A mission to conserve:

Ridge top easement

in Valle Crucis

will preserve land

from development
By Scott Nicholson
nicholson@wataugademocrat.com

The High Country Conservancy commemorated the completion of a key ridge-top easement in Valle Crucis Monday.

The 32-acre Mission Ridge project, overlooking a historic valley in the community, was already on the drawing board for roads and home sites when the developer began looking at the property not just down from the home sites and their views of the valley, but up from the valley floor to the impact the development would have on the scenery.

HCC mustered both national and local resources to complete a $1.1 million land purchase, and the developer was an active participant in making the easement work.

“Some land conservation projects are straightforward, and some land conservation projects require the entire community,” HCC executive director Teresa Buckwalter said. “Luckily, this was in Valle Crucis where people already care about it.”

The National Heritage Trust Fund provided 80 percent of the funding through a conservation fund. HCC then pursued 20 percent matching funds from the community.

“It’s prominent and it fits in with our larger goal,” Buckwalter said, noting that 600 acres has already been preserved in the area, mostly through the Valle Crucis Conference Center as well as a couple of other private land donations and easements.

Landowner Jeff Walker backed a $75,000 fundraising effort for 2007 in addition to reviewing his long-term goals for the property he’d purchased in 2005. “This was an important thing for me,” Walker said, adding the project fit his ideological beliefs and people’s duty to improve lives. He compared real estate development to an artist’s canvas, imbuing it with a “human value” beyond simple economics.

Walker had originally sought to develop seven homes of around 5,000-square feet each. He met with Mike Leonard, a board member of the National Heritage Trust Fund, and discussed plans and his goal for the project, and realized the development would require steep road cuts and be visible from N.C. 194, which is a designated scenic byway.

He compared his development to a “growing for the community,” both through adding homes and bringing money to employees and local businesses.

He balanced that with the area’s beauty and how it had attracted him in the first place when he moved there from Chicago eight years ago. He learned that though he would receive less money through selling a conservation easement instead of developing the property, he found the tax incentives could be an added benefit.

Walker said the deal was a precedent for HCC because the land was already planned for development when the conservation process began. “It was a difficult decision for me but it was the right decision,” he said.
“The High Country Conservancy rose to the challenge.”

Leonard said he worked in conservation all over the Southeast and said the state was fortunate to have land and water protection agencies in place. The funds were essential in securing existing easements in Valle Crucis. He said landowners had contributed significant portions of the value of their land to accommodate the land’s permanent protection.

Speaking of his conservation experiences, Leonard added that adversarial positions were not productive, but instead an understanding of each party’s needs would help both meet their goals.

Attorney Charles Clement, who has been on the National Heritage Trust Fund board for 12 years, called Leonard a “gem,” and said he had not only brought energy to Valle Crucis where he has a home, but to his work protecting land all over the state.

The HCC gave Mast General Store a framed photograph of Mission Ridge and the valley as thanks for being a key supporter of the project.

The HCC is also getting a new executive director. Carol Coulter will begin her duties in February, with Buckwalter serving as land protection specialist.