The $100-million resort on 257 seaside acres would have includeda 225-room hotel just below the Hearst Castle visitor center aswell as restaurants, coffee shop, meeting rooms, retail shops, agolf course, an equestrian center and many other amenities.

The owner of the San Francisco Chronicle, among othernewspapers, has been seeking approval to build its proposed resortsince 1988 in exchange for preserving about 82,000 acres. Hearsthad been negotiating with The Nature Conservancy and TheConservation Fund, but all the while it was applying for more than250 certificates of compliance to subdivide the ranch fordevelopment.

Now Hearst has stopped negotiating with The Nature Conservancyand The Conservation Fund, and has launched negotiations with theAmerican Land Conservancy to preserve not only the 82,000 acres butalso the 257 acres eyed for the resort. How much the ALC will payfor Hearst's development rights is still under negotiation.