Neverland Ranch
Sycamore Valley Ranch,[1] formerly Neverland Ranch[2] or Neverland Valley Ranch, is a developed property in Santa Barbara County, California, located at 5225 Figueroa Mountain Road, Los Olivos, California, on the edge of Los Padres National Forest. From 1988 to 2005, it was the home and private amusement park of the American singer Michael Jackson.[3][4][5] The ranch is about 5 miles (8 km) north of unincorporated Los Olivos, and about eight miles (13 km) north of the town of Santa Ynez.
Location
5225 Figueroa Mountain Road, Los Olivos, California, United States
34°44′28″N 120°05′30″W / 34.74107°N 120.09158°W
Defunct
2,700 acres (1,100 ha)
Originally named Zaca Laderas Ranch, the estate was renamed Sycamore Valley Ranch shortly after it was purchased by the property developer William Bone in 1981.[3] In 1988, the ranch was sold to Jackson, who renamed it after Neverland, the fantasy island in the story of Peter Pan, a boy who never ages.[3][4] Jackson first visited the ranch when he visited Paul McCartney, who was staying there during their filming of the 'Say Say Say' music video in 1983. According to Jackson's sister La Toya, he expressed interest in someday owning the property.[6]
Jackson left Neverland Ranch in 2005, shortly after his acquittal of child sexual abuse charges, and never returned; he owned it until his death in 2009. After the property had depreciated for several years, the American billionaire businessman Ronald Burkle, a friend of the Jackson family, purchased it in 2020 for US$22 million.
Background[edit]
The estate was originally known as the Zaca Laderas Ranch at the time of its purchase by the property developer William Bone in 1981.[3] Bone renamed the estate the Sycamore Valley Ranch and moved there with his family. Bone commissioned the architect Robert Altevers to design the principal buildings on the ranch, and the pair spent two and a half years researching potential designs and ideas. The 13,000-square-foot (1,200 m2) main house was completed in 1982, based on a design by Altevers,[7] with formal gardens, a stone bridge, and a four-acre (1.5 ha) lake with a five-foot (1.5 m) waterfall. Bone later said that in building the house he had "...a desire to express everything I had learned in 15 years of home building...I achieved here all the things I wanted to do in my business but could not".[8] He had considered converting the property to a country club but did not do so.[9]