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RANCHO SANTA FE, CA—In San Diego, there is a sensitive balance of supplying future housing demand while preserving wildlife corridors and other areas of conservation, Ciara Trujillo and David Santistevan of Colliers International San Diego's land team tell GlobeSt.com. As we recently reported, the two represented seller Cielo Del Norte LLC in the sale of Cielo Del Norte, 242 acres located southeast of Elfin Forest Rd. and Harmony Grove Rd. here, for $13 million to Escondido Creek Conservancy. The property was originally approved for a 77-lot residential development but will be designated open space as a part of the Escondido Creek Conservancy. We spoke exclusively with Trujillo and Santistevan about the sale, the significance of land preservation and how it is impacting commercial real estate transactions.

GlobeSt.com: We're hearing a lot more about land preserve and preserving open space in commercial real estate deals, particularly in San Diego, which is often resistant to new development (e.g., Agua Hedionda, One Paseo, etc.). Is land preservation becoming a more significant concern in the development realm?

Trujillo: In San Diego County, where the supply of undeveloped land is becoming increasingly constrained, it is a sensitive balance of supplying future housing demand while preserving wildlife corridors and other areas of conservation. Environmental constraints are a big concern in the development industry, and builders work with the state and federal agencies to find that balance and deliver well-thought-out developments. Our team specializes in the sale of land to home builders and developers across San Diego and surrounding counties, and over the last few years, we have seen many of these developments include open space in the development plan. For example, Cielo, a development where our team has sold more than 75 lots and is located just south of Cielo del Norte, is a 1,740-acre master-planned community that incorporates about 60% open space.

GlobeSt.com: How should developers approach preserving open space when considering a sizeable development?

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Santistevan: Before even purchasing a property, developers consult with biologists to determine environmental impacts of a development and how to mitigate any impacts. Typically, this is achieved with the incorporation of preserving land through dedicated open space. With large developments like Cielo and Agua Hedionda, quite a good percentage of the development sites remain as open space.

GlobeSt.com: What stands out for you the most with the Rancho Santa Fe deal?

Trujillo: The long-time owner of this site preferred to sell to the Escondido Creek Conservancy over a home builder in an effort to help preserve land in the area. This sale of Cielo Del Norte also stands out because it is not the first sale of prime developable land that ended up becoming dedicated open space in the area. In 2013, Colliers' San Diego land team sought out the County of San Diego to purchase 31.5 acres in Rancho Santa Fe from a private seller to become a land preserve. This transaction created the Lusardi Creek Preserve, which expanded trails and the preservation of sensitive habitat.

GlobeSt.com: What else should our readers know about land preservation?

Santistevan: The County of San Diego is blessed with varied and wonderful topography, and it is important for future generations of San Diegans that there is open land preserved. Some of the land is ripe for development, while other sites should remain pristine open space in perpetuity.