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November 16, 2006
A Girl's Gotta Dream
Some people know that my dream is to own a fair chunk of land somewhere out here in the west. I dream that I will be able to someday live simply on my little piece of the world. Mostly, though, I wish to own a little chunk of land for the purpose of land conservation.
Some call this part of our nation the wild, empty, untouched West. While I believe that much western land remains undeveloped and, resultingly, conserved, I also believe that this will change very quickly over the next several decades (It has already changed significantly in the last 20 years.). More developed land will be needed to accommodate our nation's expanding population. The Wild West will most likely be quickly tamed into cities, suburbs, cloverleaf interstate interchanges, Macy's and Bloomingdale's malls, 7-11 and Kum and Go gas stations, and strips of Outback and Olive Garden restaurants.
In the earlier parts of the 20th Century, Theodore Roosevelt and his conservation compadres exhibited tremendous foresight as they placed federal protection on huge chunks of our nation's land. The public scratched their heads at Teddy's aggressive protection maneuvers: there is so much empty land in our nation, why do we need to protect it? Since then, small bits of land here and there have gone under federal (and state) protection for land conservation. The most recent federal land conservation movement occurred during the Clinton Administration when several million western acres, such as the Grand Staircase-Escalante region in Utah, were placed under federal protection.
These days, land conservation has also extended to the private level. Non-profit organizations such as the Nature Conservancy spend millions of dollars annually buying up bits, pieces, and sometimes huge chunks of undeveloped land in the name of land conservation. Individual land buyers are also doing the same thing. Rumor has it that, in local proximity, Tom Brokaw, the Forbes family, Dennis Quaid, Peter Fonda, and Ted Turner all own significant chunks of undeveloped land that will stay that way. And, thousands and thousands of average, non-celebrity people, just in local proximity, own tiny pieces of undeveloped land as well.
Even on the very small level that I will be able to contribute, I wish to someday participate in this communal land conservation effort. For a few hours of time today, this dream was alive and flying. As I was driving to my running location today, I happened upon a 20+/- acre parcel of land that was for sale. I was immediately in love. It shared a boundary with the Gallatin National Forest. It was made up of rolling, sagebrush hills that backed into a tall mountain rising a few thousand feet into the national forest. It was within earshot of Mill Creek, a wide but cascading creek. And, it overlooked the Yellowstone River Valley north of the national park. The views were phenomenal, just as you imagine Montana's big sky country to be.
As I ran, my internal dialogue consisted of conjuring how much I thought the land would cost, the cabin that I would build tucked into the hillside, how I would do my daily runs right here next to Mill Creek, and how 20 more acres of this valley would remain mostly untouched. After running, I returned to the for sale sign, wrote down the broker's name and number, and called him as I was standing right there.
Me: "I'm wondering if you can tell me about the parcel of land that you're selling along Mill Creek."
Him: "Oh yes, it's just beautiful. It backs up into forest service land. The parcel is rolling hills right next to a big mountain. It's mostly grass and sagebrush. You have a 360 degree view. The Yellowstone River is just a few miles away. Did you know that the Yellowstone is a world class fly-fishing river? Would you like to schedule a time to look at it?"
Me: "Actually, I'm standing in front of the land right now. Mostly I'm wondering what the list price is."
Him: "An affordable $699,000."
Me: Gulp. Wimper. "Wow, I had no idea it would be so much. That's out of my price range."
Him: "Perhaps we could schedule a time to meet to discuss a workable price for the both of us?"
Me: "You see, it's not even close to my price range. Thanks for your time."
Then and there, standing in front of the for sale sign, my dream was squished flat. I should have known better. But a girl's gotta dream, right? Perhaps Ted Turner could step in here and help a girl out.
Posted by Meghan at November 16, 2006 6:45 PM
Comments
um, yeah, so that's a heck of a lot of money. but i am floored by how much land you get for that much. city housing (and by housing i don't even mean land!) prices are just sick!
good luck with the dream!
Posted by: Audrey at November 16, 2006 8:45 PM
I feel your pain. I feel the same thing about Michigan's Upper Peninsula. Sometimes I think I should just go ahead and find a lender thats stupid enough to lend the money to me and then just worry about how to get the payments together. Sometimes you've just gotta take the plunge. (of course, I haven't - you go first!)
Posted by: Janet at November 17, 2006 5:30 AM
I like that dream...
Coming from Boston that sounds like a steal, of course property value is just outrages around here. Along with running I'm also an avid fly fisher this could be the perfect spot to retire, only 20 more yrs to go = (
I hope your dream comes true.
Posted by: Ryan at November 17, 2006 7:41 AM
.. i'd like to make a donation... time to start the "Meghan Dream Land Conservation Fund"... i'd be willing to give you money to buy land and look after it, seriously, i think you would do a wonderful job taking care of it... think about it...
Posted by: corrado giambalvo at November 17, 2006 9:25 AM
Yes, prime real estate is pricey. very pricey. but keep looking! If you really investigate, you may find a gem of a parcel that is within a manageable price range. We did. We took out a monster mortgage on this piece of land here in Idaho, but it is so worth it. We are planning to do the conservation easement as well, to preserve this little piece of the world from development! Ack! the world does not need any more Olive Gardens and parking lots. :)
Posted by: anne at November 17, 2006 11:43 AM