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Carefree Truth
Issue #1047, August 14, 2022
Issue #1047, August 14, 2022
Vice Mayor John Crane introduced Vicki Preston, the CEO and president of the Desert Foothills Land Trust (DFLT), to give a presentation on DFLT's mission and preservation efforts. He disclosed that he is on the board of the Land Trust.
Ms. Preston said she would be explaining who they are, what they do, and how and why they do it. She added that she would stay around after the meeting to answer any questions.
DFLT is a very small non profit land conservation organization founded in 1991 by a group of concerned community members. They work with the community to identify priorities and provide permanent protection of landscape and view sheds, heritage, natural and cultural resources, and special features that draw residents and tourists to the foothills area. Their office is on Bloody Basin Road. They currently have a staff of 2. DFLT is 1 of 3 land trusts in Arizona. There are about 1600 nationally, and they have collectively preserved over 61 million acres, which is larger than all of the National Parks combined.
Ms. Preston said she would be explaining who they are, what they do, and how and why they do it. She added that she would stay around after the meeting to answer any questions.
DFLT is a very small non profit land conservation organization founded in 1991 by a group of concerned community members. They work with the community to identify priorities and provide permanent protection of landscape and view sheds, heritage, natural and cultural resources, and special features that draw residents and tourists to the foothills area. Their office is on Bloody Basin Road. They currently have a staff of 2. DFLT is 1 of 3 land trusts in Arizona. There are about 1600 nationally, and they have collectively preserved over 61 million acres, which is larger than all of the National Parks combined.
DFLT connects people to nature by working with communities and partners to conserve and steward sensitive lands and species in perpetuity for the survival of our fragile Sonoran desert, so a lot of thought, planning, and prioritization goes into that. They make efforts to get young people involved and enthusiastic, as they must be the future stewards of these preserved lands.
DFLT's borders are I-17 to the Tonto National Forest.
It includes Spur Cross and the Cave Creek Regional Park. The odd shaped "blobs" are DFLT's preserves. The blue "blobs" are State Trust land. State Trust land is a commodity of the state that has beneficiaries, mostly the schools, and is not protected. State Land is sold for the highest and best use to maximize funds for the beneficiaries, which means high price tags. Years ago there was a grant created to help non profit conservation organizations acquire state approved land, which paid half the price of the sensitive land to be preserved. Jewel of the Creek was the first parcel DFLT obtained through the Arizona Preserve Initiative. The program has since sunsetted, but DFLT is trying to bring it back because there are some areas of State Land that should be preserved. That is why it is included on the map.
Arizona's population is expected to double by 2050, so we could lose up to 2 million additional acres of natural area and open space. They need to focus on smart growth and protecting the areas that are really sensitive like wildlife corridors, species and their habitat. Community driven priorities, gleaned from a survey sent out 7 years ago, are:
1. Riparian habitats which are unique areas along streams, washes, and rivers
2. Wildlife and recreational corridors where connectivity is key
3. Cultural and archaeological resources including artifacts, petroglyphs, pictographs, and items of historical significance.
4. View sheds such as Continental Mountain and Elephant Butte.
5. Habitat for rare plants and animals, and natural communities
Planning includes:
1. Focusing on smart growth within their service area to ensure the wise use of their limited resources
2. Scores are given to every parcel of vacant private property over 5 acres
3. Each parcel of State Trust land is broken down into 10 acre parcels
4. Groundtruthing to ensure that the data is accurate
DFLT protects the preserved land forever by employing fee simple acquisition which conveys outright ownership, conservation easements from private land owners to the Land Trust that go with the property deed in perpetuity, and through working with community partners such as Carefree and Cave Creek to combine resources. About 200 protected acres are located in Carefree.
DFLT's borders are I-17 to the Tonto National Forest.
It includes Spur Cross and the Cave Creek Regional Park. The odd shaped "blobs" are DFLT's preserves. The blue "blobs" are State Trust land. State Trust land is a commodity of the state that has beneficiaries, mostly the schools, and is not protected. State Land is sold for the highest and best use to maximize funds for the beneficiaries, which means high price tags. Years ago there was a grant created to help non profit conservation organizations acquire state approved land, which paid half the price of the sensitive land to be preserved. Jewel of the Creek was the first parcel DFLT obtained through the Arizona Preserve Initiative. The program has since sunsetted, but DFLT is trying to bring it back because there are some areas of State Land that should be preserved. That is why it is included on the map.
Arizona's population is expected to double by 2050, so we could lose up to 2 million additional acres of natural area and open space. They need to focus on smart growth and protecting the areas that are really sensitive like wildlife corridors, species and their habitat. Community driven priorities, gleaned from a survey sent out 7 years ago, are:
1. Riparian habitats which are unique areas along streams, washes, and rivers
2. Wildlife and recreational corridors where connectivity is key
3. Cultural and archaeological resources including artifacts, petroglyphs, pictographs, and items of historical significance.
4. View sheds such as Continental Mountain and Elephant Butte.
5. Habitat for rare plants and animals, and natural communities
Planning includes:
1. Focusing on smart growth within their service area to ensure the wise use of their limited resources
2. Scores are given to every parcel of vacant private property over 5 acres
3. Each parcel of State Trust land is broken down into 10 acre parcels
4. Groundtruthing to ensure that the data is accurate
DFLT protects the preserved land forever by employing fee simple acquisition which conveys outright ownership, conservation easements from private land owners to the Land Trust that go with the property deed in perpetuity, and through working with community partners such as Carefree and Cave Creek to combine resources. About 200 protected acres are located in Carefree.
