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BOOK 95 mA07 <br />ANALYSIS ) <br />eNultiple Benefits <br />• Environmental Learning Center <br />As with most of the County's proposed acquisitions, the Wabasso <br />Scrub property purchase will enhance education in the County. With <br />Wabasso Scrub, the educational function will be provided by the <br />Environmental Learning Center (ELC). <br />Located only ±2 miles from the Environmental Learning Center, the <br />Wabasso Scrub property complements the natural resources existing <br />around the ELC site. While the ELC currently has access to <br />estuarine wetlands and the Indian River Lagoon, the Wabasso Scrub <br />site contains endangered upland scrub as well as fresh water <br />wetlands. With the County's proposed improvements, the Wabasso <br />Scrub site will be accessible for the ELC. <br />As proposed, the ELC will regularly use the Wabasso Scrub property <br />for guided field trips as part of its on-going programs to educate <br />county children and adults on the benefits of protecting endangered <br />natural resources. In this way, acquisition of the property will <br />provide educational benefits to Indian River County residents. <br />• Riwanis-Hobart LWCF Conversion <br />In 1976, the Winter Beach Cemetery Association, a non-profit <br />corporation, asked the Board of County Commissioners for <br />approximately 19 acres of Riwanis-Hobart Park for cemetery <br />expansion. The Board, on August 27, 1980, formally dedicated the <br />acreage to the cemetery association. However, that dedication was <br />voided since a portion of Riwanis-Hobart Park was originally <br />acquired with federal Land and Water Conservation Funds (LWCF), and <br />the park was placed under a deed restriction under the authority of <br />the Florida Department of Natural Resources (now DEP) and the <br />National Parks Service (NPS). <br />In order to release the 19 acres -to the Winter Beach Cemetery, a <br />land conversion is required, whereby the County could deed a portion <br />of the Riwanis-Hobart Park to the cemetery association if a non - <br />recreational property is converted to recreational property of <br />equal value. Over the years since 1980, the County has <br />unsuccessfully offered conversion sites for the State's approval; <br />none of these sites were accepted as having comparable <br />characteristics. However, in coordination with State staff, it now <br />appears that the Wabasso Scrub site has characteristics that will <br />be accepted by the State and NPS as sufficient for a conversion. As <br />such, the Wabasso Scrub purchase will help resolve the Winter Beach <br />Cemetery expansion issue which has been outstanding for many years. <br />• County Road Projects Scrub Mitigation <br />Like other County acquisitions, the Wabasso Scrub property purchase <br />provides multiple benefits. In this case, as with all <br />acquisitions, staff is exploring the potential of obtaining <br />mitigation credit from the land to be purchased, restored, and <br />managed by the County. <br />With Wabasso Scrub, staff has been negotiating with the U.S. Fish <br />and Wildlife Service (FWS) to credit the land purchase, restoration <br />and management as mitigation for impacts which will occur with <br />construction of the west bound leg of the C.R. 512 roadway project <br />in Sebastian. As designed, that project will impact +2 acres of <br />xeric scrub habitat. Because the impacted area supports a <br />41 <br />JUNE 279 1995 <br />