Richland Communities. a private development corporation, has purchased the 4,158-acre 5R Ranch near Lake Wales for $50 million, the Lake Wales News reported this week.
The property has been owned by the Rupp family since the late 1970s.
There were no immediate plans to develop the property, which lies between Lake Wales Airport and Alturas-Babson Park Cutoff Road.
The property was proposed for development decades ago, but the proposal occurred during a wet year, which revealed the fact that the property contained extensive wetlands.
The project was abandoned.
The ranch was also one of the sites used for an experimental establishment of a non-migratory flock of whooping cranes in the 1990s.
Developer Buys 5R Ranch; More Lake Wales Sprawl?
Posted in Group Conservation Issues.