By DAVE HAMRICK
dhamrick@thecitizennews.com

City of Fayetteville dignitaries and members of the Southern Conservation Trust were on hand last week to welcome an investment of 13.5 acres as a nature preserve.

“We're aware that this is an investment in the future of Fayetteville and its residents,” said Alex Thompson, president of Thompson and Company and the developer of Bay Branch Condominiums in Fayetteville.

The company has deeded the land, just behind a new neighborhood the company is building, to SCT for a perpetual preserve that will never be developed.

The condominiums are under construction to the south of the preserve, on Bay Branch Boulevard at Weatherly Drive and Knight Way, one block off Ga. Highway 54 east.

“The gesture is definitely a generous one,” said Dennis Chase, vice chairman of SCT. “The city of Fayetteville and its citizens will benefit greatly from it, as will the residents of Bay Branch. Having a preserve this close to your home is a true bonus.”

Southern Conservation Trust is Fayette County's nature conservancy organization, and will use the property as a bird sanctuary.

An old oxidation pond occupies about five acres of the site, said Chase, providing a wet area that attracts birds and other wildlife to feed. “But there's not much there in the way of habitat for them to nest in,” he added.

Local Eagle Scout candidates are planning have begun building bird and bat nesting boxes in the wetland, he said. Aquatic vegetation abounds, he added. At some time in the future, volunteers also may plant trees and other vegetation to enhance the park.

SCT will hold the site as a place where wildlife can flourish undisturbed close to the heart of Fayetteville, he said.

The swampy land, with its aquatic vegetation, also acts as a filtration area to help keep nearby Nash Creek clean, Chase said, another reason to keep human visitation to a minimum.

The Bay Branch company also has donated about $2,000 to help maintain the area, and has committed to additional donations in the future to help pay taxes and keep up the property.

Mayor Kenneth Steele also welcomed the donation. “As Fayetteville grows, it is our charge as the representatives of the people, to see that our land and growth are managed well,” said Steele. “When developers willingly donate land for green space, everyone benefits.”