Ferrini + Marks Landscape

Marks + Ferrini Landscape — active working ranches, ancestral homeland to several Tribes, and the last intact habitat linkage between the coast ranges and the Monterey Bay lowlands.

Ferrini Ranch is an 869-acre working ranch along Highway 68 that serves as one of the Central Coast's most critical wildlife corridors, with several Tribes recognizing it as part of their ancestral homelands.​ In 2024, Big Sur Land Trust (BSLT) and Trust for Public Land (TPL) secured Ferrini Ranch to prevent its development into a luxury residential subdivision.

Together with the adjacent Marks Ranch, it now sits inside a 20,000-acre network of protected lands — and at the center of a question: What does the future of this landscape look like, and who decides?

Why this land matters

→ Identified by CDFW as a State priority barrier along Highway 68

→ One of the last safe wildlife crossings in the region, identified as key to preventing regional extinctions in Fort Ord.

→ Deep ancestral connection alongside a history of displacement that continues to shape the present

→ Decades of agriculture, grazing, ecological research, community use, and wildlife movement

What we're working toward

This landscape sits at a critical ecological and cultural  crossroads and presents a rare opportunity to protect habitat, support working lands, and  create meaningful ways for people to connect with the land. 

We are developing a clear set of priorities for how the Ferrini + Marks landscape can advance ecological stewardship, cultural revitalization, and regenerative agriculture in ways that strengthen community connection.