Conser vation
in Tough Times
Land is cheaper, but money is harder to find.
Conservationists wonder what the recession
will mean for their work.
By Erica Gies
G
enerations of Minnesotans spent childhood summers at Camp Ojiketa on the shores of
Green Lake, a place where one can still see deer, owls, loons, wild turkeys, painted turtles,
great blue herons, and beautiful sunsets. But this idyllic place came under threat in recent years,
when its owner, Minnesota Council of Camp Fire USA, decided to sell the land and consid-
ered developers as buyers. Former campers formed the Ojiketa Preservation Society to raise
money for the land’s protection, but Camp Fire’s $5 million asking price was out of reach.
In 2008, however, the real estate market first softened,
then plummeted, and the price came down to less than
$3.7 million. Taking advantage of the reduced price, The
Trust for Public Land was able to combine donated funds
with public money and purchase the camp in mid-December. Camp Ojiketa will be a regional park, owned
and managed by the local community, Chisago City.
In another year-end transaction, TPL acquired
290 acres along the lower Colorado River near Blythe,
California. The land could have become a waterfront
subdivision, but the California Department of Fish
and Game wanted to restore it as part of a multistate
habitat conservation effort along the river. The slumping real estate market forced the developers to shelve
their plans, and TPL was able to negotiate a purchase
for half the original asking price.
California approved the land purchase from TPL
with voter-approved bond funds. But then the state’s
