Conservation Collier Buys Three Marco Lots

Human remains, gopher tortoises, absconded funds — Conservation Collier has been active during its 20th anniversary.

Soon after taking most of the money that had accrued in Conservation Collier trust funds during a meeting that continued past midnight this fall, Collier County Commissioners approved the largest purchase of conservation land yet on Marco Island this October. The recent purchases double the island’s modest conservation land to now total approximately six acres. 

The extent of public use of the recently purchased three acres is yet to be determined with ideas including a park bench, a perimeter path and possibly a floating dock for kayak visits. 

“This is a very important step to restore some trust in their [the Collier County Commission’s] support of Conservation Collier,” said Marco Island City Councilman Rich Blonna. 

As land purchases are finalized, it may take another couple of months to create and implement a maintenance plan for the recently purchased properties, county officials said.

“That’s why I wanted to see if the city might offer to help with maintenance to get things moving more quickly,” said Blonna. “I don’t expect the city manager to like that idea, but he listened. It’s worth trying,” he added. 

Blonna had once hoped Marco Island would have its own land conservation program but had no support on the council. Instead, he worked for a year on reviewing as many as 15 of the 30 possible properties on Marco Island to purchase through Conservation Collier. From that list of approximately 30 properties reviewed by the Collier Conservation Land Acquisition Committee, of which Blonna is a volunteer member, the Commission eventually landed on approval of the three Marco Island properties. 

As Blonna is often the sole councilman consistently voting for city land conservation, Collier County Commissioner Burt Saunders is the only commissioner on the county level who voted against taking Conservation Collier’s money away this year, which is the program’s 20th anniversary.

Taking money that had been accrued by voter referendum specifically for conservation was controversial.

Retired attorney Carson McEachern advised the Commission that taking Conservation Collier trust money and using it toward anything other than that voter-approved purpose should not be done without approval by the Circuit Court.

Critics of taking the money also include the League of Women Voters of Collier County and Audubon of the Western Everglades, among others. 

Collier County attorney Jeff Klatzkow maintains that reallocating the Conservation Collier trust funds to the general fund is a legal option following the Commission’s creation and approval of an ordinance to do so.

Voters had approved a .25 mil ad valorem tax to fund Conservation Collier in 2020, just as voters had done in two prior referendums. If a property’s assessed value is $400,000, for example, about $100 of the property tax bill was going toward purchasing and maintaining Conservation Collier lands. Now, those taxes are still paid, but the Commission is spending it on other general expenses instead. 

Since its inception in 2003, Conservation Collier has acquired 4,700 acres — six acres of which are on Marco Island. The first and only other Conservation Collier purchase on Marco Island was in 2003 of Otter Mound, which is less than three acres and had a home on it that had burned down. The structures remaining there are shell walls and a wooden outhouse. Conservation Collier installed and maintained a walking path through a portion of the property. The shells were collected by the Calusa and rearranged by owners over the years. 

Statistically, the island’s conservation is small compared with its development. Marco Island is 15,790 acres total and now six of those acres are preserved. 

Marco Island’s Recent Conservation Collier Purchases 

The three Conservation Collier purchases on Marco Island include adjoining vacant lots near Publix on South Barfield with short, black barrier fencing built around them to keep the tortoises safely on the property and away from the traffic. On the lot closest to Publix is a bald eagle nest high in a tree that is visible from the multi-use path. 

The South Barfield purchase includes four lots: 181, 191, 201 and 221 South Barfield. They total 2.13 acres bought at a cost of $3.14 million from Annecy Marco LLC.

The other two properties purchased include 660 Inlet Drive, a half-acre lot purchased from Diane G. Chestnut at a cost of $627,500 and 1125 Caxambas Drive, a half-acre lot purchased from South Terra Corp at a cost of $1.62 million.

The Caxambas Drive lot sits across from what was once a historic hotel with Indian Hill, Florida’s highest natural elevation at 51 feet, right around the corner. It is situated next to a lot where numerous human remains had been found. The waterfront property is home to dozens of gopher tortoises. 

Blonna, who enjoys kayaking, thought it could have some recreational usage by having a path around the perimeter of the property, perhaps a place to sit near the water’s edge and a place for kayakers to tie up and stop for a break, he said. Hypothetically, this type of non-motorized public use could be consistent with historical usage of the property. 

He had hoped connection to the next lot would be possible because it has archaeological and historical significance, he said.

Rejected Lots: Human Remains and Price Conflicts

The 30 properties reviewed for Conservation Collier this year were whittled down to three purchases through a number of processes. Criteria include how accessible the land is; how much it connects to other conservation land; interest of the current owner in selling and conserving; wildlife habitat considerations, including exotic, endangered and protected species onsite, as well as several other factors that lead to ranking the priority of a property for purchase by the county program. For a number of reasons, including owners’ lack of interest in selling, the list got whittled down. There were at least two properties on the list that remained of particular interest to conservationists. 

The lot next to 1125 Caxambas Dr. was rejected by Commissioners due to human remains being found there. This lot, 1929 Indian Hill Street, is owned by Agua Colina LLC, which was willing to sell the .63 acres for $1.12 million — not much more than they purchased it for.

“It’s virtually unbuildable and should continue to stay preserved on its own,” said Collier County Commissioner Rick LoCastro, of District One, which includes Marco Island.

However, properties with human remains continue to be developed throughout Florida, including at 444 Brickell Street in Miami and Suni Sands in Jupiter, Florida.

“It’s not really preserved,” said Robert Rosa, president of the American Indian Movement of Florida, a nonprofit seeking recognition of Indian treaties and protection of indigenous people. “It doesn’t save it just because it’s a burial. Anybody can buy a property and build upon it,” said Rosa. 

Another property rejected for purchase by the Commission was on Inlet Road. The Commission denied the purchase when the property owner, a Wisconsin-based investment company, Elm Grove, wanted to be paid the appraised value of $429,000, which had increased by approximately $10,000 from about six months prior. 

The City of Marco Island offered to bridge the gap and pay the $10,000 difference to preserve the particularly high-elevation land that provides hurricane protection, including to burrowing owls and more than 50 gopher tortoises that are on the federal Endangered and Threatened Species list. The County declined to take the City up on the offer.

This article is the first in a series of articles reviewing the past, present and future of Conservation Collier.