Osceola County is moving forward on acquiring a number of properties for its land conservation program.

The purchases of these properties would be funded using revenue from a quarter of a mill property tax approved by referendum in November 2004. Property previously bought through the program, referred to as SAVE Osceola (for Save And Value Environment), has been used mostly for passive recreation or to provide small boast access to local lakes and streams. Part of the revenue from the property tax is used for maintaining the land purchased through the program.

Properties the county wants for the conservation program because of their environmental or ecological importance include: 183 acres at Cherokee Point, at the southern end of Cherokee Road, St. Cloud; the Henry Yates property, 125 acres, north of Hickory Tree Road, St. Cloud; the Lackey property, 6 acres, north of Shingle Creek, Kissimmee; Live Oak Ranch, 160 acres, off Bullis Road, St. Cloud; the Kenneth Moore property, 41 acres, west of Kissimmee Gateway Airport; and Legacy Park, 474 acres, east of Kings Highway and in the Tohoqua DRI (development of regional impact), formerly Mariners Cove.

Legacy Park/Tohoqua

The largest property the county is considering buying is Legacy Park, which is owned by Orlando-based Neptune Road Investments, Among the company’s managers are Douglas P. Hooker, Marcus P. Hooker, Douglas R. Russell and Robert L. Secrist III, according to state corporation records. When the Tohoqua DRI was begun, the developers/owners were Newland Communities, a Delaware-based corporation, and Orlando-based Regional Development/192, the latter of which has the same management as Neptune Road Investments now has.

Tohoqua is comprised of 1,185 acres (Legacy Park included) that previously was part of a Partin family ranching operation. The Partins sold the property to the Seminole Tribe, after which the current owners bought it in 2005 for a reported $25 million.

Secrist, while at a recent Kissimmee City Commission for another matter, said Tohoqua is moving forward, with rezoning of the property in the works.

According to Land Conservation Advisory Board documents, 166 acres of the 474 acres being considered for purchase would be preserved through the DRI anyway if not purchased by the county. Also, the purchase price in July for the 474 acres was approximately $11.7 million.

Secrist last week said the county would be getting the 166 acres at “no cost,” since it was earmarked for conservation in the DRI anyway, and that he believes the property would be a good fit for the county’s SAVE program.

Additional benefits offered to the county in July by the owners as part of the deal were the creation of a municipal servicing taxing unit to assist in maintaining the conservation area, construction of certain drainage modifications needed to help maintain the conservation property and the reduction of 1,220 living units in the overall development.

At the time, several advisory board members questioned why SAVE money would be used to buy property that would be set aside anyway as green space in the development. The advisory board at the time decided it would recommend the purchase and let the County Commission sort out the details.

Impoundment feasibility study

In a related action, the St. Cloud City Council recently authorized the mayor to execute an interlocal agreement between the city and Toho Water Authority to proceed with the Tohoqua/Legacy Park Water Impoundment Feasibility Study, at a cost of $11,485. That study, also approved by the water authority, is intended to identify whether the area is suitable for a non-potable water reservoir.

Sandra Ramirez, spokeswoman for the city of St. Cloud, stated in an e-mail that the feasibility study would evaluate 230 acres of the Tohoqua DRI for use as a reservoir for reclaimed and/or stormwater storage.

The joint effort with the Toho Water Authority works toward the goal of expanding and developing alternative water supplies as mandated by the Central Florida Coordination Area and the South Florida Water Management District, Ramirez stated.

“During this process, the city and TWA have discussed partnering with Osceola County and the SAVE Osceola program. At this time, the city is awaiting the results of this evaluation. Upon receipt of these results, the city, in conjunction with TWA, may or may not elect to pursue purchase of the property,” Ramirez stated.

According to Bethzaida Garcia, spokeswoman for Osceola County, the county is giving “great consideration” to a potential joint funding partnership with the city of St. Cloud and/or Toho Water Authority, and negotiations include these considerations.

“Staff is reviewing the purchase of property, which would present a net gain of green space with the property owners over and above any development requirements, for consideration in the contract,” Garcia said. “Some properties may be donated with the purchase, which is a consideration under review. One number discussed is the 166 acres, but this will be confirmed as negotiations proceed.”

The county will use either Titan Land Company, represented by Domingo Sanchez, or Schoolfield Properties, represented by Ken Baker, both under contract with the county, to negotiate for the SAVE land purchases from a number of different owners. The county manager recently signed agreements with the two real estate firms to move the purchases forward.