The Capital Regional District has acquired a 10-hectare parcel of undeveloped land bordered on two sides by the existing park and running along East Sooke Road next to the East Sooke Volunteer Fire Department.
The property has a market value of $1,090,000 and was bought by the CRD for $950,000. The landowners, the Broadbent family, donated $140,000 of the land’s value. “Many Gillespie descendants have been fortunate to explore and play there, and we are delighted that it will now be preserved and shared for others to enjoy,” the Broadbent family said in a statement. “We thank the CRD for making it possible.”
The area is considered an important habitat for bears, cougars and wolves, as well as for many smaller creatures. It also includes several old-growth Coastal Douglas fir trees estimated at more than 250 years old. The new property will be left in its natural state to buffer the park’s existing boundaries and to protect biodiversity and wildlife habitat.