Development off limits: 2,317 acres off Lake Kissimmee to be permanently conserved

POLK COUNTY, Fla. (WFLA) — Weather-battered signs still pepper the property of “Eagle Haven Ranch,” a peek at what might have been.

“The property hit the market, and it would have been available to anybody,” said Traci Deen, president & CEO of Conservation Florida. “It could have become a marina or a golf course or copy-and-paste homes.”

She said instead, the 2,317-acre property known as “Eagle Haven Ranch” on Lake Kissimmee near Lake Wales will remain natural land with open fields, native trees, and even wild horses.

“We are so thrilled to have the permanent conservation of Eagle Haven Ranch. It is an extraordinary property,” Deen said. “Places like Eagle Haven Ranch are incredibly special and are being lost. We’re seeing it.”

A few years ago, Deen said Arnie and Lauren Bellini purchased the property as “conservation buyers,” essentially so developers could not buy the land.

Their purchase gave “Conservation Florida” enough time to raise $9 million for a “conservation easement.”

That legal agreement between the land owner and a non-profit entity restricts development permanently.

“We bought Eagle Haven Ranch to protect it from development and preserve the heart of Florida’s wildlife corridor,” said Arnie and Lauren Bellini in a news release from Conservation Florida. “Working with Conservation Florida, we’ve shown that protecting land can balance Florida’s economy and ecology for the future of all Florida citizens.”

Deen said the land does more than just sit quietly, undeveloped.

“These properties are serving Floridians in many ways,” Deen said. “It’s a critical connector piece in the Florida Wildlife Corridor. But more, this property holds and stores water. In our last couple of big hurricanes that have come through the state, we witnessed this property hold water. What that means is homes aren’t flooding.”

Conservation Florida also partnered with the U.S. Department of Defense.

The property sits within the Avon Park Air Force Range Sentinel Landscape.

“The DoD’s REPI program contributed funding to protect this important buffer area, ensuring uninterrupted military flight operations while enhancing environmental resilience,” reads the news release from Conservation Florida.

“We’re able to link arms because our missions are in alignment,” Deen said.

Deen added the swamps and marshes on the property filter water, which ends up in the greater Everglades system.

Development off limits: 2,317 acres off Lake Kissimmee to be permanently conserved | WFLA