Reprinted from the Woodinville W

Reprinted from the Woodinville Weekly, July 21,03

Goal to keep Paradise Valley Conservation Area natural as possible

by Jeanette Knutson
Staff Writer

On July 16, Snohomish County Parks and Recreation Department hosted a well-attended informational meeting regarding public access to the Paradise Valley Conservation Area. Located on the headwaters of Big Bear Creek, the 663-acre site is south of State Route 522 on Paradise Lake Road, north of the Snohomish County line. The land was purchased in 2000, thanks, in large part, to the generosity of the Lloyd family, the original homesteaders of the property, and grants from the Governor’s Salmon Recovery Fund and Snohomish County’s Conservation Futures Fund. Marc Krandel, planning supervisor for the county Parks and Recreation Department, said in a phone interview after the meeting that the price of the estate was $1.9 million for the property and $1 million for the timber rights.
Tom Murdoch of Snohomish County Parks and Recreation said at the meeting, “The reason for the acquisition is to protect the ecological integrity of the headwaters of Big Bear Creek and to protect its salmon run.”
There are certain restrictions associated with the acquisition. These restrictions are imposed by the agencies that funded the purchase, by the Snohomish County Code itself or by the Lloyd family, said Krandel. The following are some of the restrictions: Only passive recreation can take place on the land. Any activity that causes soil erosion or alters the surface of the land is prohibited. Motorized vehicles such as four-wheel-drive vehicles and motorbikes are prohibited. The historic Lloyd homestead is to be preserved. All new utility lines should go underground. There can be no removal of wetlands, no dumping. And harvesting of timber must protect soil stability and water quality.
“We’ll be able to manage the forest to make sure it stays healthy,” said Krandel. “That may mean taking out bad trees or planting trees. In a lot of places we have monoculture now, only fir trees. That’s not a forest.”
In the short-term, the county is discouraging use of the conservation area until access points and parking issues are decided, said Krandel. Should groups wish to use the property, he said, they must talk to the county first to let the county know where they are going to be. For more information, call the Parks office at (425) 388-6600.
In the long-term, said Krandel, “We want to get control of the property, figure out what we have. There are remote parts of the property I’m sure no one has been on. We want to know the topography, know where there’s a problem.”
To do this, the county will complete a thorough natural resource inventory to determine, in part, the forest cover; the location and classification of the wetlands; and the location of branches or tributaries to Bear Creek. They will also perform a meets and bounds survey to locate property boundaries.
“Only then,” said Murdoch, “can the county come up with a logical access plan so that the public can enjoy access to the site without destroying the resources.”
“There is money to do selective surveying this year,” said Krandel. “A lot of the work will be done by staff in-house,” he said.
The department is counting on additional monies to continue their work next year.
Mountain bikers, hikers, equestrians and stream and wetland groups - not to mention property owners adjacent to the reserve - are anxious for the county to sort out access points, parking, and off-limit areas. They also want to know what to do when they see motorized vehicles tearing around the property.
Murdoch was hesitant to say when the county would complete its access plan.
“It would be irresponsible to give out a timeline,” he said.
He did say a meeting with the Sheriff is on the Parks agenda. They would like the Sheriff’s Department to become familiar with the site and perhaps have Paradise Lake Road designated a “high visibility site.”
When it comes to reporting a motorized vehicle, Krandel wants everyone to be cautious. Persons are advised not to try to stop a motorized vehicle, but rather to jot down its make, model and license number, get a photo of the vehicle if possible and notify Parks at (425) 388-6600. Krandel said the desk would alert a Ranger. Once an area has been posted, he said, call the Sheriff at 911.
Conservation stewardships will be available to interested parties. The site lends itself to hundreds of volunteer activities. Parks staff is planning an introductory exercise for sometime this fall.
“We want to get as many people involved as possible,” said Krandel

