A proposed housing subdivision on the ballot in Davis was soundly defeated Tuesday.
With all precincts reporting, Measure P, to approve the Wildhorse Ranch project, failed 75 percent to 25 percent.
The vote was the second test of Measure J, the landmark local rule enacted in 2000 that gives Davis residents the final say when developers want to build houses on farmland.
In 2005, a proposed development called Covell Village was shot down by a 20-point margin.
The nearly 1,900-unit subdivision would have occupied hundreds of acres of open space, and many attributed its failure to its ambitious size.
The developers of Wildhorse Ranch sought to woo voters with a much smaller project on the city's eastern flank that included solar panels on all 191 housing units.
The 25-acre site, currently a horse ranch, is tucked neatly into an existing but unrelated neighborhood called Wildhorse.
The proposal included landscaped buffer zones and energy-efficient construction.
Some of Covell Village's staunchest critics supported Wildhorse Ranch, and it won a Sierra Club endorsement.
Measure P supporters said building Wildhorse Ranch would provide an argument against any future attempt to build at the Covell Village site.
But none of it was enough to persuade Davis voters to support growth beyond the city's current boundaries.
Critics had argued there were already enough new housing units approved within existing city limits, including several infill projects.
And the University of California, Davis, is building a neighborhood with thousands of beds for students and 475 homes for faculty and staff, they said.
Opponents said the sagging housing market and potential costs to the city also argued against approving Measure P.
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