$350K donation set to protect this East Manatee County land from future development

A plan is in motion to protect 58 acres of East Manatee County land near the Braden River from development.

Home to a creek, ranch lands, pine woods and ideal bird habitat, the green space west of Interstate 75 and north of State Road 70 is sandwiched between the Girl Scouts of Gulfcoast Florida’s Camp Honi Hanta, Manatee County’s Braden River Park and a small farm.

The Conservation Foundation of the Gulf Coast is set to purchase a conservation easement on the land from the Garst family with help from a $350,000 grant awarded by the Bishop-Parker Foundation.

In an easement, land remains in private hands but owners permanently sell their right to develop it. Through federal, state and local programs, easements have become a popular way to supplement traditional conservation efforts.

“Bunny Garst is selling the conservation easement to Conservation Foundation at a significant discount in honor of her late husband, Judge Claflin Garst Jr.,” Conservation Foundation spokesperson Sam Valentin said in an email.

“The easement will limit new buildings and development while allowing the family and future owners to reside on the land and continue ranching and recreational activities,” Valentin added. “Once the conservation easement is in place, the land will remain undeveloped, forever benefiting both people and nature.”

The Garsts previously donated a separate conservation easement on 14 acres of working farmland adjacent to the property, according to the Conservation Foundation. That land now belongs to the Parks family and is used for grazing and limited agriculture as allowed by the conservation easement agreement.

Conservation land to protect water quality

While the land will remain private, the Conservation Foundation says it will benefit the public by safeguarding water quality and wildlife habitat.

“By preserving this land, we are protecting the drinking water supply of the city of Bradenton and protecting animal habitat that is quickly getting paved over,” Conservation Foundation President Christine P. Johnson said.

The land is on Gap Creek, a tributary of the Braden River. In the ever-connecting network of Southwest Florida’s waterways, the Braden River flows into the Manatee River, which then flows into Tampa Bay and the Gulf of Mexico.

The property has around 25 acres of pasture, which can double as habitat for many Florida bird species that prefer grasslands.

“In its current undeveloped state, it serves as habitat for resident and migratory birds, and a natural oasis within the surrounding intensely developed residential land,” Valentin said.

The Conservation Foundation says it’s prime territory for birds like the eastern meadowlark, Bachman’s sparrow, bobolink, loggerhead shrike, northern bobwhite, grasshopper sparrow and Florida burrowing owl as well as gopher tortoises and gopher frogs.

Future land management efforts could help reintroduce those and other native species to the area, the foundation said.

The property is also home to longleaf pine trees, a species that once dominated the Southeastern U.S. and provides habitat for many threatened and endangered plants and animals.

When will land be protected?

In a news release, the Bishop-Parker Foundation said the $350,000 grant is the group’s first foray into environmental conservation.

“Ned and Patty Bishop and Mary Parker greatly valued Manatee County’s waterways and natural features,” Bishop-Parker Foundation CEO Wendy Deming said in the news release. “The environment was an integral part of why they lived here, so the foundation wants to do all it can to protect Manatee County’s shorelines and natural lands.”

The Conservation Foundation said the grant provided the final funding needed to purchase the land easement. The total price was not disclosed.

The sale is expected to be complete within a few months.