
Alachua County settled on the purchase of 75.77 acres on Friday for $749,030 from the Carr and McNab families, representing the first phase of a planned conservation corridor.
Purchased with Wild Space Public Place funds, the land is located southwest of Micanopy, and an Alachua County press release said it’s a critical spot to connect Barr Hammock Preserve with Price’s Scrub State Park in Marion County.
Alachua County has now purchased 32,581 acres for protection since 2000 when the Alachua County Forever program began.
On Tuesday, the Alachua County Board of County Commissioners will consider two more land purchases. The first purchase requests $524,040 for the purchase of land near the Santa Fe River. The 160 acres will cost $388,800 plus a boundary survey, attorney’s fees, signs and due diligence.
The second purchase requests $479,929 for 103 acres. The actual land will cost $3,500 per acre, $361,270, plus the associated fees.
$749,030 is a nice chunk of taxpayer change. Too bad that the land couldn’t just be donated.