As we get ready to celebrate our 25 years in conservation this Saturday at Smith Lake Preserve (you are all invited, let us know if you can make it at https://www.nflt.org/2024/09/05/nflts-25th-anniversary-celebration/), we have been counting down and giving you a look at our history and some of the people who support us and have made our success possible. Today, we are giving you a closer look at our friends in conservation and supporters, Ben and Louann Williams.
Ben and Louann have been a part of the NFLT family for many years, and if you want to know more about the work we do with conservation easements, just ask them. The two got their start in conservation by first working to protect water. They worked in the commercial seafood industry and saw the need to protect the health of the underlying ecosystems that provided their livelihood. That led to their early involvement with the St. Johns Riverkeeper. Ben served for 12 years on the NFLT board and provided the seafood for the nonprofit’s annual oyster roast. Educating themselves about the importance of conservation, the two realized how important it was to the waterways to protect the land that surrounds it. Then, they decided to buy some land.
The two bought nearly 3,600 acres, which they named Wetland Preserve, and after spending 35 years in the commercial seafood industry, they moved into the timber and land business. Wetland Preserve is adjacent to the Rice Creek Conservation area owned by the St. Johns River Water Management District (SJRWMD). It was good timber property, and Ben and Louann saw an opportunity. The land could produce income while also helping them further their conservation goals. They began talking with Ray Bunton, a former NFLT board member who worked with the SJRWMD. When they learned how a conservation easement could protect the land while allowing landowners to continue to use it as a working forest, they started on the conservation easement path. They wanted to make sure the land would be free from development for future generations. The self-proclaimed do-it-yourselfers were trying to figure it out on their own.
“We had been banging our heads trying to figure out how to get a Florida Forever conservation easement on the property,” said Ben. “We were at a St. Johns River Water Management District meeting one day, and Marc Hudson (former NFLT land protection director) had spoken, and I was impressed. I corralled Marc outside the meeting and thought if anyone could make this happen, this young man could.”
That was approximately ten years ago. Ben said Marc’s persistence and intelligence at the meeting helped convince him that he needed to work with NFLT. Our staff then got to work. We identified the property as a perfect fit for a conservation easement in 2015 and served as a landowner advocate for the Williams family throughout the process. In 2017, NFLT helped move them to the top of the Rural and Family Lands Protection Program list before it was defunded. We then identified the Florida Forever Program as a funding option for the conservation easement. We assisted the family through the process while helping the state understand the property and execute the due diligence. Ben and Louann also wanted to protect the Florida Trail, which runs through part of Wetland Preserve. We helped them craft the conservation easement to ensure any subsequent owners could not move the trail off the property. We also included protecting old growth on the property outside of the Best Management Practice areas.
In 2020, we helped them finalize the deal and closed on the conservation easement purchased through the Florida Forever program for $2,873,000. When asked what they would do with the money, they asked what the state wanted them to do. The answer was to buy more conservation land, so that is what they are doing. Stay tuned for details as they add to their conservation portfolio.
NFLT continues to work with the Williams to save more land from development, and Ben and Louann continue to support us in many ways. They have been a $10,000 Black Bear Sponsor of our annual meeting for the last few years. Ben recently joined us for the Florida Forestry Association Annual Meeting and Trade Show, where he shared his insight on the conservation easement process and his thoughts on why saving land is so important. Ben and Louann are also frequent hosts at Wetland Preserve, providing educational outreach for groups.
The Williams have received accolades for their work in conservation over the years. They were named Florida Landowners of the Year in 2019 by the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission. The American Tree Farm System recognized them with the Florida 2021 Outstanding Tree Farmer award, and they were also named NFLT’s Advocate of the Year in 2023.
“We would not be able to do all we do without the conservation easement,” said Louann. “We love having the opportunity to be stewards of this land for this little window of time.”
You can learn more about Wetland Preserve and Ben and Louann’s work at benandLouann.com.
