Selby Foundation awards $100,000 to Sarasota Audubon to support Celery Fields project

The William G. and Marie Selby Foundation recently awarded $100,000 to Sarasota Audubon in support of the re-wilding project at the Celery Fields. The local Audubon chapter is partnering with the Conservation Foundation of the Gulf Coast to increase the biodiversity of the Celery Fields by building and enhancing the habitat of the adjacent 33 acres of protected land known as the Quad Parcels.

“The Selby Foundation’s gift of $100,000 is an enormous contribution to our efforts to enhance the southwest parcel which serves as the front porch and welcome mat of the re-wilding project,” said Jeanne Dubi, president of Sarasota Audubon. “Residents and visitors will find parking, family-friendly spaces, ‘open flex lawns,’ discovery areas for children, ADA-friendly walkways, and a Celery Fields history kiosk; the public restrooms with an attached covered picnic pavilion are the focus of the Selby Foundation funds.”

The completed re-wilding project also will feature a wooded habitat with a pollinator meadow and a bird and wildlife viewing platform on the southeastern parcel; the northeast parcel with an existing stormwater retention pond will have littoral plantings and added wooded areas. Together, the quad parcels will serve as a buffer to the Celery Fields, an international and national birding hotspot with more than 250 species of migratory and resident birds as well as native mammals, reptiles, and other wildlife.

“Wildlife viewing is one of the biggest draws of visitors to Sarasota County,” Dubi said. “With the addition of woodland habitat and the public amenities that make it accessible, this area of the Celery Fields will become its own destination, drawing people from around the state, country and world.”

Sarasota Audubon and the Conservation Foundation are currently fundraising and finalizing the habitat design with Sarasota County. The organizations hope to break ground by the end of the year.

“Bill and Marie Selby loved to be outdoors and appreciated our natural environment,” said Susie Bowie, president and CEO of the Selby Foundation. “We are delighted that the Selby Foundation has invested $100,000 in the Quad Parcels by supporting the efforts of Sarasota Audubon Society and know that this gift will increase accessibility to nature for children, families, and individuals.”

To learn more about the re-wilding of the Quad Parcels or to make a donation, visit SarasotaAudubon.org/quad.

Submitted by Suzanne Dameron

This article originally appeared on Sarasota Herald-Tribune: Sarasota's Celery Fields re-wilding project receives financial boost