Save A Critical Regional Wildlife Linkage in AZ
Donation protected
Please help save an essential and critical Sonoran Desert wildlife linkage in Southern Arizona!
This petition began on Change.org in June 2018, and currently has over 3,200 petition signers. Change.org has notified us they are closing their petitions as of MARCH 1, and recommended moving to gofundme.
Funds raised on this site will go to conservation and education projects with the Coalition for Sonoran Desert Protection.
The photo above shows the Tucson Mountains landscape of a historic 138 acre rural guest ranch. It is scheduled to be bulldozed soon for a 178 home gated community. The proposed development ignores that the the ranch is part of a critical regional wildlife corridor of the Sonoran Desert Conservation Plan , a nationally recognized plan that advises low density rural uses on this site.
When we began this petition we were hoping to raise millions of dollars to purchase and protect 138 acres of the LAZY K-BAR by connecting with a team of conservation-minded eco-conscious music/movie/media/investor angels who love the Sonoran Desert.
We have no formal notice from the Town of Marana but suspect it's likely nearly time for the bulldozers to roll, barring a miracle (contact us if you are miracle-makers!). We're setting our sights on the next goal: raising area support for and and commitment to place Conservation Easements on as many connecting lands as possible and prevent more of what is planned at Lazy K Bar.
Conservation Easements are legal documents which can prevent re-zonings for higher density by local governments.
Your donation will be used to build both community support and legal protection for the wildlife and plants currently endangered by short-sighted planning and development in an area that connects Saguaro Nation Park to the Tortolita and Catalina Mountains north of Tucson. Furthermore, these protections will support international biodiversity efforts that connect the Arizona and Sonora Borderlands.
If you are or know an eco-angel donor/investor and would be interested purchasing the ranch to protect, there may still be a chance to save it before the bulldozers begin rolling.
Time is of the essence: With your financial support, we can have a beneficial impact on how the people can influence local government to protect at-risk environments through conservation.
Please share this petition on your social media and contact us for more information, suggestions, or to join us in this effort.
THANKS- We are SO GRATEFUL for YOUR HELP!
Lazy K Bar is the light green and mountainous upper right of the photo, far from the edge of current development. The rest of the foothills and mountains are Saguaro National Park.
History:
Pulte Homes is a large commercial developer that currently has dozens of high density housing projects in southern Arizona. They have chosen Lazy K Bar as a site for half million dollar homes, a higher priced "product" than they usually offer.
Lazy K-Bar is one half mile north of Saguaro National Park West in the northern Tucson Mountains, at a key point in the Conservation Plan linkage connecting the Park, the Tucson and Tortolita mountain ranges, and the Santa Cruz River- a vibrant cultural and agricultural region for thousands of years. Pulte's plan to overdevelop this area puts this all at risk.
Pulte's plan includes opening a small scenic dead-end road used by wildlife to construction and development that will bring thousands more vehicles per day; people not looking for desert tortoise, badger, fox and the multitude of animals who cross the road foraging from lowlands to uplands.
As neighbors, we notified Pulte corporation and the town of Marana of our intention to find a better solution. We have had meetings and requested time to find an eco-conscious buyer.
We've tried to gather a group of funders and investors to buy the ranch in order to protect the corridor according to the Sonoran Desert Conservation Plan and begin a better planning process- perhaps a smaller "green" residential development that is appropriate in scale and context, a center for environmental education that tells the rich cultural and natural story of this unique place, a combination, or a choice to not develop at all, depending on the mission and vision of the funders and investors, working with the community.
If the Lazy K Bar begins to be destroyed despite our best efforts, it becomes even more critical to focus on the rest of the wildlife corridor, where development pressure will surely increase immediately.
We must protect critical Sonoran Desert lands while allowing our community to grow without destroying the things that make Southern Arizona special — the mountain ranges, riparian areas, habitat that supports abundant wildlife, and places where we can enjoy the solitude of nature.
We appreciate any help you can offer! Sign and share this petition widely with your friends, eco-conscious philanthropists and organizations.
THANKS SO MUCH for any support or connections you can make to save this important part of our Sonoran Desert for future generations!
