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SUMMARY Staff recommends that the Board of County Commissioners purchase the Wabasso Scrub property with land acquisition bond funds. The proposed purchase contract (already executed by the seller) is summarized as follows: Purchaser: Indian River County Board of County Commissioners / Florida Communities Trust (Indian River County will hold title) Seller: Helen E. Bahl and Jane E. Collin Cost Share: Florida Communities Trust (50%) Total Price: $1,150,000 (±$10,360 per acre value) Other Costs: +$28,000 (appraisals, survey upgrade, environ. audit, title insurance, management plan) Acreage: +111 Acres Principal Conditions: Closing subject to County Commission and FCT Governing Body approval of purchase contract and project plan, including management plan. • Removal of trash and debris by land owner in cooperation with Indian River County required prior to closing. The Land Acquisition Advisory Committee (LAAC) considered this proposed acquisition at a special meeting on June 22, 1995. Since this staff report was prepared prior to the LAAC meeting, the Committee's action could not be reported in this staff report. Staff, however, will report LAAC's recommendation to the Board at the June 27, 1995 Board meeting. DESCRIPTION AND CONDITIONS The subject Wabasso Scrub property has been on the LAAC site list since 1993, identified for acquisition under the County's $26 million environmental lands acquisition bond program. The property wac listed as a replacement of a previous LAAC site known as "Winter Beach Scrub", due to the land owners' willingness to sell only one of the two project sites. The Wabasso Scrub site has superior scrub jay habitat and was therefore selected for the LAAC site list in lieu of the Winter Beach Scrub. Located on the northwest corner of 58th Avenue (Kings Highway) and C.R. 510, the subject property is approximately 111 acres in size, consisting of approximately 54 acres of sand pine scrub, 42 acres of pine flatwoods, and 15 acres of fresh water wetlands. Approximately 34 acres of the property's scrub have been identified by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) as occupied territory of the federally threatened Florida scrub jay. FWS considers this property to be one of the "core" scrub jay territories in the county critical to the long term survival of the county's scrub jay population. Moreover, the site -contains mature sand pine scrub that, if properly managed, could expand the area of scrub jay habitat on the property. Other rare listed species documented or expected to occur on site include the gopher tortoise, eastern indigo snake, and gopher frog. Overall, the scrub native plant community is recognized as endangered regionally and statewide. 38 JUNE 279 1995�'��5 �Ac� SQ