Published August 7, 2025
The picturesque Red Barn in Midpen’s La Honda Creek Open Space Preserve serves as a visual gateway to the rural San Mateo County coast. Drivers along Highway 84 will notice some activity in the area over the next several months as Midpen replaces and improves existing white corrals and fencing near the barn to support conservation grazing in the area while maintaining the area’s beloved rural aesthetic. The white wooden fencing along Highway 84 will remain as-is.
“Midpen staff have thoughtfully designed the corrals to balance form and function. Ultimately, the new corrals and fencing will significantly improve the utility of the site for conservation grazing while maintaining the beloved and iconic ranch aesthetic along the Highway 84 corridor,” said Midpen Conservation Grazing Manager Matthew Shapero.
The Red Barn dates back to the late-1800s and the area has been used intermittently for ranching and agriculture for many decades. When Midpen reintroduced ranching to the Red Barn area in 2014 as part of our Conservation Grazing Program, the aged existing corral infrastructure from the 1950s was unusable. Temporary facilities were put in place to serve the immediate needs of the conservation grazing operation.
With this current project, Midpen will replace and right-size the corrals and fencing to serve the conservation grazing operations into the future. The new corral will be welded metal pipe, painted white to match the existing site aesthetic. Pipe corrals are considered an industry standard for their sturdiness, effectiveness and longevity.