Middlebury residents may soon be able to enjoy a new nature preserve.

The Elkhart County Board of Zoning Appeals will vote on whether to approve a special-use request for land on County Road 12 in Middlebury Township.

ACRES Land Trust, a nonprofit that protects land across northeast Indiana and parts of Michigan and Ohio, is behind the plan.

The Goshen News reports the more-than 200-acre property, long owned by the Riegsecker family, features oak and hickory forests, wetlands, fields, and a rare fen and bog system. It would be named the Jesse and Agnes Riegsecker Natural Area.

If approved, it would become ACRES’ first public preserve in Elkhart County, with a trail set to open this fall.