A view of the southern top of the dry lakebed at Lakeview and Mariposa avenues where an equestrian center is being proposed.
Riders tour the upper rim trail of the dry lakebed where an equestrian center is proposed.
YORBA LINDA – For more than two decades the equestrians of Yorba Linda have been patient, and anchored themselves as the protected species of the city’s historical heritage.
Yorba Linda’s equestrian community is unique in that most horses are backyard horses. The equine population resides from the west to the east, with nearly every breed of equine represented. The heaviest horse population is west of Fairmont Boulevard where spacious horse properties house the tradition of the old-time West.
An act of protecting our semi-rural neighborhoods that brings the charm to our city is hovering over the General Plan, and the cowboys and cowgirls are the vigilant sentries of the equestrian heritage.
As Yorba Linda began to develop on the east side, a major developer offered to include an equestrian center, which did not materialize. This developer however contributed $200,000 for a future center. Over the years, the gift funds grew to nearly $500,000, and before the assets were reallocated, the equestrians rode their horses to City Hall, with some of the miniature horses making their whinnies heard at the Council Chamber’s podium.
Their peaceful demonstration gave notice to the City Council, which selected an equestrian committee made up of representatives from various equestrian groups to look into the operations and needs of developing a world-class equestrian center, and to select areas where the equestrian center could be located.
Sue Leto, director of Parks and Recreation, led the appointed Equestrian Committee in several meetings as the group elected to designate the equestrian park as a first-class facility that would compliment the Community Center and the Tommy Lasorda Jr. Field House. The equestrian committee envisioned a resource that would be desirable for weddings, banquets and community gatherings, as well as a boarding, training and learning facility, a Class A show facility and a therapeutic riding center.
Several sites were walked by the committee. After several meetings, the committee elected the upper south side of the dry lakebed of the Yorba Linda Reservoir, preserving the lakebed as a natural habitat of wildlife and hiking and riding trails.
On Oct. 21, 2008, the council voted to send out a request for proposals for a feasibility study on an equestrian park at the dry lakebed. This vote drew one neigh from Jan Horton, who desired more study time. On June 16, the majority of the council – John Anderson, Nancy Rikel and Mark Schwing – voted to award the contract for the feasibility study to ERA/AECOM, an international consulting firm that will provide a comprehensive applied economic analysis and research and planning plan.
The white hats rose to the occasion and at 11:30 p.m. on June 16, the equestrians found the beginning of their dream. The contracted amount of $93,550 comes from the in-lieu of park funds paid by the developer and is not paid for by the tax payers.
This feasibility study will expose the need to bring a boarding facility back to Yorba Linda. Many equestrians board their horses in Chino, Norco, San Juan Capistrano and even Temecula. More than 160 horses were displaced when two of the largest boarding facilities sold out to large developments.
The proposed equestrian center, as planned by the Equestrian Committee and presented by Sue Leto, would be a community center beneficial to all citizens of Yorba Linda. A Stetson Salute to Yorba Linda folks who have put their heart into protecting our heritage, and happy trails – all 103 miles!