A family that owns 649 acres around Wilson Creek, a nationally known haven for paddlers and trout fishermen in Caldwell County that developers also crave, has agreed to sell it to the public.
Foothills Conservancy of North Carolina on Monday announced a purchase contract that will protect nearly four miles of the creek, one of only four National Wild and Scenic rivers in North Carolina.
Seven months ago, a Florida developer had planned to build 225 houses on the tract. Creek lovers responded with outrage.
Foothills, a land trust based in Morganton, and the N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission have until the end of 2009 to buy the tract for $7 million. They have applied for grants from two state trust funds.
Assuming the sale goes through, private land around the clear, frothing mountain creek will become state gamelands officially open to the public.
"It's sort of a sacred place," said Caldwell County commissioner Ron Beane, who helped lead efforts to win the 2000 Wild and Scenic designation. "That's how locals here think of it, because people have used it for so many years as a getaway."
For generations, local people have sought relief from summer heat in the creek's icy water. Following the national designation, the county opened a visitors' center that draws more than 10,000 people a year.
As builders' interest in the 23-mile creek corridor intensified, Caldwell County enacted a development moratorium that expires in June. A citizens' group will recommend how best to protect its waters, which tumble from Grandfather Mountain to the Johns River.
Herbert Lutz, managing partner of the family trust that agreed to the sale, said three developers had bid on the property. The Florida-based Archer Group dropped plans to build 225 houses along 4.7 miles of the creek when its purchase option with the family expired last summer.
Lutz said his family never wanted to see the watershed "ravaged again," as it had been by turn-of-the-century loggers and a 1940 flood.
"Our main concern was, we wanted the public to enjoy it," he said from his Chester County, S.C., home. "That group of people wouldn't have been able to afford the houses they were going to put up there."
The family will keep 10 acres, he said.
The Lutzes last fall gave the Foothills Conservancy and Wildlife Commission through January to evaluate the tract and make an offer, said Susie Hamrick Jones, the conservancy's executive director.
An evaluation of the Wilson Creek corridor, completed last year by Foothills' Andrew Kota, rated the Lutz property highly as a candidate for protection. Its scenic beauty, creek frontage and proximity to Pisgah National Forest, along with development pressure, made it a top target, Kota said.
Foothills has applied to the state Clean Water Management Trust Fund for $4.7 million toward the purchase price. The trust fund has made no decisions, but "we feel like we have a very strong application," Jones said.
The wildlife commission has asked for $2.2 million from the state Natural Heritage Trust Fund. It will seek public input, including hearings, on how to manage the tract.
The purchase price, $10,788 an acre, is based on appraisals by the State Property Office. Lutz said developers' recent interest had been "intense enough to really get the price up on it."
The conservancy said it will continue to pursue protection agreements with other private landowners in the creek corridor.
Posted by Lori Kincaid on March 19, 2008 at 6:11 AM
WhoooHoooo! Thanks for posting the good news, Richard!
Discussion
4 repliesA family that owns 649 acres around Wilson Creek, a nationally known haven for paddlers and trout fishermen in Caldwell County that developers also crave, has agreed to sell it to the public.
Foothills Conservancy of North Carolina on Monday announced a purchase contract that will protect nearly four miles of the creek, one of only four National Wild and Scenic rivers in North Carolina.
Seven months ago, a Florida developer had planned to build 225 houses on the tract. Creek lovers responded with outrage.
Foothills, a land trust based in Morganton, and the N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission have until the end of 2009 to buy the tract for $7 million. They have applied for grants from two state trust funds.
Assuming the sale goes through, private land around the clear, frothing mountain creek will become state gamelands officially open to the public.
"It's sort of a sacred place," said Caldwell County commissioner Ron Beane, who helped lead efforts to win the 2000 Wild and Scenic designation. "That's how locals here think of it, because people have used it for so many years as a getaway."
For generations, local people have sought relief from summer heat in the creek's icy water. Following the national designation, the county opened a visitors' center that draws more than 10,000 people a year.
As builders' interest in the 23-mile creek corridor intensified, Caldwell County enacted a development moratorium that expires in June. A citizens' group will recommend how best to protect its waters, which tumble from Grandfather Mountain to the Johns River.
Herbert Lutz, managing partner of the family trust that agreed to the sale, said three developers had bid on the property. The Florida-based Archer Group dropped plans to build 225 houses along 4.7 miles of the creek when its purchase option with the family expired last summer.
Lutz said his family never wanted to see the watershed "ravaged again," as it had been by turn-of-the-century loggers and a 1940 flood.
"Our main concern was, we wanted the public to enjoy it," he said from his Chester County, S.C., home. "That group of people wouldn't have been able to afford the houses they were going to put up there."
The family will keep 10 acres, he said.
The Lutzes last fall gave the Foothills Conservancy and Wildlife Commission through January to evaluate the tract and make an offer, said Susie Hamrick Jones, the conservancy's executive director.
An evaluation of the Wilson Creek corridor, completed last year by Foothills' Andrew Kota, rated the Lutz property highly as a candidate for protection. Its scenic beauty, creek frontage and proximity to Pisgah National Forest, along with development pressure, made it a top target, Kota said.
Foothills has applied to the state Clean Water Management Trust Fund for $4.7 million toward the purchase price. The trust fund has made no decisions, but "we feel like we have a very strong application," Jones said.
The wildlife commission has asked for $2.2 million from the state Natural Heritage Trust Fund. It will seek public input, including hearings, on how to manage the tract.
The purchase price, $10,788 an acre, is based on appraisals by the State Property Office. Lutz said developers' recent interest had been "intense enough to really get the price up on it."
The conservancy said it will continue to pursue protection agreements with other private landowners in the creek corridor.
Lori