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Committee recommends conservation easement on Bailey Nature Preserve with Southwest Michigan Land Conservancy
Summary
The committee voted to recommend that the county sign a conservation easement with the Southwest Michigan Land Conservancy to protect the Bailey Nature Preserve in perpetuity, with carve-outs for limited park infrastructure.
Barry County commissioners at their July 15 Committee of the Whole meeting voted to recommend that the county sign a conservation easement on the Bailey Nature Preserve with the Southwest Michigan Land Conservancy.
Dan Patton, parks staff, described the easement as the culmination of discussions that began during earlier negotiations over ownership of the preserve. Patton said the donor family asked that the property be protected regardless of future public ownership, and the easement is intended to preserve the property’s natural state in perpetuity.
Patton said the easement restricts activities such as logging and construction of ball diamonds or organized athletic fields, but county staff and the conservancy negotiated “carve-outs” to allow limited park infrastructure. He told commissioners the easement allows up to roughly 50,000 square feet of developed area for uses tied to the county’s master plan, for example a vault toilet, parking, trails, small pavilions and docks for nonmotorized boats.
Commissioners asked whether the easement would prevent future changes if the county’s needs evolve. Patton replied that conservation easements run in perpetuity and that the county and Southwest Michigan Land Conservancy had worked to include specific allowances within the easement that would permit the county to maintain and operate the preserve as a passive-recreation park. Patton said county staff worked with the conservancy to ensure the easement aligned with the parks master plan and noted the county had previously accepted the parcel with the donor’s expectation that it be protected.
The motion — moved by Commissioner Tennyson (Toonerson in the meeting record) and supported by Commissioner Hatfield — recommended that the board of commissioners approve signing the conservation easement. The committee voted in favor and the motion carried.
Patton told the board the Southwest Michigan Land Conservancy and county parks staff will remain partners on the site and that the donor family has been kept informed and supports the easement and the carve-outs described during the meeting.
