- December 24, 2024
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Flagler County, in partnership with the St. Johns River Water Management District, on Tuesday (March 26) acquired a 25-acre parcel along Princess Place Road, adding to the “crown jewel” of its parks system – Princess Place Preserve. It is the first purchase made through the county’s Environmentally Sensitive Lands program in a decade.
“This is a great addition to our conservation lands inventory,” said General Services Assistant Director Mike Lagasse. “It’s been known as the ‘Kelly’ parcel, previously owned by a family of the same name, and was the last privately-owned, undeveloped parcel on the Princess Place Road.”
The property is adjacent on three sides to the St. Johns River Water Management District’s Pellicer Creek Conservation Area – approximately 3,000 acres of conservation land in northeastern Flagler County that is connected to the 1,500-acre Princess Place Preserve.
“This acquisition adds to this several-thousand-acre Pellicer Creek Conservation Corridor, which conserves and protects wildlife habitat and water quality to the region,” Lagasse said.
Flagler County’s Environmentally Sensitive Lands program has been active since its inception in the late 1980s, seeking to acquire and preserve environmentally sensitive lands that are also recreation areas, water recharge areas, threatened and endangered species habitats, and unique biological communities. The motto early on was “Conserving Today for Tomorrow.”
“The Environmentally Sensitive Lands Program has really benefitted Flagler County and the municipalities,” Lagasse said. “Whenever possible we try to leverage our funds with other sources, like the state’s Florida Forever program or the St. Johns River Water Management District, to stretch the ESL purchasing power. It brings money back to the county.”
As a part of Flagler County’s partnership with the St. Johns River Water Management District, the property will be managed by the latter due to its adjacency to the Pellicer Creek Conservation Area.
“This acquisition is a great reminder of the work that the Environmentally Sensitive Lands program has been doing in Flagler County since the late 1980s,” County Administrator Heidi Petito said. “It is important to conserve and preserve properties that our local landowners and citizens have identified as critical to remain natural for future generations.”
Environmentally Sensitive Lands Program History:
