Tesoro Viejo, a new master planned community to be built in southeast Madera County, was honored with the 2016 Outstanding Planning Award in Innovation in Green Community Planning.

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The American Planning Association’s California Central Section Chapter presented the award to Tesoro Viejo and Madera County, commending their efforts to create and maintain “a vibrant and healthy community.”

As a section award recipient, the community plan will next be submitted for statewide consideration.

According to planners, Tesoro Viejo is designed to “lie lightly on the land,” and has sought to preserve the area’s natural and historic beauty by integrating preservation of land with people, jobs and green infrastructure.

Development will be clustered around natural features such as hillsides and streambeds, and a quarter of the plan is open space.

The community is designed to be self-contained to maintain a healthy jobs-housing ratio, with the goal of limiting out-commuting to reduce its carbon footprint.

“Tesoro Viejo sets new standards for our county and region,” said Norman Allinder, Madera County planning director. “The plan is very environmentally responsible and does an outstanding job of connecting the community to nature and open space while enabling people to get around easily on foot and bicycle without relying on cars.”

“Tesoro Viejo is an example of getting it right from the beginning rather than retrofitting a community later on,” Allinder added.

Tesoro Viejo is a 1600-acre, master planned community located just off Highway 41, at the foot of Little Table Mountain. More than 15 miles of pedestrian and bicycle trails will connect eight villages and more than 400 acres of open space. To decrease vehicle usage and promote health and wellness, the community will feature walkable neighborhoods, neighborhood grocery stores and farmers’ markets, and easy access to schools, parks, recreational facilities, health care and civic centers.