Donations for Darvan Acres Nature Center

VISION STATEMENT:

Darvan Acres Nature Center will preserve and restore the pristine Marcott Valley for the benefit of existing and restored wildlife while providing nature-oriented education available to young and old to increase understanding and appreciation of our natural world.

OUR MISSION IS:

• Environmental protection and restoration of the land to its native state.
• Returning native species to thrive in Marcott Valley
• Developing an education center and programs focused on environmental sciences and technologies and an appreciation of our natural world.

We will strive for success in all we do with innovation and quality that can be shared with other organizations.

CURRENT STATUS:

Under Vance and Darlene Grannis’ vision and efforts and the help of many volunteers, DarVan Acres Nature Center has been established and is now operating as a non-profit organization.  All Nature Center positions are currently staffed by volunteers at this time.  An Advisory Board is being formed to activate the Nature Center vision and mission.  Advisory Board members, volunteers, and donations are actively being sought and welcomed.

Significant progress has been made on the primary objective to preserve and restore the land in the Marcott Valley.   Permanent, natural area conservation easements have now been placed on over 125 acres of contiguous land and critical habitat areas within Marcott Valley.  The easements were acquired by Dakota County with County and State funding through Metro Greenways and Outdoor Heritage funds. These lands can never be developed. 

The Nature Center has secured access to the Grannis property that is under conservation easement for restoration and educational activities.  A Natural Resource Management Agreement is now in place with the County to begin oak savanna and upland prairie restoration within the Grannis property. 

2019 will be a big year for the Nature Center with the beginning of the restoration of the land to its natural state.  The advisory board and volunteers will be focusing on planting and land restoration and the reintroduction of native species.  It will be exciting to see the fields of wildflowers and prairie grasses develop this year.

The location for a future Nature Center educational building has also been identified for property adjacent to the conservation easement.  Although there is a small building on site for storage and staging small classes, it is inadequate to achieve the vision of the Nature Center. To realize this dream, significant fundraising will be needed to pay for the land and build the facility.  Naming rights for the building and a Board Member seat are available for someone wanting to make a significant donation and create their legacy for supporting the environment through the Nature Center.

The lands included in the conservation easement remain in private ownership and are not open to the general public.  Although the Nature Center does not have the resources to be open to the general public at this time, several days allowing general public access are being planned for 2019. Inquiries for access to special groups such as Scouts and environmental classes should be made by contacting the Nature Center activity director.

The DarVan Acres Nature Center is starting from humble beginnings, but one can see the future and what could be for DarVan Acres in the wonderful examples of Nature Centers such as the Dodge and Carpenter Nature Centers.

HISTORY:

The Grannis family first purchased property in the Marcott Valley in 1920 on the South and East Shores of Marcott Lake as part of a working dairy farm.  In 1953 they purchased land North of the lake and immediately stopped the cultivation of steep slopes and planted vegetation to stop erosion that had been occurring.

In 1960 Vance and Darlene Grannis purchased their property in Marcott Valley and began their lifetime efforts of environmental protection.  Vance served on the boards of national and international bird and zoological societies.  Vance was active in raising threatened species such as the trumpeter swan and reintroducing them to wild in Minnesota.  

The Marcott Lakes had long been identified in State, County and city plans as an important natural area worth protecting. The first step in land protection was applying to the County’s Farmland and Natural Areas Program in 2009. Through a combination of state and County funding, the County acquired a 17-acre conservation easement on a portion of Vance and Darlene’s property along the south shore of Marcott Lake in 2011.  A culminating step in protecting the core landscape of the Marcott Valley occurred in 2017 when the County acquired a 108-acre conservation easement on the Grannis property with County and State Outdoor Heritage funds as recommended by the Lessard-Sams Outdoor Heritage Council.