WLKM Radio 95.9 FM
The Southwest Michigan Land Conservancy has been awarded $1 million from Kalamazoo River Natural Resources Damages Assessment settlement funds to purchase a 140-acre property in Allegan County.
The property, the Armintrout-Milbocker Nature Preserve, is located just outside downtown Allegan and along the west bank of the Kalamazoo River.
Conservancy officials said the heart of the property features 100 upland acres of mostly pine and oak forest, fringed with 40 acres of diverse wetlands, more than three miles of walking trails and three miles of frontage along the Kalamazoo River. The property is biodiverse, with at least 150 plant species and more than 60 bird species.
Additional funding that is instrumental to the acquisition is provided by a U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service North American Wetlands Conservation Act grant as well as a significant donation by the Armintrout and Milbocker families.
Once the purchase is complete, SWMLC will be reaching out to the community to raise money to create public access infrastructure and to care for the natural areas on the preserve.
