Bummer about his home range being made into more human sprawl. Is there nothing left of his old home? Turtles can live in suburban areas once the contruction is done. You might want to check the area out again next year.

For now, depending on where you live, he may be on his way to true hibernation, in which case you can make a predator proof pen for him outdoors and let him hibernate. But I would not let him just wander in your fenced-in backyard since no fence will keep him in for long. You will have him loose in an area he is not familiar with, which you said you wanted to avoid.

Or you can keep him up all winter in a indoor set-up. In this case you must give him summer like conditions to break him of the desire to hibernate. That means-hot (use heat lamp, or incandescant bulbs if your home is warm), humid conditions (mositure lovinf bedding); 12-14 hours of light a day (use both UVB and UVA=plant light sources); plus live insects as part of the diet. It is not as hard to do as it sounds

If you decide to put him outside to hibernate you should put as much effort into it as you would if you were going to set up an indoor enclosure. A proper hibernation pen should be made with a base of deeply spaded soil with added leaves for thermal protection. The area needs to be in a place that will not flood in spring, and the turtle should be protected from predators, ie,the pen should have sides and a top. Check out the hibernation chapter in my online book at www.boxturtlesite.info/bxbook.html for more information and tips.
Good luck
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Tess Cook
www.boxturtlesite.info

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