FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Acres of open space saved in the heart of Tacoma

Thirteen acres of open space near Snake Lake and the Tacoma Nature Center will be preserved as open space under an agreement designed  by the Cascade Land Conservancy and described as the best possible outcome for the developer, nearby residents, park enthusiasts and everyone involved with the future of an urban jewel in the center of Tacoma.

Under the agreement, developer Joe Mayer of Jemstone LLC sold to Metro Parks Tacoma 13 acres out of the approximately 19 acres he has acquired over the years.  The land is adjacent to the Nature Center/Snake Lake area, increasing the open space and park to about 70 acres.

Mayer will develop the remaining acres as medical office buildings along South 19th Street.  The parcels along 19th Street are largely undeveloped, mostly an auto storage yard

“This project exemplifies the urgency and increasing community effort to protect and restore urban green space and wildlife habitat in Pierce County,” said Ryan Dicks, Cascade Land Conservancy Vice President for Conservation.

Dicks also said the project represents the goals of The Cascade Agenda, the 100-year conservation plan announced by the CLC and its many partners a year ago.  The plan links conservation with quality of life and a vibrant regional economy.

“Great conservation also occurs at the city level,” Dicks said.  “To have great cities and great conservation, we need to have projects like this that preserve a crucial element in the urban setting.”

At a community event recently, honors were handed out to those who helped with the successful conclusion of what had been a divisive community dispute over the property.  Among those singled out was Mayer, honored for his generous and open-minded view of the property he had carefully assembled over the years.

A Metro Parks Tacoma spokesperson said there is a certain irony in the award to Mayer: because a private developer assembled the land by spending years acquiring individual parcels, there is open land to preserve.  It would have been difficult if not impossible for a park district to do the same thing.

The path to the agreement was not easy.

Dicks recalled that when Mayer originally planned to build hundreds of apartments and houses on the parcel adjacent to the east side of the park, a conflict arose between the developer and the community.  The situation was at an impasse when CLC became involved.

Mayer’s plans had stalled when the Tacoma Planning Commission deadlocked on whether to advance Mayer's proposal to change zoning rules under the city's comprehensive plan.  Dicks, then Cascade Land Conservancy's Pierce County conservation director, saw the delay as an opportunity to preserve open space. He contacted Mayer, who was receptive to the idea of selling the property.

The CLC sponsored an application to Pierce County Conservation Futures, which was well received, scoring 10th out of 49 projects that were reviewed.   In early 2005, the Pierce County Council approved the purchase, along with 40 other projects.

Mayer and Jemstone agreed to negotiate with Conservation Futures on a sale of the land to Metro Parks.  After waiting a year for the Conservation Futures process to conclude, Mayer and Pierce County struck a deal and the property was purchased for $6 million effective May 2.

Conservation Futures bond money provided $5.405 million with Metro Parks Tacoma adding $500,000 and the City of Tacoma, $100,000.

"It was very difficult to get here, but thankfully we had the collective vision of determined neighborhood leaders and a property owner who was willing to sacrifice his initial vision of the property for the greater good of our community," said  Pierce County Councilmember Tim Farrell, who represents the area.

Mayer credited Farrell, Dicks of Cascade Land Conservancy and neighborhood activist Dee Margeson with playing key roles in bringing the two sides together.

Parks officials also praised Margeson.  “She just wasn’t going to let it (the development) happen," said one parks official.

Snake Lake is characterized as a green space by the park district and functions as a natural preserve for people and wildlife. "We will work with the community to develop a master plan update to the Tacoma Nature Center that includes the 13-acre addition," said Ryan Mello, board commissioner for Metro Parks.

The Tacoma Nature Center now consists of 70 acres of forest, field and wetland and is visited annually by 65,000 people. The 13-acre addition is east of Snake Lake and comprises the valley that is viewed from the intersection of South 19th and Proctor streets.

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