In the 1960's and 70s, the Buffalo Ranch's red clapboard barn and surrounding buildings served as corporate offices and a tranquil getaway for the world renowned architect William Pereira, a self-proclaimed "barn freak" who renamed the ranch "Urbanus Square."
Pereira needed more office space for his burgeoning staff so he decided to expand the facility by importing entire barns from the Midwest. In this manner he created a conference room complete with a wood-burning fireplace, a maintenance shop, a print shop and an employee cafeteria. Because the ranch location was so remote, he also created an apartment in which to stay on occasion rather than commute back and forth to his home in the Los Angeles area. The complex was the favorite of all Pereira's worldwide offices.
From his office atop the "silo," which was a high point in the area, Pereira had a view of the surrounding landscape, which assisted him in developing the land and architectural plans for the University of California, Irvine campus and the southern section of the Irvine Ranch to the northeast.
Pereira, who became known as the father of the largest master-planned community in North America, counted the design for the development of the Irvine Ranch as one of the most challenging projects of his career.
From his offices at the Buffalo Ranch, Pereira also conducted the architectural planning for the University of San Diego, Trans America Tower in San Francisco, Los Angeles Museum of Art, Pepperdine University in Malibu, the Newport Center in Newport Beach and numerous other internationally recognized land plans, buildings and structures around the world.