Quail Unlimited is moving its national headquarters from Edgefield, S.C., to Albany. The new structure will be built on property being donated by Phoebe Foundation, the philanthropic arm of Phoebe Putney Memorial Hospital.

The land lease agreement with Phoebe will allow Quail Unlimited, the oldest national, nonprofit conservation organization dedicated to the wise management of America's wild quail, to build on 8 acres in the southeast corner of Potter Community Center's nearly 50-acre complex.

Potter Community Center is a historic property off Wildfair Road that is used for hospital and public events, including Quail Unlimited's annual celebrity quail hunt. It has been the home to political, social and sporting events for more than 50 years. According to Phoebe President/CEO Joel Wernick, Potter was the first gift given to the Phoebe Foundation in 1989.

"Albany is a logical choice for the capital of Quail Unlimited and I've been to Potter's for many of my 20 years (as Phoebe president)," Wernick said. "Our center is often the place for people to gather and use as a meeting place. It's steeped in quail hunting and Southern quail hunting history and it just makes sense to make that the location.

"I understand the value of Quail Unlimited and its preservation of the land and hunting," he said. "When I approached our board of directors about making a recommendation with the Quail Unlimited partnership, many of them who have grown up in this area, just saw the rightness of this project."  Initial discussions with Phoebe and top officials began late summer.

Wernick said he was first approached by Albany Mayor Willie Adams about bringing Quail Unlimited's national headquarters to Albany.

"This is what I call a home run," said Adams. "It will bring attention to the area and possibly more jobs ." While the one-story building is under construction, Quail Unlimited President Bill Bowles said Phoebe "is giving us a building on the campus of the hospital for up to two years." Because Phoebe already donates some of its properties to Habitat for Humanity, Boys & Girls Club, Boy Scouts of America and the Dougherty County School System, Wernick said donating land to Quail Unlimited was "logical and easy to do." "What Phoebe is doing is incredible," said Bowles, who is also Quail Country Plantation's general manager in Arlington.

Bowles said the proposed structure at Potter's will be three times smaller than the existing 12,000-square-foot headquarters office building in South Carolina.

Over the past year, Quail Unlimited renewed its commitment to and strengthened its vision for wise stewardship, Bowles said.

Meanwhile, Phoebe's leadership recognized an opportunity to help Quail Unlimited become even stronger and to continue its work with the annual celebrity Quail Hunt and the other activities that generate economic benefits for our region, said Wernick.

Wernick, who grew up quail hunting in Fort Smith, Ark., said Phoebe is "always interested in developing the economy of Albany and Dougherty County" and that assisting another nonprofit organization is a tradition Phoebe has of reaching out to the community.