DFLT is not a park, so while some of the parcels are open to the public for recreational and educational purposes, some are strictly for use as wildlife habitat. A large focus of their mission is to connect people to nature. It is especially important to involve our youth, as they will become tomorrow's stewards. They provide opportunities like guided hikes and Desert Discovery Day, which focuses on getting kids out into the desert and off of their devices, plein air painting classes, and a speaker series focusing on conservation and educational topics. The Land Trust offers unique and different ways to get people of all ages to care about the land and find their own connection to nature.
People ask how they can help.
1. Become an ambassador by supporting conservation, as well as outdoor and recreational efforts in your community, and spread the work DFLT does through word of mouth
2. Join us for a hike, attend events, and learn with our online courses
3. Volunteer for trail clean-ups, mailing parties, booth events, office work, and leading hikes
4. DFLT gets no funding from state or federal agencies, so all funding is through donations from local businesses, organizations, and individuals
They can be contacted by emailing vpreston@dflt.org or by phone at 480-488-6131. Their website is www.dflt.org
Councilman Stephan Hatcher asked if there is any kind of state or federal funding available that the Land Trust has not tried to access. Ms. Preston replied that she's worked for land trusts in other states and there are some small grants available some places for agriculture and wetlands, but those do not exist here. This is why they are concentrating on Growing Smarter funds that could pay half the price for State Trust Land. The land trust in Tucson ticks the boxes for agriculture and constantly flowing rivers, but this Sonoran Desert area does not tick any of those boxes.
Mr. Hatcher asked if there is any way an easement could be created to connect the 28 widely scattered parcels. Ms. Preston agreed that connectivity is important, and that the Board of Directors scores parcels with that in mind, attempting to grow the areas already under their stewardship and build corridors between their fragmented parcels.
Councilwoman Kroyer agreed the the desert is weak for running water between here and northern Mexico, and wondered if there is some other way to attack this so they would see the value. Ms. Preston replied that these programs are national and our area doesn't quite fit because we have such a unique habitat. She explained that they are trying to work with the state to try to get some more money for this. They have created a lose coalition with preservation and educational organizations, and plan to begin working with the state legislature. It will take time but that is the goal.
Vice Mayor John Crane asked Ms. Preston to talk about certifications, which really enhance the credibility of the organization. Ms. Preston explained that most of the land trusts in the country operate under the umbrella organization of the Land Trust Alliance. They go to the legislatures, fight for them, and help the land trusts keep their tax benefits for conservation purposes. DFLT goes through the accreditation process every 5 years. It is an arduous process that DFLT has just gone through for the third time, but it is well worth the effort. Only 450 of all the land trusts in the country have this accreditation. The Vice Mayor noted that only 25% of the land trusts are accredited, which speaks to how well DFLT is run. If you want to stay accredited, you have to play by the accreditation rules. It's a professional organization that does things right.
Ms. Kroyer asked what the advantage is to being accredited. Ms. Preston explained that land owners making that ultimate sacrifice to gift land feel more confident when they see that seal. There have been some abuses with conservation easement valuation and the tax law with land trusts, so she feels that, down the line, the accreditation will be required for landowners and land trusts to take advantage of the conservation tax incentives.
Mr. Hatcher asked if there is a membership fee to belong to the Land Trust Alliance. Ms. Preston confirmed that there is a fee.
Vice Mayor Crane noted that there are several DFLT parcels that are open to the public. Ms. Preston said there is a Google map on their website that will show these parcels and give directions to the trail heads and parking areas. It will also show parcels that are not generally open to the public but at which guided tours take place. For instance, the cave for which Cave Creek is named allows guided tours of a maximum of 20 people 6 times a year. This is a stipulation the owner included in the conservation easement. They put out an email blast and it's first come, first served.
Vice Mayor Crane noted that the Jewel of the Creek, in Cave Creek just south of Spur Cross, is accessible to the public. He had just been there the previous Sunday morning. The creek runs occasionally, and the landscaping is lush. It gives a flavor of what the Land Trust is protecting.
The Vice Mayor asked Ms. Preston to address the approximately 40 acres near the Sky Ranch airport in Carefree. She noted that it is State Trust Land. Broken into 10 acre parcels, 2 of the parcels scored 0. The 2 eastern parcels scored 1 because there is a dry wash on the southeast corner. With their limited funds, its purchase is not a priority. They don't have the $7 million dollars that is the starting bid. Like the Town, DFLT would be bound by the appraisal. Ms. Preston had been on the property looking for resources, so she is familiar with it.
A Carefree resident asked if they would be open to buying the 40 acres of a group of individuals could raise part of the money and could help with getting a grant for the other part. Ms. Preston repeated that there are no grants. The previous one sunsetted in the late 2000s. It was a temporary state grant, and the McDowells in the City of Scottsdale got the last of it. She was told at the last meeting she had with the Land Commissioner that the focus right now is getting the money for the schools, which are the beneficiaries of that parcel. They were told that the State Land Trust is not interested in bringing that grant program back right now.
The Carefree resident asked if DFLT would be interested in purchasing that parcel. Ms. Preston explained that purchasing land is a Board decision, not hers. There was a Board meeting scheduled for the following week. The resident noted that there are quite a few people who are interested in that land. She asked that the scores be explained again. Ms. Preston explained that it is not riparian habitat, there are no running rivers, and the only wildlife corridor was the dry wash in the far corner. There were no cultural or archaeological resources. There was a view corridor to Black Mountain, which gave it a slight bump in the score. There were no endangered species. The parcel is quite flat and the only point this parcel received was for the dry wash in the far corner.
Ms. Preston thanked the Council for the opportunity to make her presentation on behalf of DFLT, and repeated that she would stay around after the meeting to answer any further questions.
https://vimeo.com/738832117
Lyn Hitchon
Prepared by Carefree Truth
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