Group seeks $3M for land buy

BRADENTON — The Conservation Foundation of the Gulf Coast, through an agreement with Manatee County commissioners, hopes to purchase 150 acres in Robinson Preserve for $3 million by the end of 2012.

The foundation, if it can get the funds by Dec. 31, hopes to expand the preserve, a popular wetlands habitat in northwest Bradenton used by 300,000 residents and tourists a year. The Robinson family currently owns the land. “This is an extraordinary example of the public, private and not-for-profit sectors coming together to do the right thing for the environment and the community,” Conservation Foundation President Christine Johnson says in a release.

Manatee County officials, meanwhile, agreed to oversee and pay for at least $500,000 in improvements if the property is successfully acquired. That includes building an education center, environmental restoration and other amenities. “This is a wonderful gift to and an opportunity for the citizens and visitors of Manatee County,” Manatee County Director of Natural Resources Charlie Hunsicker says in the statement.