MCLENNAN COUNTY, Texas — Highlander Ranch is known to be one of the best kept secrets in McLennan County. Many children have grown up taking horseback riding lessons or spending summer's on the ranch, and soon that could all be taken away.
The McLennan County College Board of Trustees is facing a tough decision that could leave many people in the community upset.
"For my children, this ranch is everything, to be honest. We do not have the ability currently to have land of our own. So, this is a place for my children to come and ride horses and be in nature and enjoy learning," Lindsey Smith, a parent of two daughters who take riding lessons and board a horse at the ranch, said.
The ranch is a home for horseback riding, full service boarding and enjoying the outdoors. However, the MCC Board of Trustees says that could soon disappear.
"We've been getting presentations and getting information about the ranch for a while and we've been subsidizing the ranch for several years," Earl Stinnett, Chair of the MCC Board of Trustees, said. "And we're at the point to where we want to make some decisions about what the best course of action is for the ranch."
Highlander Ranch is home to 189 acres of agriculture farmland sitting five miles from MCC's campus in Bosqueville.
Lindsey Smith has two daughters who have been taking lessons for many years and this space has become their second home.
"It just brings everybody so much joy that I can't imagine what it would do not only to my family, not only to the instructors and the employees here, but all of the families who come out here to enjoy what we do," Smith said.
Home to MCC's Veterinary Technology and Agriculture Associate Degree programs, the president of the college Johnette McKown, says they have been closely monitoring the worth of the space.
"We've looked at it for several years now," McKown said. "Because it is a beautiful piece of property and we enjoy the programs that we do. But, essentially you have to look and see is this where we want to be investing resources or not?"
Rhiannon Yad has been giving riding lessons at the ranch for two-and-a-half years, and she's hoping to make her voice heard to save a place she loves.
"It's very, very important to me and as a horse owner and as an instructor, and watching these kids grow and develop as well. It's a staple of our community," Yard said.
On July 11, the board is holding a meeting to discuss the future of the ranch where a presentation will be held outlining various options.
Chair head Earl Stinnett says the possibility of selling it will be discussed and the night could end with a voted decision.
Rhiannon and many other Highlander Ranch representatives will be present.
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