2006 – Governor Jeb Bush signed the Babcock Preservation Act while in Punta Gorda on this date. The arrangement set aside a 74,000 acre tract of land in Charlotte and Lee Counties strictly for preservation purposes, as well as a 17,000 acre site for the development of the city of Babcock Ranch. It is considered one of the largest land preservation purchases in Florida history. Nearly eighty percent of the Babcock Ranch’s original 91,000 acres will remain undeveloped. The preserve is unique in that it is entirely self-funded through the publicly owned working ranch, and a public/private management agreement between the Florida Fish and Wildlife Commission and the Florida Department of Forestry.