Anne Arundel preserves 47 acres outside Annapolis for walking trails, wildlife

Three decades ago, Sylvia Earl moved to Anne Arundel County with her husband, James. They quickly became philanthropists in the region, especially for environmental causes.

Though James Earl died last year, Sylvia has continued their work. A donation from the Earls is allowing for the preservation of 20 acres of forested land in Anne Arundel County.

“It’s glorious,” Earl said. “It’s wonderful.”

She was one of dozens of people who gathered Monday to celebrate the preservation of the land along with an additional 27 acres purchased with state, local and federal funds through the Department of Defense’s Readiness and Environmental Protection Integration Program. A conservation easement held by the Navy preserves those acres.

The Earl family worked with the Chesapeake Conservancy to purchase the 20 acres and with the Scenic Rivers Land Trust to establish a permanent conservation easement, which was then donated to the county. It will be called the Earl Family Preserve.

The land is just off Bestgate Road, north of Annapolis Mall. It’s between some small developments of single-family homes and just south of where Saltworks Creek widens and some people have docks.

County officials did not disclose the purchase price for the 20 acres donated by the Earl family. The additional 27 acres were purchased for $2.8 million, with $1 million from the Defense Department program, $1 million from the state and the remainder from county funds.

U.S. Rep. Sarah Elfreth, a Democrat who represents part of Anne Arundel County, thanked Earl and her family for supporting land preservation.

“This is a perfect type of project where we have local money, state money, federal money, private money, all swimming in the right direction to get this done,” Elfreth said.

The 47 acres close a gap of preserved land in the area, just outside Annapolis, creating a contiguous block of 277 acres of protected forest.

Anne Arundel County Executive Steuart Pittman said the county was preserving and protecting “the best” of the region’s trees and open space.

“I know the community has been walking these trails for some time, but now it’s going to be protected in perpetuity,” he said.

Jessica Leys, the county’s director of recreation and parks, said Anne Arundel plans to convert the 47 acres into passive parkland — a space where people can walk trails or observe wildlife.

The land was once considered for a 76-townhome development, Pittman said.

Saltworks Creek is a tributary of the Severn River. A 2020 report from the Severn River Association found that water quality in Saltworks Creek was “generally poor,” with conditions worse toward its headwaters.

Anne Arundel County met its goal to preserve 30% of its land by the year 2030 by the end of 2025, county spokesperson Gabby Reed said. County staff are working on a report outlining how much land has been preserved.

The county’s preserved land includes 630 permanently protected acres in the Bacon Ridge Natural Area in Crownsville, large swaths of South County, and Quiet Waters Park in Annapolis.

The new preserve’s entrance is at the end of Moran Drive, part of a residential community off Bestgate Road. The road comes to a sudden stop at the edge of the woods.

When the remarks were over, Pittman took a pair of pliers from county staff and finished removing a big “no trespassing” sign, opening the trails to the public.