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Land preservation program runs low on cash
Deals made during the real estate boom are eating up the available funds, just as bargains hit the market.
Associated Press
Published August 20, 2007
TALLAHASSEE - Just as more people are willing to make deals to sell beaches, forests and sensitive wildlife habitats to the state to preserve them from development, the state has run low on money to buy them.
"Two or three years ago, it was hard to negotiate a good deal because the market was moving so fast," said Keith Fountain, who directs land acquisition for The Nature Conservancy in Florida. "Now there are a lot of landowners who want to sell their property. But the state's wallet is empty."
The Legislature's Florida Forever program was drained during the real estate boom. Most of the funding for its land acquisition efforts is already committed to land purchases, though it's supposed to last through 2010.
Gov. Charlie Crist proposed adding $100-million for land acquisition, but lawmakers rejected the plan. It is unclear if Crist will continue to pursue the issue as the Legislature struggles with budget cuts in a special session next month.
Florida Forever gets about $300-million a year from the proceeds of taxes of real estate transactions and other sources. Most of the money is divided among the state's five water management districts, the Division of State Lands and the Department of Community Affairs.
The state has used the money to buy about 589,000 acres of land for conservation.
The cash crunch has already prompted officials to back away from an effort to buy 1,800 acres linking the Ocala National Forest to habitat near the Wekiva River. The state also chose to spend $7.3-million to buy the development rights on an Osceola County ranch instead of $10-million to buy the property.
"All the details had been negotiated, and we were going to sign papers in the first week of January," ranch owner William Broussard said. "Then I'm told there's no money."
[Last modified August 19, 2007, 23:46:19]
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