Of Faith, Hope and a Little Charity : Parks: The long battle to preserve Corral Canyon is won. The comedian’s $29.5-million price tag represents a giant gift to the state.

It would have made a great seaside golf course. Developers practically drooled at the prospect of building luxury homes there.

But in the end, the generosity--and pragmatism--of entertainer Bob Hope won out to save Malibu’s pristine Corral Canyon from the bulldozers.

On Wednesday, an official of the Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy stood in front of a microphone in Malibu and said the words local environmentalists had come to hear. “This is truly a win-win situation,” said Joe Edmiston, the conservancy’s executive director.

As part of Hope’s deal to sell 7,363 mountain acres to the state, including his Jordan Ranch property in Ventura County, 339-acre Corral Canyon--Malibu’s last undeveloped coastal canyon--is assured of being preserved as parkland.

The only disappointment for the roughly 100 environmentalists, politicians and others was the absence of Hope and Gov. Pete Wilson, who were no-shows.

Conservancy spokeswoman Julie Zeidner said Hope canceled about an hour before the event, but she stressed that the deal was still on. Wilson decided not to attend after being informed that the entertainer would not be there, she said.

Far below market value, the $29.5-million price tag for all of the properties represents a giant gift to the state.

But the entertainer’s decision to sell was also influenced by mounting public opposition to seeing land in the Santa Monica and Santa Susana mountains that was ideally suited for parkland turned into golf courses and luxury homes.

“The knocks he’s taken from environmentalists for not wanting to give up the properties for so long finally got to him,” said one source familiar with the negotiations.

“Here you have this national hero who has given generously of himself his entire life, and I think he figured the criticism just wasn’t worth it.”

On Wednesday, despite the no-shows, the mood among environmentalists was jubilant.

“This tells me that after years of struggle, our efforts were worth it,” said Frank Angel, who heads a homeowner group that fought to prevent Corral Canyon from being developed.

For unspoiled Corral Canyon, which opens onto the Pacific Ocean west of Pepperdine University, Hope’s announcement marked the official end to a long, bitter dispute.

At one time, developers had proposed grading 6 million cubic yards of earth there and building a championship golf course, tennis courts, clubhouse, a restaurant and 60 luxury houses.

The proposal, which won the approval of Los Angeles County supervisors in 1989, would have subjected the canyon to the most extensive grading ever permitted along the Malibu coast.

But in early 1990, the project ran into problems. Former Atty. Gen. John K. Van de Kamp asked a judge to overturn the approval on grounds that county planners and the supervisors failed to adequately analyze the environmental effects. Lawsuits by the Sierra Club and a homeowners group soon followed.

Last December, a new developer, Potomac Investment Associates, sought approval for a scaled-down project eliminating the golf course and seeking to build 26 homes with 2.2 million cubic yards of grading.

But the California Coastal Commission rejected the proposal, saying the plan would destroy the canyon. The vote was 11 to 1.

Afterward, talks between Hope’s representatives and the Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy, a state agency charged with acquiring and protecting parkland in the mountains, broke off.

But in March, the governor intervened to help revive the talks, and last week, he announced an agreement.

Conservancy spokeswoman Zeidner said the state agency will immediately begin to administer Corral Canyon as an unimproved park until federal funds become available for its inclusion in the Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area.

“It’s just a very exciting time for us,” Zeidner said. “Many people have waited a long time for this moment.”