State agrees to purchase and preserve entire Creek Ranch property in Northeast Polk

A crucial segment of the Florida Wildlife Corridor is on the verge of being spared from potential development.

The owners of Creek Ranch in northeast Polk County have reached an agreement with state officials to sell the 1,342-acre property for conservation through the Florida Forever program. Bob Adams, a co-owner of the parcel on the west side of Lake Hatchineha, confirmed the deal to The Ledger.

Florida Forever is a state-funded program created in 2001 as a successor to previous land-conservation initiatives. Overseen by the Florida Department of Environmental Protection, the program identifies properties with ecological value for potential purchase through a dedicated funding program.

The state has purchased more than 900,000 acres for conservation through the program.

The deal must be approved by the Florida Cabinet at its March 26 meeting. The cabinet consists of Gov. Ron DeSantis, Commissioner of Agriculture Wilton Simpson, Attorney General Ashley Moody and Chief Financial Officer Jimmy Patronis.

Dean Saunders, the Lakeland-based broker who helped negotiate the deal, declined to say how much the state will pay for the land.

“It’s a beautiful property, and I’m very proud to be involved in making sure it is conserved and not developed,” Saunders said.

Adams and his business partner, Reggie Baxter, had taken steps toward developing the western portion of the property. The Polk County Commission in September approved a proposed land-use change to allow construction of 1,876 homes, plus retail space, on roughly 600 acres, despite angry opposition from some residents of the Lake Hatchineha Road area.

The development plan would have set aside 587 acres for conservation.

Polk County Public Schools had also considered buying a 100-acre section of the property to construct a high school.

'Would have been a tragedy'

Marian Ryan of Winter Haven, a longtime leader of the Sierra Club Ancient Islands Group, exulted at the news that Creek Ranch likely will be preserved. The conservation organization had opposed the planned development.

“It is really a key parcel in a wide wildlife corridor coming down from the Reedy Creek area, down to Lake Kissimmee and Lake Walk-In-Water (Weohyakapka) there, and the development of that property would have been a tragedy for many reasons,” Ryan said. “I'm just glad the owners decided to change their minds about moving forward with the development. Because you can't do it without willing sellers.”

The Creek Ranch property lies just north of Allen David Broussard Catfish Creek Preserve State Park, which covers more than 8,000 acres. It is surrounded by other protected tracts, including the Nature Conservancy’s Disney Wilderness Preserve to the northeast and Kissimmee Chain of Lakes Wildlife Management Area to the southeast.

While its location is the crucial element, Ryan said Creek Ranch also holds ecological value for its variety of habitats. The tract contains about 30 acres of scrub and has a large section of wetlands in its center.

“I think it's wonderful that the state has stepped up to buy this property in Polk County, because protecting that wildlife corridor is of statewide significance,” Ryan said.

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Polk County had considered purchasing the property for its Environmental Lands Program. In November, the Conservation Land Acquisition Selection Advisory Committee ranked Creek Ranch first among five parcels recommended for consideration. The committee’s Technical Assistance Group conducted field trips and reported the presence of such threatened or protected species as fox squirrels, sand skinks and gopher tortoises.

Adams said that bears and panthers have been detected on the property.

The Florida Wildlife Corridor concept, first promoted by conservationists and later embraced by state legislators, addresses the need to preserve continuous chunks of undeveloped land so that large mammals, such as Florida black bears and Florida panthers, will have sufficient space to roam. One section of the corridor extends from Osceola County across Northeast Polk, the area containing Creek Ranch.

'A phenomenal win-win'

Adams credited Saunders with raising the prospect of a sale to the state.

“We started the process to entitle the west end for residential lots, and somehow or other in a conversation I had with Dean about a year ago, he said, ‘You should let me take a look at that. That may have a lot of potential under the Florida Forever program,’” Adams said.

Saunders said the tract is an ideal example of land that should be conserved through Florida Forever.

“I just think a lot of people will be very supportive of the acquisition, knowing that won't be developed,” said Saunders, managing director and senior adviser with SVN/Saunders Ralston Dantzler Real Estate in Lakeland. “We’re getting 1,342 acres connecting other wildlife areas on a lake, protecting the wildlife corridor. So that's a phenomenal win-win all the way around. I’m excited to be part of it.”

Before the state purchases land under Florida Forever, one department must volunteer to serve as the managing agency for it. Saunders said the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission offered to take that role and submitted a roughly 70-page document outlining its plans.

With the FWC overseeing the tract, it would likely become a wildlife management area, as opposed to a state park. Wildlife management areas are open to the public and allow hunting during specified seasons.

Gary White can be reached at gary.white@theledger.com or 863-802-7518. Follow on X @garywhite13.

This article originally appeared on The Ledger: Polk property could be protected through Florida Forever program