BARTOW, Fla. — As development continues across Polk County, local and state officials are working to protect nearly 1,000 acres of land in the southeastern part of the county from future development.
The partnership between Polk County and the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (FDACS) will permanently preserve two properties while allowing agricultural operations to continue.
One of those properties is a 75-acre cattle ranch owned by David Hunt. The land has been in his wife’s family for more than 60 years, and Hunt says he began working to protect it from development in 2007.
“I’ve always appreciated the land and the wildlife, and I think we need to take care of the land and once you pave it over it’s never going to be the same,” Hunt said.
The ranch is home to a variety of wildlife, including bald eagles, and a creek running the property features two waterfalls. Hunt says this property is too special to lose.
“The water that flows out of this creek winds up in Peace River, which goes down to Charlotte Harbor, and people all along the way are drinking water that passes through here,” he said.
Through the state’s Rural and Family Lands Protection Program, Polk County and the state paid $745,000 for the development rights to Hunt’s property. The conservation easement allows the land to remain in agricultural use while preventing additional housing development.
The partnership also helped secure a conservation easement for the 916-acre G-3 Ranch. The easement was purchased for $6.45 million, with Polk County contributing $500,000.
Both properties are within the Florida Wildlife Corridor and are connected to water resources in the Peace River watershed.
“Preserving the properties helps maintain the culture of what rural Florida used to look like but to also to be sustainable and resilient in the future. To protect our water resources, protect our wildlife corridors,” said Tabitha Biehl, director of Polk County’s Parks and Natural Resources Division.
For Hunt, the conservation agreement ensures the land will remain protected even if ownership changes in the future.
“You can’t undo what nature has created here and that was very important to me,” he said.
Polk County officials say they plan to continue working with the state and other agencies to preserve additional land, protect natural habitats and keep agricultural operations viable for future generations.
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