Group conserves Valle Crucis tract
By Scott Nicholson

nicholson@wataugademocrat.com

Another piece of land in the “upper valley” of Valle Crucis is getting permanent protection, this time a hilltop overlooking a historic valley where missionary students once grew crops.

The High Country Conservancy worked with the state and a local developer to protect 32 acres on a ridge that’s near another 560 protected acres in a scenic valley on N.C. 194. Jeff Walker had planned to develop the property last year when Mike Leonard, a trustee of the Conservation Fund, drove by a road under construction. Leonard went up the road and asked about the property’s use, then suggested a conservation effort instead of development.

Jeff Walker, the developer, became convinced of the historic value of the ridge and began working with High Country Conservancy for a land purchase at a price lower than Walker could have realized from developing it. The parties agreed to settle for the appraised value of the undeveloped land.

High Country Conservancy worked with the state and secured a no-interest loan from the Conservation Trust to buy the property for about $1.2 million. The N.C. Department of Cultural Resources contributed 80 percent of the land cost and the property will be transferred to the agency for permanent protection.

High Country Conservancy is raising $250,000 to repay its contribution to the deal.

Eric Hiegl, land protection director for HCC, said the piece of land was significant not only because of the scenic valley, but because of the commitment toward long-term protection of other adjoining lands. The Valle Crucis Conference Center has preserved 232 acres and 73 acres of fields at the confluence of Dutch Creek and Clark’s Creek. The property was once farmed by people staying at the Episcopal mission school in the mid-1800s.

Leonard helped arrange the no-interest loan and has been working toward land preservation for 20 years. He also lives up the road from the protected property and has seen a pattern of preservation emerge in the entire Valle Crucis Historic District.

“As development pressures continue to drive up real estate values in this region, local land trusts are going to need more money from private individuals who want to see their communities, forests and water protected for future generations,” Leonard said in a statement.

Hiegl said major land donors like John and Faye Cooper, the Taylor and Jensen families and the Valle Crucis Conference Center show a community attitude of preserving the valley’s character and cultural history.

High Country Conservancy is raising $250,000 by the end of the year to repay its portion of the loan, and Hiegl said theoretically the loan could go into default if not repaid, leaving the ultimate fate of the land uncertain. The non-profit agency is accepting tax-deductible contributions for the loan repayment, and Hiegl said the group is currently pursuing a number of other preservation in the area.

www.highcountryconservancy.org