County endorses Canoa proposal

Plans to transform the unoccupied and fallow Canoa Ranch southeast of Green Valley into a living-history museum with cowboys, horses and people demonstrating early day crafts was approved Tuesday by the Pima County Board of Supervisors.

Proponents estimated nearly 100,000 people could visit a year, including some from south of the border eager to see how Mexican vaqueros raised cattle.

Green Valley’s Sandra Stone, chairman of a citizens committee overseeing Canoa Ranch, said “We all agree we have a great plan.”

It will be of enormous importance to Pima County, she said.

County Supervisor Ray Carroll said, “I am very pleased,” with the plan, saying he appreciated the input by citizens.

Carroll’s District No. 4 includes Green Valley and the Canoa Ranch.

There are distinct periods in the ranch’s history, and each would be explained and interpreted.

First came the Native Americans who lived there and tilled the soil as far back as 2000 B.C.

The Spanish influence started in 1690, followed by Mexican presence starting about 1821 and the period of American ranchers who came some time after the 1853 Gadsden Purchase.

There would be a museum at the operations center, with galleries devoted to the history of the native people, Spanish, Mexican and Anglo periods.

There would also be a conservation gallery in the building.

But there would be more, much more, to the Canoa Ranch plan, a heritage area, remote sites where hikers could go, a living ranch, agriculture fields and a bunkhouse where some visitors could stay overnight.

There are trails throughout the ranch, including the Anza Trail where Capt. Juan Bautista de Anza II led settlers to the San Francisco area in about 1776.

The living ranch would feature a tack room, blacksmith’s shop, a hay barn, stables, corrals and pasture.

An office there would schedule trail rides and enroll people in a ranch skills school.

At one time, a canal was built on the Canoa Ranch, and one dreamer hoped it could someday take water all the way to Tucson.

Part of the canal would be restored. Work is under way to restore a pond on the ranch.

There was a stage stop on the ranch at one time.

Getting the water to operate the restored ranch would be a problem. An earlier owner sold almost all the water rights held by the ranch.

Kerry Baldwin, the county’s natural resources division manager, said in a short interview, plans are to use the remaining water rights for the buildings and visitor areas.

The county’s wastewater division plans to build a plant north of the ranch to handle some Green Valley sewage. Its reclaimed water would go to meet Canoa Ranch agriculture needs.

One estimate puts the first year’s revenue from admission tickets, parking fees and rent of some of the facilities to groups would be about $1.26 million. That’s also about what expenses would be.

Pima County bought the ranch in 2001 for about $5.6 million.

Porter Frost Associates, listed as the project manager, presented the overall plan at Tuesday’s meeting.

The supervisors did not appropriate money for the project, but they may seek some funding in the upcoming bond election later this year.

jlamb@gvnews.com | 547-9749