The North Florida Land Trust has made a deal to buy a chain of Intracoastal Waterway islands north of Jacksonville’s Butler Boulevard that had been marketed for luxury housing sites.
The nonprofit said this week that it has a year to raise $350,000 and finalize its purchase of 245 acres of inaccessible land from The Small Group LLC.
“The reality is that development of the property would be extremely challenging, and the owner ultimately felt that the property should be protected for its wildlife and recreational values,” Land Trust President Jim McCarthy said in an announcement about the deal.
No roads reach the nine islands and adjacent marshes, but they had been offered for sale for $3.9 million as luxury getaway sites with breathtaking beauty. The Small Group bought the land for $67,500 last year.
Land Trust must raise $350K to buy, preserve Intracoastal Waterway’s ‘Small Islands”
North Florida Land Trust needs to raise the funds in 1 year to purchase the 245 acres
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North Florida Land Trust is working to preserve 245 acres in the Intracoastal Waterway known as the Small Islands. (Courtesy of North Florida Land Trust)
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – North Florida Land Trust has reached an agreement to purchase 245 acres located in the Intracoastal Waterway at J. Turner Butler Boulevard in Jacksonville Beach, known widely as the Small Islands.
The owner, the Small Group, LLC, had been marketing the property for $3.9 million to build extravagant houses on the nine small wet flatwood islands in the saltmarsh just north of JTB.