About Heartland
HEARTLAND is a land cooperative of 10 leaseholds on 800 acres in northern California. We have been here for almost 40 years. Our purpose is to create and maintain a place for us to live in harmony with each other and the land, most of which is to be left wild.
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We are located in Mendocino County, CA, three miles west of Hwy 101, two hours north of San Francisco and about 25 miles inland from the Pacific Ocean. Our elevation ranges mostly between 800 to 1700 feet and we are in zone 8B - 10A. There are panoramic views of the Ukiah Valley to the east, and more hills to the west.
The vegetation includes native and introduced grasses, oak & madrone trees and forest, and some patches of fir forest and chaparral. Many animal species share this land. There are a number of seasonal creeks/streams and we have developed several ponds and year-round springs.
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We are off-grid and committed to minimizing our fossil fuel consumption, using renewable energy - mostly sun, but also wind, methane, and hydro. Several of us are engaged in permaculture design.
Community workings
Heartland, Inc. is a California S-corporation with ten shares (one share per leasehold). Each of the ten shares is represented on the Board of Directors (BOD), which meets at least 4 times per year. The majority of the work necessary to develop and maintain both the land and the corporation is done by us. We have paid off the land in full, developed the roads, phone and water systems, and built the homes on the land. We prefer to make decisions by consensus, resorting to democratic voting when the former is unachievable.
Each leasehold is comprised of 10 acres for development by the shareholder/lessee and their household within the guidelines we have collectively established. Some of us have lived here almost 40 years and some do not yet live on the land. These leaseholds are scattered across the 800 acres, leaving 700 acres of land which is not for development, though can be used for hiking, horseback riding, and camping.