Nature center will promote the environment, birding

EAST COUNTY — When Jeanne Dubi served as general manager and vice president for Harper’s Magazine in the 1960s in New York City, she could not do what she really wanted to pursue: bird-watching.

Seventeen years ago, Dubi, now the president of the Sarasota Audubon Society, moved to Florida, one of the top five states for birding.

With her binoculars, Dubi, a native of Whales, saw plenty of birds in Sarasota.

But a problem remained.

“There are 470 Audubons in the country, including 45 in Florida, and half of those have their own building, or a center where people can come together and learn about the environment and birding,” Dubi said. “But there was no building in Sarasota. How could that be? I had to make one happen.”

Eight years after her initial idea, Dubi has made it a reality. Dubi and the Sarasota Audubon led a fundraising effort three-and-a-half years ago that raised the money to build a $1.3 million education and visitor center on the Celery Fields off Palmer Boulevard, in eastern Sarasota.

The center will serve as an urban bird sanctuary to promote ecotourism.

The one-story facility will feature educational exhibits and include a large covered patio where children and students can take part in educational programs.

The Audubon Society is currently in the permitting phase of the project. About a month ago, the organization engaged Lakewood Ranch-based Willis Smith Construction to build the center.

Construction should begin in four to six months and will last about six months.

Right now, the roughly one-acre property houses grass and a makeshift parking lot.

Sarasota Audubon is leasing the land from the county for $10 per year.

Next door, Sarasota County is building a restroom facility to serve future visitors to the center and others who frequent the Celery Fields — roughly 400 acres of county-owned passive recreation with diverse wildlife, plants, trees and 217 species of birds, according to Dubi.

Dubi envisions an exhibit explaining the history of the Celery Fields within the nature center.

Ringling College of Art and Design students have inked preliminary plans for a garden.

Sarasota Audubon will have a 24-seat enclosed classroom site for connecting with students. Other plans include a reception area, restrooms, a break room and an administrative office.

The Audubon has connected with the Florida House Institute as an adviser to ensure the building is LEED certified.

Dubi says the Selby Foundation recently awarded a $40,000 grant to the Audubon to build a solar-panel roof on the building.

She takes pride in the community’s effort to rally around the project.

For three-and-a-half years, through newsletters, matching challenges, annual appeals and events, Dubi has promoted plans for the center to raise money for it.

But, even after acquiring the money to build the facility — mostly through the Audubon’s 1,200 members — the campaign will continue.

Dubi says the society seeks an additional $1 million to support the center. Some of that money would go toward hiring a full-time employee to direct the volunteer-run center.

“We’re providing a service to the community,” Dubi said. “It’s important that future generations are good stewards of the land. With the center, we can all see what’s happening in the world through education and conservation. You don’t need to physically protect the environment, but you should value it. We all belong in this world.”

Contact Josh Siegel at [email protected]