BIG BEAR LAKE, Calif., July 25 (High Desert News Online) — Friends of Big Bear Valley and the San Bernardino Mountains Land Trust said they raised $10.5 million to buy Moon Camp, a more than 62-acre parcel on the north shore of Big Bear Lake in California, and block a planned housing-and-marina project near Jackie and Shadow’s nest.
The groups said the total includes a donation of more than $5.5 million from Anna and Greg Brockman. With that money in hand, the conservation purchase can move ahead.
What is Moon Camp?
Moon Camp is land near the community of Fawnskin, less than a mile from the nesting site of Jackie and Shadow, the well-known bald eagle pair at Big Bear Lake. Friends of Big Bear Valley says the site is important not just because of the nest nearby, but because it sits in a wider wildlife corridor.
The groups describe the area as habitat for bald eagles, San Bernardino flying squirrels, rare native plants, waterfowl and other wildlife.
What was planned for the land?
Campaign materials and local project records describe the proposal as roughly 50 custom homes and a 55-slip marina. Friends of Big Bear Valley and the land trust said the conservation buyout is meant to stop that development and keep the land from being built out.
Why has the land drawn so much attention?
Friends of Big Bear Valley says the land has been threatened by development for nearly 25 years. The conservation effort has become a public campaign because the site is so close to the eagles’ nest and because Big Bear Lake is one of the best-known bald eagle areas in Southern California.
The land trust and Friends of Big Bear Valley have said they want the property protected in perpetuity, meaning it would stay out of future development. One campaign description says the land may later transfer to the U.S. Forest Service.
How did the fundraising work?
The campaign set a $10 million goal and said it had a July 31 deadline to secure the purchase. Friends of Big Bear Valley asked supporters for help in February.
By early May, the campaign said it had raised more than $2.5 million. By mid-June, it said the total had climbed past $3.3 million. On July 24, the group said donations had reached $10.5 million, enough to move forward.
What is still unclear?
The source material reviewed for this report does not show whether the purchase has already closed or whether the property transfer has been formally recorded. The reports also vary slightly on the acreage, describing the land as more than 62 acres in one place and roughly 63 acres in others.
For Big Bear Valley, the deal is a land transaction and a conservation effort at the same time: a private property buyout aimed at keeping one of the region’s most visible wildlife sites from becoming a housing development.
