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Move Afoot To Buy Springs

The desire to make the property surrounding the Three Sisters Springs in Crystal River publicly owned goes back to the 1970s, but it has never happened. A city advisory board is suggesting one more try.

The value of that prime 60 undeveloped acres in the city has obviously gone up over the years, and efforts have never been successful in putting together the necessary funding. The current owners, who bought it with the intention of developing upscale single- and multiple-family housing, say they will consider offers to buy it, though they have begun the preliminaries to develop it.

Harry "Hal" Flowers of Tampa and two business partners bought the Three Sisters property in March 2005 from the late Harvey Goodman for $10.5 million.

Sensing the time might now be right because of conditions in the current building and real estate markets, a loose coalition of groups and individuals long interested in public ownership is scrambling to put a plan together that might make a purchase possible. Supporters fear it may be a limited window of opportunity, though.

On Jan. 15, some of these and some representatives from a number of agencies got together with the city of Crystal River to discuss the feasibility of the idea. At that meeting, the Florida Communities Trust (FTC), which had been responding to various requests about what it would take to get FCT funding to accomplish public ownership, said that a grant application for its funding would have to come from either the city or the county.

The agency, part of the state Department of Community Affairs, has been getting about $66 million each year to help a limited amount of such purchases, and it can fund up to $6.6 million for a project.

The FTC said the city would have certain advantages as a sponsor in terms of favorable grant award consideration because of its small size, and while $6.6 million would not be enough for Three Sisters, there is some precedent for phased purchases - though such a grant wouldn't come with any guarantees of subsequent grants.

To score the most points in the competitive application, the city would have to pledge 30 percent of the purchase price, but it would partner with the county and private groups to come up with that.

The city of Crystal River's Waterfront Advisory Board is very much in favor of a purchase. An initial draft of a letter the board is submitting to the council, points out a number of environmental and economic benefits, including:

• Cooperative efforts with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in protection of the manatee and its habitat.
• Creation of educational and passive recreational improvements like trails or structures to observe manatee and nature around the springs.
• Cooperative efforts with the regional water district for wetland recreation to aid in the filtration of stormwater into Kings Bay.
• Avoidance of the inevitable additional bay pollution from 300 residences on the tract.
• Promotion of ecotourism which would offset lost taxes.
• Creation of a signature attraction for the city.

The waterfront board wants to submit the letter to the county commission, as well as the council, saying it feels the acquisition would be extremely beneficial for the whole community and urging them both to pass a resolution pledging full support for purchase of the tract and to provide as much aid as possible, including funding.

The advisory board will meet briefly Tuesday and was expected to approve the letter to the council. The city council meets Wednesday night, and the letter and issue are on its agenda. The council would have to approve the letter to go to the county commission.

The agenda item for Wednesday is specifically whether or not the council should direct city staff to initiate action to serve as the lead grant applicant for FCT funding to go toward buying the Three Sisters Springs property. If the city was to do so, it would have to move quickly as the grant applications are due in May for the upcoming grant cycle.

City Manager Andy Houston said Friday he is not recommending the council should or should not do so, but he will point out what staff sees as the considerations and the possible pluses and minuses in the situation.

An obvious consideration, he said, is the city's limited resources and staff in a time when it is trying to retrench, trying to accomplish projects through its Community Redevelopment Area and is taking about a marina.

While it been pointed out the property holds much opportunity if it could be acquired - some have proposed, for example, private, state and federal agencies building such things on the property as an education center and a manatee observation tower - Houston said it would also hold much responsibility, such as the management and operation of such a facility.

And while it could have the kind of potential that is realized for the city of Inverness in the city/county regional park at Whispering Pines, it could also require resources that don't exist, he said.

There is also a question of offsetting the lost taxes. Houston said some believe increased ecotourism would offset losses and the owners could never develop the property, and so increased taxes are really a dream anyway, but offsetting any taxes is now an unanswered question.

And then there is the question of protecting the springs themselves. While some say joint or partitioned ownership, or leasing of the property to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, or example, could solve that problem, the agency has seen significant cutbacks in its personnel and may be struggling to provide the kind of enforcement it wants to give now.

The city would also be responsible for developing and implementing a management plan for the tract and would have to make some changes in its comprehensive growth management plan.

So, he said, even if the money could be raised with taxing city resources, there are many facets to the issue that the council has to consider.

He said the council could decide to not get involved, or it could approve a limited involvement, telling the staff to go forward with just an application and exploration of the scope of the project so application deadlines could be met, while still reserving the final decision on whether to go forward with a grant commitment or any funding mechanism or agreement.

Houston said if that happened, the staff would probably quickly begin a search for a grant application writer. That cost is estimated to cost between $15,000 and $20,000 and how that would be paid has not been discussed.

George Wilson of the Conservation Fund is experienced with the FCT process and is expected to be at the meeting Wednesday to answer questions about the process.

One of the various agencies that could be involved is the Southwest Florida Water Management District. It is now doing an appraisal on the property.

The regular city council meeting is normally Tuesday, but is being held Wednesday night, because of the election Tuesday. The meeting is at 7 p.m. at city hall.

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