The Bainbridge Island Land Trust has started a new fundraising drive to buy and protect five properties on the island.

Officials with the nonprofit said they hope to raise $5 million in donations by the end of next year. The money will help pay for two properties that were recently acquired by the land trust, plus other lands high in habitat value that are at risk of development.

Since its start in 1989, the land trust has helped protect more than 1,345 acres of forests, wetlands, shorelines, meadows and more across Bainbridge, and Jane Stone, executive director of the organization, said preservation of the island’s green spaces must keep pace with continued development on Bainbridge.

The new fundraising effort, called Stand for the Land, is the biggest land conservation campaign ever conducted by the Bainbridge Island Land Trust, Stone said.

“It’s a really big deal for the organization,” she said.

Donations will help pay for two properties on the south end of the island that have been recently purchased by the land trust.

The first, called the Jablonko parcel, is a 14.17-acre parcel that is part of the historic Peters Tree Farm and sits just east of the Gazzam Lake Nature Preserve.

The second property, Cougar Creek, comprises 15.35 acres at the corner of Old Mill Road and Blakely Avenue. Land trust officials said the parcel has a pond, wetlands and stream, and expansive forested areas that include some of the largest cedar trees on Bainbridge.

The property has been owned by Kathy and Daryle Schei for the past 30 years.

“We are delighted to have reached an agreement with the Bainbridge Island Land Trust to transfer both ownership and stewardship of this property to them,” the couple said. “It gives us great pleasure to be in a position to support the land trust and the greater island community in this way.”

Officials with the land trust said the push to protect the natural environment of the island is crucial as more and more land is consumed by new homes and subdivisions. The island’s population grew by more than 5 percent between 2012 and 2016, and there are fewer and fewer large properties that remain undeveloped.

In 1996, for example, there were 94 properties more than 10 acres in size that were undeveloped. That number has since dropped to 35.

“We’re all aware of the development that is happening here,” Stone said. “And one of the things we’ve realized is, we have to keep pace with that.”

The community has consistently said it values natural areas, open space and wildlife habitat, Stone added, and it’s a central part of the island’s character.

“We feel like it’s imperative, more than ever, that we launch this campaign to help us keep pace with what’s going on on the island,” she said.

David Harrison, who is co-chairing Stand for the Land with Zan Merriman, said the nonprofit started meeting with a small group of potential donors five to six months ago. The campaign will have its official kickoff this month, and the launch will include mailers, signs and more.

“We expect, hope and believe that we can achieve this $5 million goal by the end of 2019,” Harrison said. “And that will get us at least five new properties.”

Both the Jablonko and Cougar Creek properties are now under contract for purchase, and will be paid off through the Stand for the Land campaign.

“We didn’t want to wait until all five properties were purchased,” he explained, “because we wanted to get going on the fundraising.”

Stone said other properties that are targeted for purchase through Stand for the Land will be identified through the organization’s conservation plan.

Stone said there is much public support for conserving the island’s special places, and pointed to the successful efforts to raise more than $3 million for the acquisition of the Hilltop property, which connects the East and West sections of the Grand Forest, as well as the broad public support for the Bainbridge park district’s bond measure for the Sakai property.

“We feel it’s achievable,” Stone said of the goal for the Stand for the Land campaign.

“It will be work, for sure, but there’s no question it is something the community values, and they will be supportive,” she said.

Hikers make their way through the forest on the Jablonko property, a 14.17-acre property that the Bainbridge Island Land Trust will preserve through a community funded acquisition effort called Stand for the Land. (Shaun Swalley photo)