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PRESS RELEASE
Whidbey Camano Land Trust Contact: Patricia Powell, Executive Director, 360-222-3310
Seattle Pacific University Contact: Darrell Hines, Associate Vice President for Business & Facility Services.
A National Treasure – Saved!
Whidbey Island, WA – Today, the rare golden paintbrush, a showy native plant on the verge of extinction, got a decent shot at recovery. Over two-thirds of a mile of shoreline and one of the last pieces of pristine coastal bluff on Whidbey Island will now go undeveloped. Scenic vistas will remain and delicate coastal prairie flowers such as golden paintbrush, camas and chocolate lilies will be preserved. This, as the Whidbey Camano Land Trust and the Washington Department of Natural Resources overcame the last of many obstacles in the campaign to save an extraordinary piece of waterfront land in Ebey’s Landing National Historical Reserve on Whidbey Island. The land trust is calling the site the Naas Natural Area Preserve.
Two and a half years, 126 private donors, three government grants, hours of negotiations with multiple parties and removal of 262,000 pounds of lead-contaminated soil later, the Whidbey Camano Land Trust, along with its partners, cleared its last hurdle and became the new owner of a very important and dramatic piece of coastal bluff. Golden paintbrush once grew in prairies as far south as Oregon's Willamette Valley and as far north as Vancouver Island, B.C. Now, only two sites remain in B.C. and nine sites in Washington State, including five on the few remnant coastal grasslands on Whidbey Island. The remaining populations are mostly confined to properties less than one acre in size. The new Naas Preserve, however, contains 25 acres of historic prairie soils, making it one of the best hopes for recovery and one of the three largest habitat areas for the endangered plant.
Unfortunately, it was also one of the most desirable building parcels on the island, legally divided into five lots for residential development. The seller, Seattle Pacific University (SPU) was a strong partner “Since the beginning of our ownership of Camp Casey, we have worked hard to be good citizens of Whidbey Island and good neighbors and stewards of this property,” said SPU President Philip Eaton. “The sale is a good solution for the public, citizens on Whidbey and the University.”
The Whidbey Camano Land Trust began negotiations with SPU in 2003 and secured an option to buy the property in 2004. By 2005, in partnership with the Washington Department of Natural Resources, three very competitive government grants had been awarded for protection of this property., . Most of the funding for purchase came from the US Fish and Wildlife Service’s Recovery Lands Acquisition program. The federal grants required a $1.58 million match – a steep fundraising goal for a local non profit. However, the Land Trust is no stranger to tough land deals. By closing today, the group had raised all it needed for acquisition and was within $17,000 of meeting its total fundraising goal which includes funds for recovery and stewardship.
A couple of months ago, nothing was a certainty. While the original fundraising goal was formidable, no one anticipated the final hurdle. Even veteran acquisition specialist, Land Trust director Patricia Powell, was shaken when, at the last minute, she received the news that the cost to remove the hazardous materials on site had escalated sharply. “This has been one of the most taxing deals I’ve ever been part of. We’ve overcome so many challenges. When we were just a few weeks from the original closing date, I got a call that the hazardous materials removal costs had more than doubled. I have to admit I wondered at that moment if we could do it.”
Efforts redoubled and the group got a boost last month when the Trust for Public Land (TPL) generously stepped forward and gave a $25,000 gift to assist in completing the Naas Preserve project. In making the gift, Regional Director Roger Hoesterey noted that “TPL has long been committed to protecting key lands on Whidbey Island and within the Ebey’s Landing Reserve. We are delighted to continue our partnership by contributing to the Naas Preserve project.” Then, dedicated US Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) employees worked to locate additional funds to assist the Land Trust with clean-up costs, resulting in an additional grant of $32,000.
Once under new ownership, management of the property will provide great potential for restoring the golden paintbrush to a viable population size and its former health and vigor. “Although we’ll own the land, the partnership of many made permanent protection possible,” Powell noted. “Our attention now turns to restoring the native prairie in the Naas Preserve. We’ll do this in partnership with our members, volunteers, The National Park Service, DNR, The Nature Conservancy and USFWS, among others.”
The Washington Department of Natural Resources (DNR) will hold a conservation easement on the property, insuring that the pristine coastal bluff will go forever undeveloped. “This particular piece of land is key in the long-term protection and recovery of golden paintbrush,” said Doug Sutherland, Commissioner of Public Lands. “DNR’s Natural Heritage and Natural Areas Programs have been managing for golden paintbrush for two decades, and we see this partnership as a continuation of our commitment to working together to save the state’s threatened species.” This will be one of 50 Natural Area Preserves in Washington, all of which undergo a rigorous screening process, and DNR will guide management of the site.
Under its new ownership, the site will be accessible for educational and scientific uses. Research, with an emphasis on information needed for recovery of golden paintbrush, will be encouraged. Management will focus on restoration of the site, increasing population numbers to a stable level, and reintroducing plants (both paintbrush and other coastal prairie species) into suitable habitat on the site. The site has been used for general environmental education purposes, and will remain open for such use as long as it does not negatively impact restoration efforts. The Whidbey Camano Land Trust protects the natural habitats and rural lands on Whidbey and Camano Islands in partnership with landowners and the broader community.
How to Help
Interested in donating money to help in the restoration and permanent stewardship of this site? Tax-deductible contributions can be sent to “Naas Preserve”, Whidbey Camano Land Trust, 765 Wonn Road, Barn C-201, Greenbank, WA 98253 or accepted securely on-line at www.wclt.org. All funds will be restricted for use at the Naas Natural Area Preserve and used to steward and restore the natural features of this property.
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