Nipomo
- A $300 million complex that could attract 2 million
visitors a year to an internationally renowned conservatory
for rare butterflies and plants has been given a six-figure
donation, Sheila M. Boone reported.
Boone,
a fifth-generation direct descendant of Daniel Boone, said
"the money will be used as a down payment on 290 acres
currently under negotiation as the site for the Daniel Boone
Butterfly Palace. The donor wishes to remain anonymous,
Boone said, declining to reveal the asking price for the
land.
The
donation culminates years of effort by Sheila Boone, who
began researching butterflies with her husband, Fred, while
the two dealt with his 13-year battle against kidney
disease. As residents of Grover Beach, the two visited the
monarch groves in Pismo Beach and began learning about the
endangered American Western Monarch the Butterfly Palace
would, be designed to help save.
Boone's fight for her cause has been as tough in
different ways as her ancestor's, battle against the
wilderness. Her wilderness consists of skeptics who have
trouble seeing the same vision she has of an international
conservatory that would attract visitors while at the same
time providing education and spiritual refreshment.
The sprawling eco-complex designed to showcase the area's
horticultural and biological amenities, would really be
several complexes in one, incorporating five or six
interactive museums, 150 acres of lush tropical gardens
growing such things as the rare epiphyllum orchid cactus and
surrounded by a literal "wall of wings," a
butterfly habitat.
Patterned after Moody Gardens in Texas and supported by a
feasibility study written by renowned butterfly expert Dr.
Michael Weisman, the palace would capture Nipomo's
"microclimate," which Boone believes is uniquely
suited to growing rare plants and supporting rare
butterflies from all over the world.
So far, the only property that palace supporters have
been able to come close to is the Canada West property north
of Sandydale Drive on the west side of Highway 101. Boone
said the landowners have rejected other suitors, including
one from the Lucia Mar Unified School District, for fear of
filling the hillside with homes.
But she is open to other possibilities, especially if a
donor would be willing to donate the, property outright.
That would leave more money to build the crystal palace that
Boone wants to have a classical feel about it.
The Butterfly Palace, which could be good for Nipomo
business, generating sales tax revenues that might help
Nipomo incorporate, has attracted wide support as a
non-profit facility that would help to preserve Nipomo's
environment.
It would likely undergo heavy scrutiny at the county
planning level, but Boone said planning staff has been
encouraging.
"We have a magnificent opportunity here," Boone
told a Nipomo Chamber, of Commerce luncheon late last month.
"We already have the tourists." Boone sees the
Butterfly Palace's primary mission as protecting and
preserving the endangered American Western Monarch.
But as she, unfolds her vision for the palace, it emerges
as far more than a monument to an insect. The Palace is part
class room, part conservatory, part tourist stopover and
part showcase for the microclimate that Nipomo's unique
mix of sun, sea air and biology provide for both resident
and visitor.
Boone confesses a desire to express the grandeur of God
in the breathtaking beauty that would be a part of the
palace. The butterfly, she noted, has been a spiritual
symbol of mankind through the, ages.
The palace, Boone said, also represents a commitment to
youth.
Supporters of the project, she said are "wanting to
see youth experiencing reality," such as a massive rose
garden, in contrast with a world of video-game electronic
fantasy.
In fact using Daniel Boone's name is an effort to attract
support from youth, she said, adding the, project took a
leap when the name was added. A statesman and diplomat as
well as pioneer, Boone's name is revered around the world,
she said.
"I almost wanted to see him chiseled on Mt.
Rushmore," she said. "I wanted him to be known to
every school child."
Boone said long-term the Palace will be self-supporting
but the immediate cots of constructing the facility will be
home by corporate and philanthropic donations. But she
doesn't plan to sell out and wants participation from
hundreds of garden clubs and societies around the world.
Boone said she decided long ago to focus her efforts on
the big picture, avoiding bake sales land barbecues to raise
money. But, she added, "People feel the small
contributions aren't important, but they are."
Boone said folks don't want to donate until she has the
property. That step may not be far off.
Donations may be made to the Butterfly Palace, PO. Box 1710, Nipomo, CA 93444-1710.
S. Boone Productions
Photo by: John A. Read/Santa Maria Times