Reprinted from the Woodinville Weekly, Sept. 4, 01

Transaction preserves 664-acre Bear Creek heartland

by Bronwyn Wilson
   Senior Staff Reporter
   A 664-acre property full of old growth timber and numerous wildlife species will not become another urbanized land of tract homes with sprayed in lawns.
   The property, located in the Paradise Lake Road area, will be preserved in its natural state due to a final agreement on a transaction obtained by Cascade Land Conservancy. Home to the headwaters of Bear Creek, the property supports a diversity of upland and wetland habitat.
   Mature forests and open meadows, along with a unique peat bog, provide critical habitat for river otter, beaver, deer, coyote, bear and over 100 documented bird species. Bear Creek provides spawning and rearing habitat for six species of salmon: chinook, coho, cutthroat, sockeye, kokanee and steelhead.
   Also present are three species of freshwater mussels, once abundant and now absent in most of the lowland systems.
   Cascade Land Conservancy (CLC) is a non-profit organization committed to preserving the natural heritage of Western Washington.
   The group recently signed the purchase and sale agreement with the Lloyd family, owners of the property and descendants of the original homesteaders.
   At a cost far below its market value, the property was acquired for $3 million. CLC will assign its rights to purchase the property to Snohomish County, which will agree to pay $1.9 million to purchase all of the land and a portion of the timber rights immediately.
   At the same time, the County will receive an option to purchase the remaining $1.1 million of timber rights by July 2003.
   "It's a great partnership," said CLC Executive Director Gene Duvernoy of his organization's joint effort with the County.
   As part of the negotiated agreement, Cascade Land Conservancy will continue in an oversight role to monitor strict protective covenants that will ensure the land remains protected and natural as undeveloped, habitat protective open space.
   "We have the right, in perpetuity, to step in and enforce proper stewardship of the land," Duvernoy said.
   Not only will the forests and meadows remain protected for wildlife habitat, but the quality of water in Bear Creek will continue to be monitored for salmon and other species.
   King County's Waterways 2000 program has protected six river miles of Bear Creek by investing $5.5 million in acquiring land and conservation easements on over 500 acres, thus protecting year-round flow and rearing habitat for salmon in King County.
   From its headwaters in Snohomish County, Bear Creek flows into King County through the City of Woodinville and Redmond and feeds into the Sammamish River.
   However, there are plans for development of a park on a 29-acre homestead which is located on the Paradise Lake Road area property. Snohomish County Parks plans to renovate the site sometime in the future. Upon completion, it will open as the 'James and Eliza Lloyd Family Farmstead Park.'
   Funding for the purchase of the property by Snohomish County comes from a wide range of sources, including the Governor's Salmon Recovery Office, Snohomish County Priority Habitat Fund, Snohomish County Conservation Futures program, King County Conservation Futures program and Seattle Audubon Society. Created in 1989, Cascade Land Conservancy protects and stewards open lands, beaches, wetlands, forests and farmlands in King, Snohomish and Pierce counties.
   The protection of the Upper Bear Creek basin is just one of many conservation projects, representing about 10,000 acres, that the organization currently has underway.

Reprinted from the Woodinville Weekly, June 11,01

Lloyds honored at reception hosted by Cascade Land Conservancy

A celebration on June 4 in Bothell honored the Lloyd family for their life-long stewardship of the family's homesteaded property which has now been put into permanent conservancy.
   The $1.9 million purchase of 664 contiguous acres of farmland and wetlands in Paradise Valley was brought about through the efforts of the Snohomish County, King County and the Bear Creek Watertenders in conjunction with the Cascade Land Conservancy. Funding sources included Snohomish County Conservation Future, King County Conservation Future, the Tri-Counties Process and the State Salmon Recovery Funding Board.
   For many years the Lloyds were encouraged to sell their property to private developers but resisted. Elizabeth, Jessie and Davy Lloyd were praised for their cooperation in their effort to keep this upper watershed area for Bear Creek as open space. Jessie Lloyd, who just turned 90, was instrumental and supportive of the arrangement, but unable to attend due to health concerns.
   Snohomish County Executive Bob Drewell and King County Executive Ron Sims, as well as many elected county officials, county staff, and Bear Creek and Paradise Valley neighbors were on hand to celebrate.
   "Not only is this property critically important to protecting salmon habitat in the Bear Creek basin, it also preserves a slice of Snohomish County rural life. We are extremely grateful to the Lloyd family and Cascade Land Conservancy for making this important preservation project a reality," said Drewell. "This is what can happen when good, caring people in government and good, caring people in the community work together. It is the business of the future. We hope that others will look at this model, try it and copy it."
   "Thanks to the leadership and work on this project, magical and wonderful things can happen," said Ron Sims, who thanked the Lloyds for the "right decision."
   The program featured Terry Lavender recounting the past when salmon could easily make their journey home. She held up a fish-counting stick and reminded the guests of the challenges for salmon today and the need for help from stewards for a safe journey back to the salmon spawing headwaters.
   "We are trying to save rural farms and habitat," said Gene Duvernoy, Executive Director of the Cascade Land Conservancy.
   The Lloyds and government officials were presented with a wood-cut placque designed by artist Mette Hanson. The wood cut features mussels, salmon and an otter in a depiction of the Lloyd family farmstead.
   The Lloyds are direct descendants of the original Lloyd family that came from Wales as part of a coal mining community that travelled to Pennsylvania in the mid-1800s. When the group heard that there was coal in the Coal Creek area near Seattle they travelled west. They settled in Paradise Valley between Cottage Lake and Maltby. Homesteading the property, many of the group took up farming and logging.
   The farm, made up of almost 800 acres, supported cattle, hay production and logging. The Lloyds recalled huge salmon runs coming up the headwaters of Bear Creek. They saw the bears that would come to feed.
   The Lloyd purchase is part of a tri-county effort to protect Bear Creek, a major salmon spawning stream in the Puget Sound area, home to Chinook, Coho, Sockeye and other salmonids as well as fresh water mussels.
   Other properties have been identified along Bear Creek by King County Open Space for conservation purposes. Properties purchased are now managed by King County Parks as natural resource areas.