The 40 Acre DNR Trust Land Transfer
- tom52644
- Oct 6
- 2 min read
The Trust Land Transfer Application was submitted September 30th!
The 40-acre parcel of land, currently owned by Department of Natural Resources (DNR), and located immediately adjacent to, and upslope, of the Miller Bay Preserve has been a major topic of discussion between many parties for several years, and now Friends of Miller Bay has submitted an application for a Trust Land Transfer (TLT) of the property that would protect it from future timber harvesting and possible development. FOMB, with Great Peninsula Conservancy (GPC) and Kitsap County Parks, have been collaborating for several months on how the three entities can protect, manage, and ultimately restore the health of the forest and the creek channels that flow through the property and connect to the Miller Bay Preserve and Miller Bay.
The DNR Trust Land Transfer program has been around for years but has only recently become more active in transferring lands that are ‘underperforming’, in terms of logging value, to other government agencies. Kitsap County Parks has agreed to accept the transfer. FOMB is leading this “no cost” acquisition effort, by writing and filing the application, and implementing a community awareness campaign. GPC is supporting our efforts and once approved, will work to assure the transfer will be done in a manner that will benefit all the great work the two organizations have done with preservation and restoration along Miller Bay. If this 40-acre parcel is selected for the transfer, (applications reviewed in 2026, decision made in 2027), the County, FOMB and GPC will collaboratively develop a site management plan, a forest management plan, and a stewardship plan to ensure the forest is restored to be healthy and diverse, the creek channels are protected, and invasive plants are removed. The “Addition” will create 57 total contiguous acres of protected habitat, ensuring this critical habitat and its active wildlife corridor are preserved in perpetuity for all future inhabitants!
How You Can Help NOW:
We are asking for letters of support from all groups and individuals! Letters will help improve our project ranking within the TLT rating process. Please send letters to:
OR
Friends of Miller Bay
PO Box 37 Suquamish, WA 98392
Letters received in September were included in our application package, making it much more powerful! Letters may be submitted until April 1, 2026. We need your VOICES! Thank you in advance for helping us build a strong case for this potential land transfer! Your support letters demonstrate how much our community values our bay, our watershed, and our forest lands! Together we can make this preservation effort a success!
How You Can Help Later:
If this transfer is successful, Friends of Miller Bay will be taking a leadership role in the stewardship effort. We will welcome one and all to join us in restoring the land and returning it to a magnificent example of our heritage Pacific Northwest Forest!
By Connie Reckord