The Ziegler Conservation Easements

On October 6, 2025, CLCF helped protect 35 acres of land off County Road Z through two donated conservation easements. CLCF is incredibly grateful to the Ziegler family for their generosity and commitment to conservation.

One of the easements has fondly been nicknamed the “Ziegler Wayside”, and this is about 10 acres at the northeastern corner of the intersection of County Road Z and County Highway NN. The other easement has been named “Ziegler North” and is about 25 acres off of County Road Z, almost as far north as Paradise Drive. While the property is not open to the public, scenic vistas such as these, as well as the ecosystem services natural landscapes provide, make a difference in our community.

These two conservation easements add to the already 278 acres of protected land along County Road Z between Paradise Drive and County Highway NN.

These conservation easements span farmland, wetland, and hardwood forest, all of which provide excellent habitat for local wildlife, including deer, sandhill cranes, amphibians, and more. The soils in these habitats absorb rainwater throughout the year, protecting nearby lake water quality and mitigating flooding and runoff.

Not only has the property, also known as Ziegler Woods, been identified as Primary Environmental Corridor by the Southeastern Wisconsin Regional Planning Commission (SEWRPC), but it has also been classified as a Natural Area of Local Significance, meaning that the land is representative of what the area looked like prior to European settlement. Both of these classifications indicate a healthy ecosystem!

The Ziegler family purchased the property from several farms, including one owned by the Hafeman family, who sold the property shortly after there was a barn fire that destroyed their dairy farm. Aerial imagery shows that the areas that are currently farmed have been in production since at least the 1940s. During the Ziegler family’s restoration of the buildings from the fire, they discovered a log home under the siding of the farmhouse. This log home dates back to about 1849.

The Ziegler Wayside, however, was not acquired by the Zieglers until 2019, when the County, which had owned it for some time, divested it, and it ended up with the Ziegler family. From aerial photos, the use of this area has remained mostly unchanged since at least the 1940s, although additional acres were farmed up until the late 1980s. The pine trees along the southern boundary were planted in the early 2000s.

Around 2010, the Ziegler family installed a scrape on the property to improve rainwater infiltration and wildlife habitat. The family has also worked with the farmer to ensure that soil conservation practices are in place.

The Ziegler family has created an inspiring legacy of land conservation. Bernard C. Ziegler was among the first donors of land to CLCF, and his family kept the tradition. In all, the Ziegler family has protected nearly 350 acres of land in the Cedar Lakes region, which is truly incredible!