La r e d o To w n Ce n t e r 9 PROFILE The main In January of 2007, a representative from Merchants Holdings, LLC walked into the Valley Land Fund and asked Amy Spaulding, the Land Trust Director, about conservation options <strong>for</strong> wetlands near a shopping mall they were building. The building site was in Laredo, <strong>Texas</strong> and sat on Lake Casa Blanca. After months of hard work, meetings and rough drafts, a conservation easement was granted by the Valley Land Fund to protect 42.2 acres of pristine wetland on Lake Casa Blanca. The main purpose <strong>for</strong> the conservation easement is to assure that the property will not be developed and will be perpetually preserved in its predominately natural, scenic, wet land, and open space condition. Other purposes of the <strong>Conservation</strong> Easement are to protect the property’s natural resource and watershed values, biodiversity, relatively natural and high quality habitat <strong>for</strong> native plants and animals and to maintain and enhance the natural features of the property. The land possesses natural, scenic, open space, scientific, biological, and ecological values of prominent importance to the owner, the Valley Land Fund and the public, and include the following: the land lies within an area of South <strong>Texas</strong> that is undergoing a rapid rate of land fragmentation due to an escalation of the subdivision and development of <strong>for</strong>mer ranch land, it provides relief from urban closeness, and lies adjacent to a State Park which contains a public water fresh lake. The land also contains significant natural habitat in which fish, wildlife, plants, or the ecosystems that support them, thrive in a relatively natural condition. The property contains and supports sustainable habitat <strong>for</strong> a purpose <strong>for</strong> the conservation easement is to assure that the property will not be developed and will be perpetually preserved in its predominately natural, scenic, wet land, and open space condition. biologically diverse collection of animals and plants, including rare, endangered or threatened species. The land has a significant amount of undeveloped frontage on or near the banks of Lake Casa Blanca, which is a State Park and public recreation area. The property contains additional natural wetland areas that provide habitat <strong>for</strong> aquatic invertebrates, reptiles, amphibians, and aquatic and/or emergent vegetation. Valued native <strong>for</strong>ested wet land exists on the property, which includes diverse native species, and trees of varying age classes and structural diversity. The property also provides important natural land within the watershed and contributing area of the Rio Grande River, which is a source of drinking water <strong>for</strong> numerous communities between Laredo, <strong>Texas</strong> and the Gulf of Mexico. 30 <strong>Conservation</strong> <strong>Easements</strong>:
A <strong>Guide</strong> <strong>for</strong> <strong>Texas</strong> <strong>Landowners</strong> 31
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