HomeMy WebLinkAboutLetter of Support for Jefferson Land Trust Application #26-1308 Quimper Wildlife - 071326 O CON jssr Board of County Commissioners
��4we-S co 1820 Jefferson Street
C A, tt
PO Box 1220
Port Townsend, WA 98368
q O Heather Dudley-Nollette,District 1 Heidi Eisenhour,District"2 Greg Brotherton, District 3
S11I NG'S.
July 13, 2026
Recreation and Conservation Office
Urban Wildlife Habitat Program
PO Box 40917
Olympia WA 98504-0917
Re: Support for Jefferson Land Trust Application #26-1308 —Quimper Wildlife Corridor Phase 3
Dear RCO Team,
I am writing on behalf of Jefferson County to articulate our strong support of Jefferson Land Trust's
grant application for the continuation of the Quimper Wildlife Corridor project.
The Quimper Wildlife Corridor(QWC)represents the largest remaining contiguous wildlife habitat
network within the City of Port Townsend and functions as the primary movement corridor linking
six high-quality wetland habitat cores across the northern Quimper Peninsula. The QWC also
functions as a natural stormwater management system and includes a popular 7-mile network of
multi-modal trails that allow Port Townsend residents and visitors to engage with nature and move
between neighborhoods via non-motorized transportation routes. Conservation of the remaining
unprotected forest parcels within the QWC is urgently needed to prevent fragmentation of the last
continuous habitat connection inside the Port Townsend urban growth area, and to preserve beloved
community trails.
The QWC currently provides wildlife habitat, natural area multi-use trails, educational
opportunities, and ecosystem services to the residents of the City of Port Townsend and Jefferson
County as well as to visitors. Jefferson County's Conservation Futures Fund has contributed
funding to numerous acquisitions within the QWC since 2004, protecting them in perpetuity as
open space.
Our community has long recognized the wildlife habitat,public access, and other benefits that the
QWC contributes to life in our area. Building upon 30 years of successful conservation efforts and
in the face of increasing development in Port Townsend, our community is driven to continue to
work to protect the Quimper Wildlife Corridor. Through this grant, Jefferson Land Trust seeks to
protect many more acres in addition to the 336 acres of land already protected in the QWC.
We hope that through our support and securing the necessary funding that Jefferson Land Trust will
be successful in protecting this important wildlife habitat and community resource.
Sinc-"- y
•
1,u
. trdley-Nollette, Dist. 1 eidi Eisenhour, Dist.2 re rotherton, Dist. 3-Chair
Phone (360) 385-9100 jeffboccco.jefferson.wa.us
Quimper Wildlife Corridor Phase 3 Project Description
Jefferson Land Trust seeks acquisition funds to support Phase 3 of the Quimper Wildlife
Corridor(QWC) project. In northeast Jefferson County, the QWC project area spans 3.5-
miles of native forest and wetlands across the northern Quimper Peninsula and provides
habitat and safe passage for over 130 bird species and a wide range of other wildlife.Within
a rapidly developing urban growth area the QWC also functions as a natural stormwater
management system and hosts a popular 7-mile network of multi-modal trails that allows
nearby residents and visitors to engage with nature and enjoy hiking, running, biking, and
horseback riding between neighborhoods. Land in the QWC is divided into hundreds of
small individually owned lots, many with unexercised development rights and right of way
access, due to historic platting created in the 1800s. Since conservation efforts began in
the early 1990s, Jefferson Land Trust,the City of Port Townsend, and Jefferson County have
worked with private landowners in multiple phases to permanently protect 336 acres in the
QWC project area.After recent outreach, 29 owners of a total of 11.7 acres of priority forest
habitat have expressed interest in permanent protection, and the Land Trust is also working
to vacate and protect 14.2 acres of priority forested rights of way. Funding for these Phase 3
acquisitions would allow us to permanently preserve broad forested connectivity between
protected wetland habitats and conserve existing public trails.
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JEFFERSON COUNTY
BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS
CONSENT AGENDA REQUEST
TO: Board of County Commissioners
FROM: Carolyn Gallaway, Clerk of the Board
DATE: July 13,2026
SUBJECT: LETTERS OF SUPPORT re: Quimper Wildlife Corridor and West Valley Farm conservation
projects
STATEMENT OF ISSUE:
Jefferson Land Trust(JLT) Director of Conservation and Strategic Partnerships Sarah Spaeth and
JLT Conservation Coordinator Marlowe Moser met with the Board of County Commissioners on
July 6, 2026 to present and discuss the Quimper Wildlife Corridor and West Valley Farm
conservation projects, for which they are currently applying for grant funding through the State
Recreation and Conservation Office.
ANALYSIS:
JLT's West Valley Farm project aligns with Jefferson County's Comprehensive Plan,particularly
with stated goals to protect agricultural lands to both sustain a resource-based economy and to
protect agricultural lands through conservation easements for future generations. Jefferson County
has been an important partner in our Quimper Wildlife Corridor project, notably in its involvement
with the DNR Trust Land Transfer and protection of approximately 110 acres in 2024. Our Quimper
Wildlife Corridor project is also aligned with the County's Comprehensive Plan, particularly with
goals to preserve open space corridors, protect critical areas, conserve wildlife habitat, and to
provide safe and accessible trail systems.
FISCAL IMPACT:
JLT is applying for grant funding,the County is only asked to provide letters of support.
RECOMMENDATION:
Staff recommends approving the attached letters of support for the two conservation projects.
REVIEWED BY:
o ak
Jos . Peters, County Administrator Dat