PINELLAS COUNTY, Fla. — The nonprofit organization WK Preservation is working to raise $1.5 million to save 14 acres from development in Pinellas County.

It has a looming deadline of Sept. 15 to have the funds, but is currently around $390,000 short.

The group has been working to save the preserve located on West Klosterman Road for the past four years. Experts say it is a unique ecosystem and home to more than 60 endangered plants and animals.

Tex Carter says the group is hopeful that it will reach its funding goals.

“Over 25% of our 2,000 donations have come in the last four weeks,” Carter said.

The Pinellas County School District has owned the land since the 1990s. In 2020, developers were interested in purchasing the land to build condos, and this is when the WK Preserve stepped in to try to save the land.

If it can reach its goal of $1.5 million, Pinellas County has pledged to match those funds, and then the land would become a permanent preserve.

Pinellas County put out a statement saying: “Pinellas County has pledged $1.5 million in matching funds towards the purchase of this important land, demonstrating our commitment to preserving its natural beauty and resources.”

Carter said the preserve will be saved, along with many more in the future.

“Almost every day you will see a new development starting, a new set of bulldozers knocking down trees," Carter said. "And that’s what we want to stop here, and when we’re successful here, we want to go and do it with other projects."

Anyone interested in learning more about WK Preserve's efforts to save the land can visit the group's website.