Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors Tentatively Approves Newhall Ranch Project

VALENCIA, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Nov. 25, 1998--

The Newhall Land and Farming Co. (NYSE:NHL) (PSE:NHL) announced that on Tuesday, the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors voted 4-0 (with one supervisor absent) to tentatively approve the company's Newhall Ranch Project, which is located adjacent to Valencia on the remaining 12,000 acres the company owns in Los Angeles County.

The current plan contains 21,600 homes and 1,000 acres of commercial, industrial and mixed-use development. It also will feature the dedication of 6,200 acres of high country and river open space, a significant amenity for the community.

The vote indicates the board's intent to approve the general plan amendments, zone change, conditional use permit and vesting tentative parcel map associated with the Newhall Ranch Specific Plan, subject to review of final conditions and certification of the environmental impact report.

At the meeting, the board closed the public hearing and directed its staff to prepare the needed documents for final approval, which is expected to occur in the first quarter of 1999. Following final approval of these actions, the company plans to begin processing subdivision maps and applications for permits that need to be approved before development can occur. Initial development is expected to begin in 2001.

A motion by Fifth District Supervisor Mike Antonovich states: "The Board has required the applicant to make a number of substantive changes and to forge agreements with his neighbors, and the applicant has responded. The community will benefit considerably from all of the amenities that this development brings. The primary benefit is the early access to the `high country,' an amenity desired by nearly everyone in the Valley, but there are many others as well."

Newhall Land is a developer of new towns and master-planned communities. Its primary activity is the new town of Valencia. Newhall Ranch and Valencia together form one of the nation's most valuable landholdings. They are located on the company's 37,000 acres, 30 miles north of downtown Los Angeles.

The company maintains a Web site through the Internet at http://www.newhall.com.

CONTACT:

The Newhall Land and Farming Co.,Valencia

Marcia Ward, 805/255-4445

or

Mickaelian Associates, South Pasadena, Calif.

Fred Mickaelian Jr., 323/268-1152