A $1 million community matching fundraising campaign has been launched to support rewilding the Quad Parcels at the Celery Fields.
With matching support from local foundations and donors, Big Waters Land Trust is seeking additional gifts from the community to fully fund the rewilding of the Southwest Quad, adding native habitat for wildlife and eco-friendly amenities for community access and enjoyment. The effort brings together funders Charles & Margery Barancik Foundation and the Gulf Coast Community Foundation and three local philanthropic families.
“This is an important opportunity to enhance one of our region’s most environmentally significant places,” said Jon Thaxton, director of Policy and Advocacy at Gulf Coast. “Gulf Coast has worked
alongside Big Waters, the Sarasota Audubon Society, and the Barancik Foundation for many years, and now, with generous donor support, the community can help preserve its own backyard.”
To donate to the project, go to bigwaterslandtrust.org/donate and select “Re-Wilding the Quad Parcels.”
Successful First Phase
Located in fast-growing eastern Sarasota County, the Celery Fields is an internationally recognized birding destination where Sarasota Audubon has recorded more than 250 bird species. It also serves as one of the county’s primary flood-mitigation zones, protecting thousands of downstream homes from flooding. The Quad Parcels comprise 33 acres of public conservation land along the western edge of the Celery Fields, providing a natural buffer between the preserve and industrial areas to the west. Rewilding these parcels will create more habitat for birds and other wildlife while providing the community with more opportunities to enjoy the natural area.
“We are thrilled with the collaboration of Gulf Coast, Barancik Foundation and other key donors to bring this matching challenge to life,” said Jeanne Dubi, director of Special Projects for Sarasota Audubon Society. “The rewilding of the Quad parcels is the result of partnerships between Sarasota Audubon and Big Waters and also with Sarasota County, which had the foresight to trust our two organizations to expand the Celery Fields with this wildlife buffer for all to enjoy.”
The first phase of the project, launched in January 2025, involved improving the 11-acre Southeast Quad by planting over 21,000 trees and plants while creating trails, a pond, and wildlife-viewing gazebo. It was completed in July of this year and will open to the public on Oct. 24. The new matching opportunity will support the next phase, which aims to transform the Southwest Quad into a nature-based community space with improved wildlife habitat.
Phase II will include not only planting hundreds more trees and plants, but also adding public amenities like a restroom, nature-themed playground, flex lawn, and shaded picnic facilities.
“We’re grateful for the years of partnership and investment that have conserved and improved the Quad Parcels,” said Christine Johnson, president of Big Waters Land Trust. “This next phase will build on that foundation, expanding the ecological benefits and advancing a vision for what these lands can provide for wildlife and people.”
The $1-million pool of matching funds includes:
· $350,000 from Barancik Foundation.
· $350,000 from Gulf Coast.
· $300,000 from Gulf Coast donors Bob and Joan Geyer, the Elizabeth Moore Sunrise Fund, and the Elsa & Peter Soderberg Charitable Foundation.
“This is a terrific example of the power of collaboration,” said John Annis, president and CEO of the Barancik Foundation. “We are so much more effective when we row in the same direction, coming together to make the whole greater than the sum of its parts. Now, the community can join us in this important work.”
Submitted by Alyssa Holcomb
This article originally appeared on Sarasota Herald-Tribune: There's a new push to rewild Sarasota's Celery Fields habitat
