News & Public Affairs
Hillsborough's Environmental Lands Acquisition and Protection Program considers buying two new properties listen
10/29/12 Janelle IrwinWMNF Drive-Time News Monday Listen to this entire show:
Tags: ELAPP
Hillsborough County’s Environmental Lands Acquisition and Protection Program will consider purchasing two new sites in the Tampa Bay area at a meeting Monday night.
WMNF’s Janelle Irwin spoke with Forest Turbiville, from the county’s Parks, Recreation and Conservation department about what the plans mean for residents.
The meeting Monday at 6 p.m. will be on the 18th floor of the County Center on Kennedy Boulevard in downtown Tampa. Members of the public are invited to comment.
...
Be the first to commentELAPP to purchase land to protect near Little Manatee River and Cypress Creek listen
08/09/11 Janelle IrwinWMNF Drive-Time News Tuesday Listen to this entire show:
Tags: ELAPP, parks and recreation, land preservation, Hillsborough County
Hillsborough's Environmental Lands Acquisition and Protection Program (ELAPP) held a meeting last night to accept nominations for new sites to purchase. There were none. But the team did accept two nominations for boundary modifications to existing ELAPP properties.
Another victim of a failing economy reared its ugly head last night. Partnerships with state organizations to maximize ELAPP resources were once a readily available luxury. The organization began in 1987 with the intention o...
Be the first to commentELAPP members remain optimistic about land preservation in Hillsborough despite state cuts listen
07/21/11 Aaron DalleyWMNF Drive-Time News Thursday Listen to this entire show:
Tags: ELAPP, preservation, environment, Florida Forever, Hillsborough County Commission, Hillsborough County
On Monday, the board for Hillsborough County’s Environmental Land Acquisition and Protection Program, or ELAPP, met for the first time since the new Florida state budget took effect. In that budget, $305 million of environmental land acquisition money was eliminated. But ELAPP board members remain hopeful. Forest Turbiville, section manager for regional parks and conservation services in Hillsborough County, said the cuts are affecting partnering agencies more.
Be the first to comment"The cutting of Florida For...
Hillsborough County Commission Approves ELAPP Cone Ranch Purchase listen
02/17/10 Kate BradshawWMNF Drive-Time News Wednesday Listen to this entire show:
Tags: water, ELAPP, Environmental Lands Acquisition and Protection Program, Al Higginbotham, Mariella Smith, Conservation, Hillsborough County Commission, Cone Ranch
The Hillsborough Board of County Commissioners voted 6-0 today to transfer Cone Ranch from the county water utility to its Environmental Lands Acquisition and Protection Program (ELAPP).
The purchase will take place using $11.8 million in ELAPP bond money, which Utilities and Commerce Administrator Mike Merrill said was less than what he was hoping for.
Water Utility Director Paul Vanderploog said that not transferring the land for the price of a full assessed value that may have total...
Be the first to commentHillsborough commission to transfer Cone Ranch to ELAPP for book value listen
01/21/10 Seán KinaneWMNF Drive-Time News Thursday Listen to this entire show:
Tags: Cone Ranch, ELAPP, Hillsborough County Commission
This afternoon, the Hillsborough County Commission took another step in protecting Cone Ranch. In a six to one vote, the Commissioners, including Kevin Beckner, agreed the twelve thousand acre property north of Plant City should be transferred to the county’s land preservation program.
In 2008, county residents voted to increase funding for its Environmental Lands Acquisition and Protection Program, [ELAPP](http://www.hillsboroughcoun...
Be the first to commentCitizens debate fate of Cone Ranch transfer to ELAPP listen
01/12/10 Concetta DeLucoWMNF Drive-Time News Tuesday Listen to this entire show:
Tags: ELAPP, Cone Ranch, hillsborough board of county commissioners
Controversy continues to surround the fate of Cone Ranch. Last night, a heated discussion by a citizen advisory panel for Hillsborough County’s Environmental Lands Acquisition and Preservation Program or ELAPP continued over how to preserve the 12,000 acres of Cone Ranch.
Cone Ranch is owned by Hillsborough County and has been managed by the county’s water utility since 1991. Debate about what to do with the property began months ago when a local business group offered to facilitate the p...
Be the first to commentCounty to Follow Cone Ranch Recommendations listen
12/16/09 Kate BradshawWMNF Drive-Time News Wednesday Listen to this entire show:
Tags: Cone Ranch, ELAPP, Environmental Lands Acquisition and Protection Program, Kevin Beckner, Mariella Smith
Today the Hillsborough Board of County Commissioners approved a motion to accept the recommendations of a Cone Ranch advisory board. It would allow the County’s Environmental Lands Acquisition and Protection Program to purchase the nearly 13,000 acres of land that constitute Cone Ranch.
The land, which the county water utility currently owns, is a vital part of the Hillsborough River watershed.
Some, like Mariella Smith of the ELAPP committee had concern that the land would fall into ...
Be the first to commentCone Ranch purchase recommended by ELAPP panel listen
09/17/09 Seán KinaneWMNF Drive-Time News Thursday Listen to this entire show:
Tags: Cone Ranch, ELAPP, Denise Layne
Hillsborough County’s Environmental Lands Acquisition and Protection Program, or ELAPP, may be in the market to buy the site north of Plant City known as Cone Ranch. The nearly 13,000 acre property is owned by the county’s water department but has been coveted by a group of investors known as the Florida Conservation and Environmental Group, or FCEG.
In May, Cou...
Be the first to commentCone Ranch panel defeats proposal to end consideration of land sale to private owners listen
07/20/09 Seán KinaneWMNF Drive-Time News Monday Listen to this entire show:
Tags: Cone Ranch, ELAPP, Adnan Khashoggi
The advisory panel tasked with recommending to the Hillsborough County Commission whether to sell Cone Ranch met for the second time this morning. In a four-to-three vote, the Cone Ranch Environmental Advisory Panel narrowly defeated a motion that would have guaranteed that the property north of Plant City would stay in county hands. But that does not mean the panel will accept a proposal to sell the land to private owners.
After only one ful...
Be the first to commentFormer County Commissioner: Renew ELAPP listen
10/27/08 Mitch E. PerryWMNF Drive-Time News Monday Listen to this entire show:
Tags: 2008 election, land preservation, Hillsborough County, ELAPP
On the ballot Tuesday in Hillsborough County is a proposal to renew a local land preservation Program known as the Environmental Lands Acquisition and Protection Program (ELAPP).
The referendum asks voters to approve $200 million in bonds for land acquisition, but unless approved, it will end in 2011. Supporters say the amount Hillsborough homeowners would pay amounts to $27 a year for a home assessed at $300,000. One public official who was critical of getting the program up and running...
Be the first to comment