Harding Land Trust

Primrose Farm Estates Preservation Boosted by Morris County Support

2011-11-10T17:34:00.002-05:00

On November 9^th, the Morris County Freeholders voted to provide $2,880,000 in funding for the preservation of Primrose Farm Estates in Harding Township. Primrose Farm Estates is a 69.7-acre property where the development of 5 home sites is eminent. It is part of a multi-year project that preserves 115 acres of contiguous land in Harding Township.

This property is less than ½ mile upstream of the Great Swamp National Wildlife Refuge. It straddles the Upper Passaic River to the south and Primrose Brook to the north, which are both Category One Trout Production waterways. The property also consists of former agricultural fields, grasslands, upland and wetland forests, and riparian habitat along both Primrose Brook and Upper Passaic River. It supports a seasonal population of Indiana Bats and preserves a rich mosaic of habitats that benefit many species. Preservation of this parcel will provide recreation and educational opportunities for area residents.

“We are grateful to the Morris County Freeholders for their support of this important project”, said Harding Land Trust President, David Shepperly. “This was the largest allocation of funds from the Morris County Preservation Trust this year and we are pleased that the County recognizes the importance of preserving this property.”

Philip Nicolas, the Project Manager for Trust for Public Land, led the negotiations for the project. “The leadership from Harding Township Committee was critical to the success of this project in addition to the landowners who have endured a long negotiation and have given a number of concessions to make preservation possible”.

The Harding Land Trust applied for the County grants to support both Phases of the project. Tina Bologna, Executive Director for the Land Trust explained, “Last year the County awarded $2,450,000 million towards Phase 1, which was $1 million short of what we requested. Harding Township stepped up to meet the challenge of addressing the shortfall. We are appreciative that Morris County met our full request this year and we are confident that we can raise the remaining funds to acquire this project on schedule.”

Harding Township Mayor, Marshall Bartlett agrees. “This project met the criteria of our local Open Space Trust and our residents demonstrated that there was strong support for the preservation of this property”.

Other partners contributing funds for this project include Great Swamp Watershed Association and New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection Green Acres Program.

The mission of the Harding Land Trust is to acquire, conserve and manage scenic, natural and historic lands in Harding Township in order to maintain the existing rural character of the Town for present and future generations. Working with its neighbors, the township and its conservation partners, Harding Land Trust has preserved over 300 acres of scenic and environmentally sensitive land. Since 1990 it has worked to acquire property and conservation easements within the community. By preserving open space, the trust seeks to protect the character of Harding’s countryside and ensure the integrity of its water resources.

Harding Township Committee Advances Open Space Project

2011-09-24T10:28:00.003-04:00

The Township Committee unanimously approved using a portion of the Township's Green Acres and Open Space funds towards the purchase of 45.5 acres along Brook Drive South. This property is part of the Primrose Farm Estates subdivision and will enable the preservation of 7 building lots. This decision also advances the Phase 2 funding proposal to move forward for consideration by outside funding sources.

Please join us in thanking the members of the Harding Township Committee for their careful review all aspects of the transaction and ultimate approval of the proposal presented by the Harding Land Trust and Trust for Public Land.

Save the Date! Morris County Green Table - Oct 5

2011-08-24T11:42:00.005-04:00

The Morris County Green Table is hosting another terrific forum on Wednesday, October 5 at the Frelinghuysen Arboretum - Haggerty Education Center between 8:00 - 10:00 am.

Bioretention Basins - Cost Effective Stormwater Management the Native Way

for more information, visit the Green Table website at www.morrisgreentable.org

Primrose Funding Moving Forward

2011-08-15T13:49:00.003-04:00

Last week Harding Land Trust received notification that our 2010 funding request for $260,000 was approved by Green Acres for Phase 2 of the Primrose Farms acquisition. These funds will supplement the Land Trust's recent application to Morris County Open Space Trust for $2,880,000. Harding Township, Trust for Public Land and Great Swamp Watershed Association have provided preliminary approval to the $5 million funding plan.

Rural Harding: Fleeting Glimpses

2010-11-11T17:49:00.003-05:00

Local resident and Land Trust friend, Jane Kendall, has recently published her book of photographs entitled, "Rural Harding: Fleeting Glimpses." The hardcover book "explores the enchanting vistas, babbling brooks and wonderful images that give the town its special flavor," says Kendall. A portion of the proceeds from the book will benefit non-profit organizations dedicated to the health and well-being of rural Harding.

