Martin County eyes 3K acres for conservation

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MARTIN COUNTY — Nearly 3,000 acres here soon may be preserved as natural lands.

The county Environmental Lands Oversight Committee is sending that recommendation to the County Commission, which may consider it Aug 12.

The oversight committee, which is charged with recommending properties for purchase with designated sales-tax revenue, recommended two properties June 25.

Martin County voters in 2024 approved a half-percent sales-tax increase to buy and conserve environmentally sensitive properties. The 10-year tax is expected to generate $18.3 million annually.

“We should move heaven and earth to effectuate the Pal Mar settlement,” committee member Tom Campenni said.

An aerial view of the discharges at the St. Lucie Lock and Dam on March 12, 2024, in western Martin County. CRYSTAL VANDER WEIT/TCPALM

Pal Mar is western land that is subject to a lawsuit settlement between Martin County and real estate developer Be A Man Buy Land LLC. The two will swap parcels as part of the settlement.

Pal Mar purchase

The oversight committee recommended the county put that settlement into effect by conserving nearly 1,000 acres of the Pal Mar nature area in southwest Martin County at a total cost of $18.8 million.

The South Florida Water Management District would pay $11.5 million, and Martin County would pay $7.3 million.

Pal Mar is important because, for example, it is the headwaters of the Loxahatchee River. The northwest fork of the river is Florida’s first federally designated Wild and Scenic River and one of only two in the state, according to the Loxahatchee River District.

Pal Mar also is a wildlife corridor, containing some of the county’s highest- quality wetlands, yet it is threatened by poachers and off-road vehicles.
It is also threatened by illegal development, said committee member Merritt Matheson, co-founder of Martin County Forever, which spearheaded the effort to get the half-percent sales tax approved by voters.

“Pal Mar, in my mind, is very important to close on,” Campenni added.

Bar B Ranch development rights

An endangered red-cockaded woodpecker is seen in Jonathan Dickinson State Park on Jan. 12 in Martin County. CRYSTAL VANDER WEIT/TCPALM

The oversight committee also recommended the county spend $5 million and partner with the Florida Forever program to conserve the 1,941acre Bar B Ranch in central Martin County.

Florida Forever, which would pay $12 million, is a state program that acquires land for recreation and conservation.

Acquiring the Bar B Ranch would “protect the hydrologic connection between the St. Johns River and Everglades watershed, provide valuable wildlife habitat and preserve wildlife corridors extending from South Florida to Central Florida,” according to the Florida Department of Environmental Protection.

A purchase also would provide “an opportunity for the restoration of naturally occurring water storage that would benefit the water quality of the St. Lucie River Estuary, Indian River Lagoon, Lake Okeechobee and the Florida Everglades,” according to FDEP.

Committee members said they want to prevent developers from buying the property and building up to 95 homes on the ranch.

“It could be another Discovery,” said committee member W. Scott Turnbull, referring to the luxury-home community in Hobe Sound also known as Atlantic Fields.

“We’re buying development potential,” Campenni said.

The median price of lots in Atlantic Fields was $6 million in 2024, according to the Martin County Property Appraiser’s Office.

Next meeting

The oversight committee is to meet again Sept. 5 to consider recommending another 15-20 properties for the county to purchase.

The conservation sales tax, which went into effect Jan. 1, has generated $6.6 million through April, said John Maehl, environmental resource administrator for Martin County.

The county can borrow against future sales-tax proceeds if it needs more money than what has already been generated.

Recommendations by the committee must go before the County Commission twice before any land is purchased.

Keith Burbank is TCPalm’s watchdog reporter covering Martin County. He can be reached at keith.burbank@ tcpalm.com and at 720-288-6882.

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