Alachua County Forever

What is Alachua County Forever?​​

The Alachua County Forever (ACF) Program is the County’s land conservation program. The program works with willing landowners to protect environmentally significant lands, and agriculturally important lands in the County through using two primary mechanisms:

1. Acquiring or purchasing land, and managing and restoring those lands as nature preserves
2. Partnering with landowners to protect land through establishing conservation easements

ACF was established in 2000 after the Alachua County Forever Bond referendum was approved by the voters of Alachua County. The bond provided $29,000,000 for the acquisition and management of environmentally significant lands. Alachua County Forever has since been renewed three times through the voter-approved Wild Spaces Public Places referenda: in 2008 with a 2-year ½-cent sales tax, and in 2016 with a 6-year ½-cent sales tax, and in 2022 with a 10-year -1 cent sales tax. In addition to supporting land conservation, the Wild Spaces and Public Places surtax currently provides funds for active park improvements, road improvements, and affordable housing and other public use infrastructure in the 9 municipalities, and the County.

To date, the County has conserved over 36,000 acres with 1/3 of the funding coming from grants, land donations, partnerships, and matching funds. Properties acquired through the program are managed either by County staff or by partners agencies and non-profits. Partners manage approximately 20% of the acquired land, thus significantly reducing the County’s management costs. The County manages over 25,000 acres as part of its system of Nature Preserves.