King County has bought 110 acres of Vashon’s Misty Isle Farms, culminating a decade of work by islanders and others to protect at least part of the sprawling estate of the late Thomas Stewart.

The sale was recorded on Monday, Oct. 3, according to county records.

The purchased properties, all on the western half of the estate, include the rolling pasture that was long the site of a beloved local event, the Vashon Sheepdog Classic, which drew thousands annually and raised funds for local nonprofits.

The purchase also includes the forested corridor of Fisher Creek, a stream that supports cutthroat trout, coho and chum salmon, that runs south of the sheepdog pasture and west of Old Mill Road to SW 232nd Street.

Woods to the west of the pasture, fronting SW 220th Street, are included, as are a total of 50 acres that have for three decades been part of King County’s Farmland Preservation Program, designed to preserve working farms and a rural way of life in King County.

The property boasts approximately four miles of trails which will now be open to the public.

The purchase price was $4 million.

That money came from three county sources: $1.9 million from the Conservation Futures levy, funded by property taxes; $1.6 million from the Parks Levy, also funded by property taxes; and $500,000 from the Transfer of Development Rights (TDR) Program, which effectively compensates rural landowners for not developing their property with money from urban developers.

Greg Rabourn, an islander who works with King County Water and Land Resources Division, summed up the benefit of the county’s acquisition of the land from Development Services of America, Stewart’s real estate company: public ownership of a “fantastic piece of property that combines great ecological value, agricultural value and recreation.”

“We have a combination of all these multiple uses, and we’re excited to get out and talk to the community about uses,” he said.

Many in the community have long championed the idea of the county purchasing this portion of the estate.

Tom Dean, the conservation director of Vashon Land Trust and its former executive director, said that the purchase represented the best possible outcome he could have asked for, following years of visioning by the Land Trust and other conservation advocates after Stewart’s entire 525-acre estate first came on the market in 2007 — then listed for a whopping $125 million.

“After all the years, the county did exactly the right thing in terms of focusing down on what is most important,” he said, mentioning the property’s many trails, its headwaters of Fisher Creek, its carbon-rich forests and the sweeping pasture used by the Sheepdog Trials.

Maggi McClure, who founded the Sheepdog Trials in 2010 as a nationals-qualifying event for the U.S. Border Collies Association, said that she hoped to bring the event back to the pasture in 2024 if the county would work with her organization.

The last public edition of the Sheepdog Trials took place in 2019, due to the pandemic. A planned return, in 2022, did not take place because Stewart’s company declined to allow the event to occur, telling the organizers their reason was due to “ongoing real estate opportunities.”

But now, McClure said, “we’re looking forward to its return.”

County plans public engagement process

The county is now planning an engagement process with the Vashon community, to solicit input about the land and its possible uses.

Some uses are off the table, though, including building soccer or other active recreation fields, because of the funding source restrictions. As is the case for other Parks properties, rules will also prohibit hunting, as well as dogs being off-leash.

For now, said county officials, the site will no longer be called Misty Isle, but rather, Wax Orchard — named for a once thriving, 243-acre agricultural enterprise on the island’s south end called Wax Orchards Farms, owned by the Wax and Sestrap families and then sold to Stewart.

The official naming process will also take place in the coming months.

The trails on the property are now immediately accessible to equestrians, hikers and bikers, though county officials are asking for patience as crews may be working on the site. Parks signage will direct the public on how to access trails.

Laurie Martin, an islander and equestrian who lives near the property, has a deep familiarity with the trails, as she had gratefully ridden them by permission for 20-plus years.

But she said throughout that time, she’s had countless conversations with other riders and near neighbors about the future of the property — starting many years ago when it first came on the market.

“The conversations were mostly about our fears for what might be done there,” she said. “But now, because of King County’s negotiations, perseverance, and vision, much of this Stewart property is now held in trust for islanders to use now and into the future — this is such great news.”

King County’s purchase comes after other sales

The county’s purchase means that Misty Isle Farms’ owners have now sold more than 90 percent of what once was the western, less-developed half of the sprawling estate, between Old Mill Road and Wax Orchard Road.

Of the western half’s original 283 acres, 264 have now been sold — almost all of that in the past 18 months after Misty Isle’s owners decided to sell the estate off in pieces.

A review of county records shows that the Stewart-affiliated company that held title to most of Misty Isle Farms, has received a total of more than $12 million from the sales.

The county’s 110-acre, $4-million acquisition is by far the largest. The remaining sales were to nine different buyers. Most of the properties they purchased are undeveloped pastures and woods, although some have older houses and other buildings.

According to county records, the only land west of Old Mill Road that Stewart-related entities still own is 19 acres at the northeast corner of Wax Orchard and SW 232nd Street. It was listed for sale last year, but according to real-estate databases, the listing is no longer active.

Misty Isle’s owners also are marketing the more developed, eastern half of the estate, including 117 acres that include Stewart’s 6,500-square-foot former home, a stocked lake, a driving range, two guest houses and other amenities.That property was listed for sale last spring for $11.2 million.

Another 40 undeveloped acres is on the market for a total of $2.45 million. And a total of 29 acres was sold earlier this year to three separate buyers for a total of about $2.35 million.