86 Acres Acquired to Expand Orange Lake Overlook

This latest conservation victory will be added to the existing 71-acre nature preserve owned by ACT

March 31, 2023

Gainesville, Florida – ACT has purchased 86 acres of land adjacent to Orange Lake from the Sawallis Family. The land, located along U.S. Highway 441, is directly north of ACT’s existing 71-acre nature preserve, the Marjorie A. Hoy Memorial Park at Orange Lake Overlook (“OLO”) in McIntosh, Florida. The acquisition more than doubles the size of the original preserve and includes access to Orange Lake and is also contiguous to conservation land owned by Marion County.

The property and the surrounding area is rich in history, dating back to the 16th Century when the shores of Orange Lake were inhabited by the Timucua People. In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, Florida’s agricultural scene was booming and the entire 300-acre hill was planted with citrus. In the 1950s, the Huff Family operated the Ollie Huff Citrus Shop and packing house from atop the hill. A series of hard freezes in the 1980s ended the citrus business, but the property continued to attract local artists and photographers enamored with the picturesque landscape and view. These artists later helped save the overlook, increasing public interest and using their platforms to raise funds to protect the property from development. In 2019, The Conservation Fund and a private donor provided $1.12 million in bridge loans to ACT to move quickly to purchase the original 71 acres while continuing to fundraise for the project.

In May 2022, ACT opened OLO to the public as a nature preserve. The preserve was dedicated in the name of Marjorie A. Hoy, an internationally recognized entomologist and researcher whose work focused on Florida citrus pests. Upon her passing, Marjorie’s estate via her husband, Jim, made a $1 million donation to ACT. This donation, combined with over 300 individual donations as well as grants from the Felburn Foundation and Duke Energy, allowed ACT to pay off the remaining loans and install trails, kiosks, and picnic tables before opening the preserve to the public.

With the bridge loans paid off on the original property, ACT was able to shift its focus to expanding the preserve and protecting more land along the iconic hill overlooking Orange Lake, which provides recreational opportunities to the surrounding area as well as critical habitat for sandhill crane, bald eagle, and numerous species of wading birds. When the property to the north became available for purchase, ACT worked with the owners to put the land under contract while soliciting donations, loans, and grants to help finance the deal.

Similar to when ACT first purchased the overlook, the community rallied to save this additional piece of ‘Old Florida’. With funding from the Hoy Family, Duke Energy, and the Partnership for Gulf Coast Land Conservation Project Assistance Fund, as well as bridge loans and donations from private individuals totaling more than $500,000, ACT closed on the expansion earlier this week.

“We are very grateful to the community, our grant partners, donors, and the Sawallis Family for recognizing the importance of conserving this land. Continued conservation along the Orange Lake corridor not only provides the public with recreational opportunities, but also connects critical habitat for numerous species in an area of Florida that is experiencing rapid population growth and intense development pressure. Protecting special places like this would not happen without the collective support of individuals, businesses, agencies, and non-profits working together towards the common goal of conservation.”

— Tom Kay, ACT Executive Director

Once the bridge loans are repaid and the cattle lease on the property ends, the new acreage will be added to the existing nature park with hiking trails and other passive public recreational opportunities. ACT also has plans to restore the two historic structures at OLO into a public gathering space and museum highlighting the history of the area.

For additional information, please contact ACT at info@AlachuaConservationTrust.org or (352) 373-1078.