From the Pioneer Press, by Kevin Harter
Nearly 3,000 acres of woodlands lying 70 miles from the Twin Cities
and containing several pristine streams and lakes will become a
state park under what Wisconsin officials are calling one of the
most important land buys in state history.
Under the terms of a $10.6 million deal, Wisconsin will create a
state park named for 107-acre Straight Lake. The parcel, which would
include three miles of the cross-Wisconsin Ice Age Trail, is in Polk
County about three miles northeast of Luck.
"We've purchased several larger acreages, but this contains two wild
lakes, old-growth forest and a section of the Ice Age Trail, which
makes it one of the most significant purchases ever," said Bruce
Moss, a Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources official.
The West Wisconsin Land Trust, which last year put together a deal
to buy Maiden Rock overlooking Lake Pepin, brokered the purchase by
the Wisconsin DNR.
"We've always wanted the property to be preserved as a park, but it
took the West Wisconsin Land Trust to bring this deal together,"
said Bob Brunkow, president of Brunkow Hardwoods Corp., which sold
the land for more than $2 million below its market value.
Negotiations between the state and Brunkow had been going on for
several years and had broken off.
"We were called in two years ago to help, and we've been talking
ever since," said Rick Gauger, executive director of the West
Wisconsin Land Trust. "Suddenly, it finally all came together."
The Knowles Nelson Stewardship Fund - named for former Wisconsin
Govs. Warren Knowles and Gaylord Nelson - will be used to pay for
the coveted property, which is located in a region of explosive
population growth because of its proximity to the Twin Cities.
"It is extremely rare to accomplish what we did with one purchase.
This is as unique as you'll ever find. It is the last of the last,"
said Moss, who recently retired from the DNR, where he oversaw the
state's northern parks and wildlife areas.
The Ice Age Trail is one of eight designated national scenic trails
and is used primarily by hikers. About 600 miles of the 1,000-mile
trail have been completed.
The Polk County landscape is a transitional one between the thick
forests of the north and the cleared agricultural land to the south
and is unique because it has been largely untouched by humans. Small
parts of it were logged decades ago.
The land, skies and waters are home to abundant wildlife, including
blue herons, eagles, trumpeter swans, black bear, river otters, red
fox, gray tree frogs, leopard frogs, and assorted snakes,
salamanders and newts.
"It contains everything you could want to see in this part of the
state," Kevin Morgan, Polk County DNR wildlife specialist said.
"This is a gem. And there is a lot of interest in this land."
That interest includes developers who would have liked to break up
the acreage and build homes and weekend retreats, along with those
who have long been interested in seeing it preserved and opened to
the public.
Had the land been developed, many of its current inhabitants would
have been forced out, including the Cerulean warbler, said Randy
Hoffman of the Wisconsin DNR Bureau of Endangered Resources.
"There are area-sensitive species," Hoffman said. "Forty or 50-acre
woodlots aren't enough. They need old, large forests."
The DNR next month is expected to approve the sale, which has the
blessing of Gov. Jim Doyle. If the DNR goes forward, the closing
date is May 1.
It is expected to take several years to add camping sites to the
park, but it is expected to be opened for public hiking soon after
the closing, DNR officials said.
"This will be a destination for many, including (people from) the
Twin Cities," Moss said.
