• Trouble logging in? Send us a message with your username and/or email address for help.
New posts

SoWal Staff

Serving the Community!
Staff member
Apr 14, 2006
3,835
511
South Walon, FL
SoWal.com
On October 29, 2021, the Friends of Camp Helen State Park received a letter from the owner of
the 44-acre property bordering Lake Powell to the East of the park indicating a willing seller. In
order for the state to move forward with the Florida Forever purchase, the Acquisition &
Restoration Council (ARC) will have to rank it in a fundable position when they meet in
December.

Lake Powell, a Florida Outstanding Waterway and the largest Coastal Dune Lake in the Northern
Hemisphere, is known for its immense biodiversity and exceptional recreational value. Coastal
Dune Lakes are rare in the world. Lake Powell dates back to the Pleistocene Era and today it
retains evidence of its cultural and historical significance - Indigenous Peoples, Civil War
saltworks, shipwrecks and retreats. Due to an outfall that is open intermittently to the Gulf of
Mexico, the lake is a brackish mix of fresh and salt water with a dynamic and ever-changing
landscape.

The Lake Powell community is passionately active and vocal when called upon for opportunities
to preserve and conserve - as evidenced by huge attendance during the annual Lake Powell
Clean-up, and overwhelming public attendance to public events held at Camp Helen.

This is the last piece of undeveloped land on Lake Powell.

The Friends of Camp Helen need the community’s help writing letters of support to the ARC.
The last line of every letter should read: Please rank this Lake Powell property in a fundable
position during the December 2021 ARC meeting!

Email templates are available on Facebook in the public group, Save Lake Powell: Largest
Coastal Dune Lake and hard copies are available at the UPS Store in Inlet Beach.




250704904_4889878454355976_3284034595981396270_n.jpg
 

SoWal Staff

Serving the Community!
Staff member
Apr 14, 2006
3,835
511
South Walon, FL
SoWal.com
SAMPLE LETTER: You are welcome to insert your signature and date on this or use this as a guideline for your own personal heartfelt letter.

November x, 2021

Dear Ms. Gambineri,
I am writing this letter to indicate support of the 44-acre tract purchase on Lake Powell for Camp Helen State Park expansion and Lake Powell protection.

Camp Helen State Park is one of Panama City Beach’s premiere nature-based destinations. Additional Park land is needed on Panama City Beach. Bay County residents and tourists would benefit greatly given more eco-tourism opportunities.

This 44-acre multi-parcel tract borders Lake Powell with the smallest parcel bordering the productive bird nesting sanctuary at Camp Helen. Lake Powell is the largest coastal dune lake in Florida and a Florida Outstanding Water. This acquisition will help to further preserve this pristine waterbody.

*Please rank this Lake Powell property in a fundable position during the December 2021 ARC meeting!

Sincerely,

Your Name



Here are the key recipients. SEND TO ALL. You can email or send the physical addresses. *The last sentence needs to be on EVERY letter - "Please rank this Lake Powell property in a fundable position during the December 2021 ARC meeting!".

Thank you Emily Ellis and Lake Powell for your help!
Please share!!!

SEND TO:

Florida Department of Environmental Protection (Chair)
Mara Gambineri, Deputy Secretary for Land and Recreation
3900 Commonwealth Blvd., M.S. 144
Tallahassee, Florida 32399-3000
850-245-2044
mara.gambineri@FloridaDEP.gov

Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission
Thomas Eason, Ph.D., Assistant Executive Director
Designee for Executive Director Eric Sutton
620 South Meridian Street
Tallahassee, Florida 32399-1600
850-487-3796
thomas.eason@myfwc.com

Florida Forest Service
Erin Albury, Director
3125 Conner Boulevard, Room 228
Tallahassee, Florida 32399-1650
850-681-5800
Erin.Albury@FDACS.gov

Florida Division of Historical Resources
Tim Parsons, Ph.D., RPA, Director
500 South Bronough Street, M.S. 4
Tallahassee, Florida 32399-0250
850-245-6306
timothy.parsons@dos.myflorida.com

Lynetta Usher Griner, Vice Chair (Florida Forest Service)
Griner Usher Land & Timber, Inc.
P.O. Box 1819
Chiefland, Florida 32644
352-493-4221 or 352-493-2568
usherlt@bellsouth.net

Bill Palmer, Ph.D., President (Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission)
Tall Timbers Research Station and Land Conservancy
13093 Henry Beadel Drive
Tallahassee, Florida 32312
850-893-4153 x226
bill@ttrs.org

Elva Peppers, President
Florida Environmental and Land Services, Inc.
221-4 Delta Court
Tallahassee, Florida 32303
850-385-6255
elvapeppers@felsi.org
 
New posts


Sign Up for SoWal Newsletter