Thanks to Joel Madden of Boy Scout Troop 1099, Liberty residents can enjoy a new primitive nature trail in the woods at Deer Valley on parkland south of the Whitetail Pond neighborhood. Joel enlisted the help of more than 50 volunteers to lay down mulch on the ¼-mile trail surface and construct and install a bench at the end of the trail. The trail can be accessed by parking at the end of Shirley Lane. The Deer Valley Nature Park encompasses 10 acres of city-owned woodland that protects high quality streams with extensive floodplain on the back side of the Whitetail Pond neighborhood. Deer Valley serves as a model for future “conservation development” in the City of Liberty. Through a very generous parkland dedication and the retention of several acres of forested streams, this project demonstrates that forest conservation and residential development can be compatible. The conserved parkland and nature trail will provide a “value-added” benefit to the neighborhood and the community, and the forested streams will continue to provide community benefits for stormwater retention, flood control, wildlife habitat, and improved air & water quality.