Sumter County may soon become the owner of an island in the Withlacoochee River near Nobleton.
In an Aug. 1 letter to county officials, attorney Eric Mashburn said his client, the Estate of Clarence Adkison, has failed to sell the island. He also said none of the beneficiaries want title to it.
The estate has decided to donate the island to a governmental entity or conservation group, he wrote.
The island’s dimensions were not mentioned in the letter, but a map shows it to be of substantial size. The property was last sold for $15,000 in 2002.
County Administrator Bradley Arnold said the county has no use for the property except as a natural area that could offset construction in another natural area.
Board chairman Doug Gilpin said the county should not acquire land unless there is a purpose.
“We have to make sure it has a benefit to the citizens down the road,” he said.
Adkison of Winter Garden was an electrician and U.S. Marine veteran who died in 2005.
Commissioners also took a final vote on the county’s policy on marijuana dispensaries, upholding a previous vote to ban any new dispensaries besides two already approved.
A special use permit was granted in February for The Green Solution, one of the dispensaries. The other will be located along U.S. Hwy. 27/441 near the Marion County line.