This petition began on Change.org in June 2018, and currently has over 3,200 petition signers. Change.org has notified us they are closing their petitions as of MARCH 1, and recommended moving to gofundme.
Funds raised on this site will go to conservation and education projects with the Coalition for Sonoran Desert Protection.
The photo above shows the Tucson Mountains landscape of a historic 138 acre rural guest ranch. It is scheduled to be bulldozed soon for a 178 home gated community. The proposed development ignores that the the ranch is part of a critical regional wildlife corridor of the Sonoran Desert Conservation Plan , a nationally recognized plan that advises low density rural uses on this site.
When we began this petition we were hoping to raise millions of dollars to purchase and protect 138 acres of the LAZY K-BAR by connecting with a team of conservation-minded eco-conscious music/movie/media/investor angels who love the Sonoran Desert.
We have no formal notice from the Town of Marana but suspect it's likely nearly time for the bulldozers to roll, barring a miracle (contact us if you are miracle-makers!). We're setting our sights on the next goal: raising area support for and and commitment to place Conservation Easements on as many connecting lands as possible and prevent more of what is planned at Lazy K Bar.
Conservation Easements are legal documents which can prevent re-zonings for higher density by local governments.
Your donation will be used to build both community support and legal protection for the wildlife and plants currently endangered by short-sighted planning and development in an area that connects Saguaro Nation Park to the Tortolita and Catalina Mountains north of Tucson. Furthermore, these protections will support international biodiversity efforts that connect the Arizona and Sonora Borderlands.
If you are or know an eco-angel donor/investor and would be interested purchasing the ranch to protect, there may still be a chance to save it before the bulldozers begin rolling.
Time is of the essence: With your financial support, we can have a beneficial impact on how the people can influence local government to protect at-risk environments through conservation.
Please share this petition on your social media and contact us for more information, suggestions, or to join us in this effort.
THANKS- We are SO GRATEFUL for YOUR HELP!
Lazy K Bar is the light green and mountainous upper right of the photo, far from the edge of current development. The rest of the foothills and mountains are Saguaro National Park.
History:
Pulte Homes is a large commercial developer that currently has dozens of high density housing projects in southern Arizona. They have chosen Lazy K Bar as a site for half million dollar homes, a higher priced "product" than they usually offer.
Lazy K-Bar is one half mile north of Saguaro National Park West in the northern Tucson Mountains, at a key point in the Conservation Plan linkage connecting the Park, the Tucson and Tortolita mountain ranges, and the Santa Cruz River- a vibrant cultural and agricultural region for thousands of years. Pulte's plan to overdevelop this area puts this all at risk.
Pulte's plan includes opening a small scenic dead-end road used by wildlife to construction and development that will bring thousands more vehicles per day; people not looking for desert tortoise, badger, fox and the multitude of animals who cross the road foraging from lowlands to uplands.
As neighbors, we notified Pulte corporation and the town of Marana of our intention to find a better solution. We have had meetings and requested time to find an eco-conscious buyer.
We've tried to gather a group of funders and investors to buy the ranch in order to protect the corridor according to the Sonoran Desert Conservation Plan and begin a better planning process- perhaps a smaller "green" residential development that is appropriate in scale and context, a center for environmental education that tells the rich cultural and natural story of this unique place, a combination, or a choice to not develop at all, depending on the mission and vision of the funders and investors, working with the community.
If the Lazy K Bar begins to be destroyed despite our best efforts, it becomes even more critical to focus on the rest of the wildlife corridor, where development pressure will surely increase immediately.
We must protect critical Sonoran Desert lands while allowing our community to grow without destroying the things that make Southern Arizona special — the mountain ranges, riparian areas, habitat that supports abundant wildlife, and places where we can enjoy the solitude of nature.
We appreciate any help you can offer! Sign and share this petition widely with your friends, eco-conscious philanthropists and organizations.
THANKS SO MUCH for any support or connections you can make to save this important part of our Sonoran Desert for future generations!
Organizer
Barbara Rose
Organizer
Tucson, AZ
