An acre of wooded land in Fairfax is now a nature preserve after a group of residents helped purchase it from a developer who was planning to construct housing on it.
"It's pretty steep, but I think you'd be surprised on what people can build on out here," said Kristen Wilson.
When she takes a walk through her Fairfax neighborhood, it's an uphill battle.
The acre of land across the street from her home on Piper Lane doesn't seem like something that could support three houses and six accessory dwelling units, but that's what the plan was when a developer bought the property last year.
"It's gone up for sale before, but never has there been a serious developer focused on developing it," said Kristen. "And I think part of it is the pressure of the housing element and just the need for more housing. But then you look at it and you think, OK, it makes sense why it hasn't been bought before, right?"
The residents said they were alarmed at the news. The property has always been a haven for wildlife, and Wilson said it's been wonderful sharing the neighborhood with deer and bobcats and watching the owls and hawks in the trees.
Normally, something like this would ignite a huge community fight. But the neighbors took a different approach: They contacted the developer, Kevin Curtis, and asked if he would be willing to sell it to them.
He said he was impressed with the respectful way the neighbors approached him with their offer and agreed to sell it for what he paid, about $50,000. A dozen homeowners chipped in to raise the money.
"And that, it's really inspiring," said Wilson. "It gives me a lot of hope about the neighborhood being active and willing to put their own money forward to do this. Because we couldn't do it on our own."
The money was donated to a conservancy nonprofit, the Western Alliance for Nature, which purchased the land, keeping it as a preserve for the wildlife. And along the way, Wilson said the entire experience brought the humans in the neighborhood closer together.
"I think the whole street is rather proud. It's like, 'We actually did that!'" said her neighbor, Barbara Bonander. "You know, we didn't start with,'Let's get angry.' We didn't go to,'Let's complain.' I'm sure you've seen some of the history of Fairfax recently,different sides,whatever.No.It was like,let's come up with a solution.And one in which we all have to buy in."
The sale was official on Dec. 12, and it was the developer's condition that a permanent deed restriction be put on the land to ensure long-term conservation. The new "Piper Lane Preserve" is officially a home for wildlife.