The 2.61-acre Big Sur property that served as a canyon retreat for the late Lawrence Ferlinghetti was recently listed for $2 million, and though it’s mostly undeveloped, land has been cleared for construction — pending government approval.

The secluded 2.61-acre parcel sits in a gated section of Bixby Canyon near the iconic Bixby Creek Bridge and has remained largely untouched since Lawrence Ferlinghetti bought it in the early 1970s, as the Chronicle reports.

Ferlinghetti, who died in 2021 at age 101, was one of San Francisco's most influential literary figures. He co-founded City Lights Bookstore in North Beach in 1953 and launched its publishing arm two years later, famously publishing Allen Ginsberg's Howl and Other Poems.

The property includes access to a private residents-only trail that follows Bixby Creek to the beach beneath Bixby Bridge, as well as a small cabin, a meditation hut, and historic trout ponds. A building site has also been cleared where a future owner could pursue plans for a home, though any construction would require approval from Monterey County and coastal regulators.

The property listing notes the land was originally two separate lots before being merged, meaning a future buyer could also explore splitting it back into two parcels, which would also be subject to county approval.

According to the listing, the current owner, Ferlinghetti’s son, Lorenzo Ferlinghetti, has already completed much of the early groundwork for potential development, including well testing, geotechnical and septic studies, site planning, and preliminary home concepts.

“This place has been a huge part of my life since childhood, and I have shared many wonderful moments here with family and friends,” Lorenzo Ferlinghetti said in a statement. “It is paradise on earth and has become a very spiritual place for me, deeply rooted in my soul.”

The Chronicle notes the property is near the famous cabin where Jack Kerouac stayed before writing his 1962 novel, Big Sur. Ferlinghetti reportedly chose a sunnier site farther up the canyon while remaining in the same landscape that became a refuge for Beat writers. His friendship with Kerouac helped cement Bixby Canyon as a retreat for artists seeking solitude along the California coast.

Related: San Francisco Poet and City Lights Founder Lawrence Ferlinghetti Dies at 101

Image: Alex Grant/Compass