Muir Beach horse stable operators fight for livelihoods

[AsahinaKimi]

There was a time not long ago when a visit to Muir Beach along the Marin County coast would almost guarantee an encounter with a horseback rider.

The often cold, windswept oceanside cove has, for 48 years, had a stable where a dairy farm once stood. At its peak, there were as many as 50 horses grazing the area, and the free spirits who rode them could be seen regularly cantering on the beach and along the trails in the rugged hills overlooking the churning ocean.



There are now 11 horses at the Golden Gate Dairy Stables, but the people who run the place are fighting for their livelihoods. The stable operators are being required by the Golden Gate National Recreation Area to almost completely reconfigure the facility, repair the hay barn and fix up the old dairy grounds if they want to continue stabling horses.

The work, which must be done in exchange for a 10-year use and occupancy lease, could cost as much as $250,000, according to Maureen Pinto, the stable operations manager and the executive director of the Ocean Riders equestrian group.

http://www.sfgate.com/science/article/Muir-Beach-horse-stable-operators-fight-for-5139911.php

[Boxerfan]

1. My sister lived there for a few years in the late 60's.

With the Pervier family IIRC...

We had been friends of the family for years. But after my dad died we lost touch. But its a wonderful facility & I wish them well. They should be given some form of grandfather status -but that's not the way its done nowadays.

[Hell Hath No Fury]

2. The GGNRA has been --

really coming down hard on the older businesses that now lie within it's boundaries. Drake's is also fighting them right now. I do love my nature areas, but I also believe local institutions like this should be give some consideration. I think the GGNRA knew that what they were requesting of the stable would be impossible to accomplish, and made the requirements in the hopes that they would simply close.