North-end park may be expanded through land deal

Published 7:00 pm Wednesday, October 4, 2006

Neighbors, family work to enlarge the Ted Olson Nature Preserve on North Madison.

Like any good neighbor, Deb DeVlieger keeps a protective eye on the property that sits behind her back fence.

She would likely do the same for the Smiths or the Jones or anyone else with whom she shared a property line, but in this case, DeVlieger’s neighbors are a consortium of coyotes, woodpeckers and bearded firs that comprise the Ted Olson Nature Preserve.

Tucked down a shady gravel drive off North Madison, the 10-acre swath of forest has offered refuge to park-goers and wildlife alike since it was donated to the park district in 1971 by Ted Olson, whose family homesteaded the area in the late 1800s.

Now, thanks to Olson’s niece, the Bainbridge Island Land Trust and neighbors like DeVlieger, the park may soon expand by 50 percent.

“You just don’t know how excited I am,” said a giddy DeVlieger, standing beneath her needled neighbors of 16 years. DeVlieger and her husband bought their nearby home in 1990 and have long enjoyed the park’s trails and wildlife.

A few years ago, when she heard that five adjoining acres owned by Olson’s descendants might soon hit the market, she considered buying the property to preserve it, but couldn’t afford to.

Instead, DeVlieger wrote Eileen Olson, Ted’s niece, to find out what might become of the land. Olson called back. She needed to sell the property, but wanted to preserve it, and so began their joint effort to achieve both objectives.

In 2002, they contacted the city’s Open Space Commission to see if the group might want to purchase the property. Olson, who lives in Seattle, was willing to sell at a discount, provided the land was preserved in its entirety.

There was interest, but a deal was never worked out and the parcel has since laid in wait.

Enter the Bainbridge Island Land Trust, which next week will draft an option to buy the land for $375,000, $120,000 less than the current market price.

In addition to preserving the entire five acres as parkland, a proposed walking trail would swoop through the expanded area, connecting North Madison to Kallgren Road.

The deal, which still may include help from the OSC, could be done by the end of the year, according to Land Trust Executive Director Karen Molinari.

“It has all the things we look for in a property,” she said. “It’s a beautiful piece and there’s not a lot of open space in the north end.”

Also, because it’s contiguous with the existing park, Molinari said the land is especially enticing.

The park now includes a short winding trail that loops from the parking lot through the existing plot and past a mossy natural amphitheater.

The five acres that would become part of the park are situated in the northeast corner of the property, and are a “bit wet” in spots, according to DeVlieger.

“It’s a forest that’s in reconstruction,” she said. “It’s not a grand forest, but it has things in it that are very interesting.”

Olson said she and her sister are both committed to protecting land that has been in her family for more than a century. Her late father had expressed a similar desire.

Still, as property taxes increased, it became apparent to Olson that they would eventually need to sell.

When a deal couldn’t be reached with the OSC, the family put the land on the open market, but still hoped that somehow it could be spared from development.

Then, in June, Olson was contacted by the Land Trust about the possibility of buying the property at a discount. Both sides are hopeful about the deal.

“We spent a long time trying to get to this goal,” Olson said. “So it’s exciting that this might happen.”

The next step, of course, is fund-raising. Molinari and the Land Trust will give a presentation at the Oct. 10 OSC meeting. From there, the two groups will decide how to proceed.

“We at Open Space would love to see the property protected,” said OSC member Lisa Macchio.

The problem has been money, of which there simply hasn’t been enough.

Still, Molinari hopes that between the two entities and the community, which can help by donating money to the cause, a solution can be reached.

“We’re going to go for it,” she said. “Every five acres we can preserve is another area for people and animals to enjoy.”

DeVlieger has helped as well. At last week’s City Council meeting, she gave her own presentation about the park and encouraged council members to support the project in any way they can.

She, too, is hopeful, and grateful for Olson’s commitment to preservation.

“She’s a neat lady,” DeVlieger said, adding that Olson has talked about including, at her own expense, a bench engraved with her father’s name, in the expanded park. Then, in a neighborly tone, DeVlieger smiled and said: “I’ll pay for the bench.”