If you order the book using the form housed on our website (http://www.hardinglandtrust.org/), $10 will be donated to Harding Land Trust. Just print out the form and mail it along with your check. This book provides a wonderful glimpse of Harding's open spaces and you will be sure to recognize many familiar scenes.

Providing Enhanced Value to Local Tax Dollars

2010-11-11T17:21:00.005-05:00

by Tina Bologna, Executive Director, Harding Land Trust

In New Jersey, there are an estimated 43 land trusts supported by 50,000 members. While few of these organizations have a regional or statewide focus, a growing number of new land trusts are community-based, which offer a unique opportunity to augment municipal land conservation efforts. Harding Land Trust is focused solely on land preservation in Harding Township. While this may create an impediment to building a large membership and increasing financial support, it does enable us to carefully target our resources to achieving our mission in Harding.

Locally, there is some confusion about the seemingly duplicative role played by the Harding Land Trust and Harding Township’s own open space program (Harding Open Space Trust). As you read on, I hope you will see how complimentary they are and, by working collaboratively, we have been able to make the most of local tax dollars. Over time, this partnership has reduced Township’s costs for land acquisition and stewardship, while enabling it to maintain the Township’s rural character in a way that supports Harding Township’s Municipal Master Plan.

Open space preservation is a central theme in Harding Township’s Master Plan and the Land Trust’s mission was developed to support the Township’s stated open space goals. One often understated advantage of having a local land trust, is the ability to “double the funding” for conservation projects. While Harding Open Space Trust (HOST) has funding from the municipal open space tax, Harding Land Trust can attract matching funds from State and County sources that can be used in addition to the Township’s contribution. Without the financial leveraging this partnership provides it would be much more difficult for public funds to keep up with Harding land values. In addition, Land Trust staff provide much of the day to day administration on open space acquisition projects, which can be very time consuming and costly. For example, on the recent von Zuben project, Harding Land Trust expended $35,000 on legal fees, survey work, environmental assessment and appraisals to get the deal done. This does not include our staff time dedicated to managing the process. This minimized the Township’s soft costs and enabled Harding’s funds to be used solely for the purpose of land acquisition.

As a non-governmental entity, Harding Land Trust provides a confidential environment to discuss conservation with potential land donors. We have an intimate connection with the local landscape and are well-equipped to identify land that offers critical natural habitat, recreational, agricultural and other conservation value. Land preservation is much more personal with a local, community-based land trust. We value the relationships we have with Harding landowners, some of which have developed over many years.

From a stewardship standpoint, we make it our business to know what is happening on and around all of our properties. We not only conduct annual monitoring on our own fee properties, but we also extend this service to properties that are co-owned with Harding Township. We maintain active stewardship files that include annual reports and photographic documentation from each monitoring site visit. Our Trustees take a very active role in the monitoring and this experience helps them understand some of the complexities associated with long-term management. Each month Land Trust staff and Trustees make decisions about where to spend our valuable stewardship dollars. More recently, we have successfully experimented with volunteer-supported maintenance, which has enabled us to do so much more with limited funds.

Speaking of funding, Harding Land Trust has a strong record of accessing grants and expertise within the conservation community, many of which are not available to municipalities. Harding Land Trust is currently working under a $20,000 contract for habitat restoration activities on two of our fee properties. We work closely with U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Natural Resources Conservation Service and New Jersey Audubon on establishing restoration goals for our land. Management needs vary widely from property to property, and we are guided by the conservation goals established at the time of purchase. These goals reflect both the land donors’ wishes and the responsible stewardship of public assets.

When a property is preserved either by donation or through the use of open space funds, a legal contract is made to preserve the property for perpetuity. Although community interests can shift and politics will change, land trusts and municipalities must work together to ensure that the necessary systems and strategies are in place for the future. In Harding, the partnership between the Land Trust and the Township has been very successful. Through mutual trust and support much has been accomplished over the last 20 years and as a consequence, much of Harding’s rural character has been preserved. It’s hard to argue with the methods or the result.

