You are +4,600 strong and cannot be ignored. The petition is forcing Pres. Armstrong and Dean Horgan to answer questions face to face with students, faculty, alumni groups and industry partners. Many of you sent in letters to the CSU Board of Trustees and three people were able to speak directly to the Board. And major influencers are empowered to pushback against building on prime farmland when they see how many have signed the petition and provided such compelling comments. We are being heard!
Two recent developments worth mentioning.
First, sometimes a gift becomes a burden: the hidden costs of the Brughelli Ranch land donation to Cal Poly, SLO. Pres. Armstrong’s office sent out a press release regarding the donation of 390 acres of farmland to Cal Poly, 100 acres of which is for vegetable production (https://ucm.calpoly.edu/news/historic-390-acre-brughelli-ranch-donated-living-classroom-cal-poly
The release stated the donation will “support a broad range of crops that could continue to bring in revenue for the university.” My question is how can a part-time technician, a professor, and a handful of students be expected to run a 100-acre commercial farm 6 miles away from campus by the airport? There is no mention of how the university is going to be able to support the $4,500 to $7,000 per acre it costs to grow a season’s worth of vegetables.
The press release quoted Armstrong as saying, “This is an extraordinary opportunity to provide our students with a place where agriculture, conservation and natural resource stewardship come together”. That is what is supposed to happen on our own campus! Unless it gets in the way of building a “bustling neighborhood” that maybe one day, years from now, bring in millions of dollars in revenue. Seems like bringing in revenue is a consistent theme in the university administration's messaging.
Second, Dean Brian Horgan sent an email to the students, faculty and staff of CAFES.
You can read the Dean’s email here: https://static1.squarespace.com/static/65aee85dccc6f024a5f839c0/t/6ab44d6d35d18851242b9c98/1790201198143/Email+from+Dean+Brian+Horgan+to+CAFES_8.22.2026.pdf
The email is long, with vague wording on the proposal to build, and conflicts with a previous statement from the Dean. But their current agenda remains the same:
· The administration wants to remove an active orchard and build a farm store, resulting in a net loss of prime farmland on campus.
· As compensation, the administration wants to relocate the orchard to fields with damaged soil, couching that as a Learn By Doing opportunity, and they’re assuming the soil can be rehabilitated to safely grow food. Extensive soil testing needs to be done first to determine the feasibility of using that land for food crops, but it appears the administration does not want to wait.
Check the blog in the coming days for a more details on these updates (https://www.californiainsectscience.com/cisblog/proposed-elimination-of-class-1-ag-land-cal-poly-san-luis-obispo
Our message is clear and unchanged: Do not build on prime farmland.
Thank you for lending your voice to this issue.