A land swap deal allowing a Florida-based developer to trade 144 acres of land it had slated for development for 30 acres of federally protected land that is home to an endangered bird species has quietly gone into effect on San Antonio’s North Side.
For the past year and a half, residents living on the edge of the 768-acre Cibolo Canyons Conservation Easement have been fighting to keep the deal from going through, arguing that the land home developer Starwood Land wants is prime habitat for the golden-cheeked warbler, a tiny songbird that breeds solely in Central Texas.
Despite opposition, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service granted a deal allowing the trade earlier this year. The swap officially took effect in July.
Residents opposed to the deal were unaware that it had happened, and were only alerted when a San Antonio-area builder posted in a chat forum in September that it was a done deal, said Diane Temple, a resident who lives on the edge of the easement.
She added that she and other residents had filed a petition with the Fish and Wildlife Service asking to be alerted of its final decision.
“It was pretty frustrating,” to not receive official notice, she said.
Plans for the land
Starwood Lands plans to build a new residential and multifamily development on the 30 acres and has started marking trees and landmarks with flags and paint, said Temple.
Residents have submitted an appeal to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service for reconsideration.
In their appeal, the group outlined three reasons the decision should be overturned, including the lack of notification. They also accused Starwood Land of permit violations they say should also disqualify it from developing the 144 acres it previously owned if the swap was reversed.
Because the residents’ appeal was filed outside the 45-day window after the swap went through, however, it may not have legs to stand on. An environmental lawyer told the group there was no legal way to undo the swap at this time, said Gina Smith, another Cibolo Canyons resident.
Under the approved deal, the Cibolo Canyons Conservation Easement has grown to 882 acres. Still, residents and local environmentalists are concerned the developer may cut down old trees within the swapped parcel that are perfect for the threatened bird to nest in.
It’s unclear when the building will officially begin on the 30-acre parcel. Starwood Land CEO Mike Moser had not responded to a call for comment from the Report by the time of publication.
‘In perpetuity’
The Cibolo Canyons Conservation Easement, adjacent to the JW Marriott San Antonio Hill Country Resort and Spa, was first put into place in 2006. A conservation easement is a legal agreement that permanently limits certain uses of land to protect it.
Starwood Land, which has been operating locally under the name TF Cibolo Canyons LP, inherited the Cibolo Canyons Conservation Easement in 2018 when it acquired Forestar Real Estate Group, formerly called Lumbermen’s Investment Corporation, and all of its assets, which included the planned community of Cibolo Canyons.
Starwood Land first submitted an application to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to amend the easement in January 2023, requesting an unprecedented land swap deal.
The developer initially asked the Fish and Wildlife Service for 63 acres of protected land that it could develop in exchange for its 144 acres of unprotected land; that unprotected land would then become part of the conservation easement.
In response, residents living next to the easement went to the media to publicly oppose the amendment, arguing that they had bought their properties under the premise the land next to them would be protected “in perpetuity.”
Starwood Land later amended its ask down to 30 acres in an effort to appease opponents. The developer continued to argue that the land swap would not have significant environmental effects on the golden-cheeked warbler — nor would it establish a precedent for similar future actions, or have significant impacts on a species listed on the Fish and Wildlife Service’s list of endangered or threatened species.
“The amendment to the Habitat Conservation Plan was approved after thorough review and consideration of all comments that were submitted during the public comment period,” U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service public affairs specialist Evan Monnett wrote in an email to the San Antonio Report on Wednesday.
Monnett added that the agency considers this swap beneficial. In its published findings regarding the swap, the agency states, “The proposed taking will not appreciably reduce the likelihood of the survival and recovery of the species in the wild.”
“The Applicant has met the criteria for the issuance of the amended [incidental take permit] and there are no disqualifying factors that would prevent the amended [incidental take permit] from being issued under current regulations,” it states. The findings also state that the 144 acres being added to the easement “has sufficient habitat to support breeding warblers periodically.”
Smith said the neighborhood group plans to oppose Starwood Land’s request to remove old-growth trees from the 30-acre plot at respective City of San Antonio meetings.
“We’re gonna do our best to make sure that they follow the [mitigation rules] as they come up,” Smith said.
Within the findings, the Fish and Wildlife Service states that Starwood Land has agreed to do mitigation actions — strategies or activities aimed at minimizing, reducing or offsetting the negative impacts of human activities on the environment.
Monnett confirmed the agency is reviewing the residents’ appeal.
