
"No one ever envisioned"
"No one ever envisioned that the City Council would start selling off the greenbelt," said City of Davis Planning Commissioner Marilee Hanson. She spoke at a May 28, 2014, commission hearing. (At the time, Taormino & Associates said they were in negotiations with the city to buy the South Wildhorse Greenbelt. City officials quickly denied that any such negotiations were under way.)
Sparing greenbelt would be financially feasible
Planning Commissioner Mark Braly on May 28, 2014, questioned Dave Taormino about his proposal for eight houses. Braly asked whether four houses would be financially feasible.
"Yes," Taormino responded. But he said he doesn't think it's the "right" thing to do.
"We don't sell greenbelts!"
City of Davis Planning Commissioner Cheryl Essex spoke out forcefully against selling greenbelts to private developers at a May 28, 2014, commission hearing.
Negotiating to buy public greenbelt
Developer Dave Taormino updated the City of Davis Planning Commission on his negotiations to buy a greenbelt. He spoke at a May 28, 2014, commission hearing. City officials said afterward that there have been no negotiations. No sale of designated greenbelt can take place without City Council approval.