81° CLOUDY, County Will Buy Two Land Tracts
Last Modified: Thursday, July 24, 2008 at 6:49 a.m.
BARTOW | Plans to assemble a corridor of conservation lands along U.S. 27 west of Crooked Lake advanced Wednesday when county commissioners agreed to purchase two more tracts.
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Commissioners agreed to buy the 77.3-acre Britt property and the 996-acre Atgar Development site. The total purchase price for the two parcels is $2.3 million.
The Britt property will be purchased jointly with the Southwest Florida Water Management District. The Atgar property, which consists of two parcels, will be purchased without a partner.
The move comes following a joint purchase of the 3,590-acre Stuart tract in cooperation with Swiftmud in March for $7.4 million. Commissioners had previously approved the purchase of the 1,148-acre Dunham site to the south as a gopher tortoise mitigation site. Polk contributed $750,000 toward the $12.4 million state purchase. Gov. Charlie Crist and the Florida Cabinet approved the purchase in March.
These tracts, known collectively as Crooked Lake West, are part of a targeted 11,444-acre area that is part of the Lake Wales Ridge acquisition projects. Many parts of these tracts are considered "biological hot spots" - they contain an unusually high concentration of rare and endangered plants and animals.
The Dunham tract will be managed by the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission. The other properties will be managed by the Polk County Environmental Lands Program. Plans are to allow public access for passive recreation.
[ Tom Palmer can be reached at tom.palmer@theledger.com or 863-802-7535. ]
This story appeared in print on page B1
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July 24, 2008 4:33:58 am
RE: http://www.theledger.com/article/20080724/NEWS/807240559
Let me get this right.
In the news today, the PCSO's budget is being cut 2 million dollars.
Now our brilliant County Goverment is buying worthless land that will never be developed(SWFMUD would never go for it).
As short as County money is, and so much crime in the County, wouldn't common sense tell the powers that be to get off the land buying spree and fund programs that are being cut, just like the Sherriff's office?
July 24, 2008 4:57:00 am
Maybe this needs to be remembered in a few months when we see the last two of the infamous "gang of four" trying for re-election! Your tax dollars at work again. I'm not sure about others, but my pockets are about empty.
July 24, 2008 7:05:26 am
Power drunk sums it up!
July 24, 2008 7:52:01 am
What else are they going to do with it? It's environmental land tax monies they're spending. They can't put it in the general fund.
July 24, 2008 8:37:40 am
Look at it this way. The county paid about $2,100 an acre for their purchases, while the state paid $10,800 an acre. The $10k is about what the state paid per acre for the US Sugar property.
July 24, 2008 9:13:40 am
You are right Tater. The funding is all from the environmental lands money. General fund monies are tight, while environmental land, parks, libraries, and roads continue to be funded quite well.
July 24, 2008 9:21:30 am
What can I say, postage. The public voted for it and it was what they wanted. That's not the commission's fault. The millage is not set by the commission. The voters did it to themselves. I voted for it, too. It's supposed to purchase land to recharge water and increase the aquifer levels. Hasn't worked.
July 24, 2008 10:27:11 am
Tater, I voted for environmental lands as well! and I am still glad it is in place - in fact, I'd like to see the tax and program continued.
The MSTU's are a different subject. In 2005 the BoCC would have been better off raising the taxes IMO. Then again the MSTU is to improve libraries and parks in only the unincorporated portions of the county.
July 24, 2008 2:01:53 pm
Tater is right. The County can not use monies secured for specific projects on non related projects.
However, in a budget cutting time, I do not believe it to be prudent to buy land, or even build a new public safety complex in Winter Haven to the tune of 70 million, much less the monies spent for the sports marketing facility on the high tech corridor that does not exist.
This is what makes govt. look bad.
Put the monies in an interest bearing account and use the interest to enhance their loaning abilities, etc...
July 24, 2008 2:34:08 pm
There, I fixed it for you.
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