FAYETTEVILLE – A local development company has entered into a deal with the Northwest Arkansas Land Trust to preserve 39 acres southwest of its project in Markham Hill.

Specialized Real Estate Group announced Tuesday that the site has been placed under a conservation easement with the land trust, according to a company press release. The wooded area is southwest of where the company is developing homes and its Stonebreaker Hotel, near the former Pratt Place Inn and Barn. The former Pratt Place building houses the hotel's restaurant.

In addition to the 39 hectares, a total of 13 hectares north of the development will become city park areas, according to the press release. The city already owns 62 acres of parkland to the west, and the 13 acres would build on that.

A network of gentle paths winds through Markham Hill parkland to the northwest of the settlement. The site functions as a publicly accessible natural space.

Specialized made preserving portions of Markham Hill part of its rezoning proposal, which the City Council approved in 2018. In 2020, the company signed a memorandum of understanding with the land trust to preserve land southwest of the development.

The conservation easement was completed four years later because the company and the land trust agreed to complete utility infrastructure work associated with the development before the agreement was signed, said Specialized spokesman Rob Apple.

Specialized CEO Jeremy Hudson said in the news release that the conservation easement is a step toward fulfilling the company's promise to preserve portions of the hill. The entire Markham Hill project will be built in phases over several years.

Grady Spann, executive director of the Northwest Arkansas Land Trust, said in the news release that the trust would like to work with Specialized on the easement. The trust will continue to work with developers such as Specialized to permanently protect areas of high conservation value, he said.

The rezoning in 2018 met with great resistance from residents. Many posted “Save Markham Hill” signs in yards, some of which can still be found throughout the city.

Lisa Orton, a local resident who helped organize opposition to the Markham Hill project, said she was glad the conservation efforts had been completed.