I recently returned from the annual Land Trust Rally, where I joined 1,800 conservation leaders in Hartford, Connecticut to share land preservation strategies. One of the most interesting aspects of the gathering is sharing stories about what we all have in common: working with people within our communities to save the land we love. Harding Land Trust’s mission and passion for keeping Harding rural is not subject to shifting political winds, or municipal budget constraints. We are HERE, and we are planning for PERPETUITY. I hope you will continue your support for the preservation of Harding’s natural infrastructure. You can help by becoming a member and by supporting continued funding for open space acquisition in Harding. Please tell your elected officials why open space is important to Harding residents.

Anderson Woods: Celebrating a Wonderful Gift

2010-11-11T17:14:00.003-05:00

Few, if any, acts are as a generous as that of giving a gift of land to your community. This gift will shape the cultural fabric of a place forever. On this beautiful fall day, surrounded by the sun dappled oak-maple forest we’ve come to realize that Anderson Woods is really so much more than a plot of land. It is a great American story about an adventurous young couple who moved to Harding in the 1950’s to lead a life of creativity and simplicity.

Edgar and Joyce Anderson built their home with their own hands, stone by stone, board by board, and set up shop to translate the nature around them into beautiful works of art. Tucked into the woods and hidden from the busy roadways that border the property, the two artists have created a very private world. Over the past half century, the Andersons have lived and worked side by side on their land while establishing a reputation among the country’s foremost designers of the last century.

Their approach to design reveals their deep relationship with the land and everything on it.
Although they moved to Harding to escape the suburban pressures of Essex County, they found that it wasn’t long before, suburbia found them. Unthwarted, Joyce and Edgar Anderson simply rolled up their sleeves and got to work. The Andersons have been outspoken participants in municipal discussions about land use policy and they have consistently supported efforts to protect the township’s environmentally sensitive ecology and rural character.

The Anderson’s decision to preserve their property was made long ago, and this dream was realized when Harding Land Trust, Harding Township and New Jersey Audubon closed on the property in 2008. Under the preservation arrangement, the Andersons continue to live in their home and use the studio and barn for as long as they live. Harding Land Trust controls the surrounding wooded acreage and, eventually, New Jersey Audubon will take over the house, studio and buildings on the property to use as a museum.

A sign was recently placed along Tempe Wick Road to commemorate the gift and a small ceremony was held with the Andersons and representatives from Harding Land Trust, New Jersey Audubon and Harding Township. On that occasion, Edgar Anderson remarked, “Joyce and I are so pleased with all the contributions of Harding Land Trust, the Audubon Society and Harding Township on the long road-seven years–from a concept map to establishing Andersons Woods.”

“The Anderson Woods marker is a direction sign on a very long and bumpy road to in Perpetuity and I hope you will follow it using renewable energy resources.” Edgar Anderson

Edgar Anderson with Tina Bologna, Executive Director, Harding Land Trust, and John R. Murray, President, Harding Land Trust in front of the new Anderson Woods sign.

Harding Land Trust Welcomes Volunteers

2010-11-09T15:50:00.005-05:00

by Jane Riley, Harding Land Trust

The Land Trust has had a few projects this year that would not have been possible without the help of volunteers. We were fortunate to have the help from a group of corporate volunteers from United Parcel Service this spring. One early Saturday morning in May they arrived with a van filled with tools, ready to go! With their help we spruced up the Gatehouse, our headquarters, for the season. Our fence was repaired, dead shrubs removed, weeds and poison ivy removed, pachysandra planted, trees trimmed and mulched! We were also able to recover the front walk to our building and reset some slates and a small stone wall. It was a great day! Our thanks go out to Rosalie Lavinthal and Dennis Briede of the Land Conservancy of NJ for coordinating this for us.

Another group of willing student volunteers from Drew University. They have helped us plant trees and shrubs in riparian buffer zones and have seeded and mulched the Von Zuben property. Couldn’t have done it without them!

We also wish to thank Jamie Miller for his help in clearing the bridle trail property on Dickson’s Mill and Blue Mill Roads. Jamie arrived with tools and his truck and we were able to remove some large trees that had fallen across the trails. It would have been very expensive to hire a tree service to do this for us.

Jim Fennimore deserves special recognition for his continued help with many of our properties. He always goes beyond the call of duty, and we call on him so much, we are starting to think of him as extended staff. Hal Scaff also provides technical assistance and help managing the Frelinghuysen Field Warm Season Grass Project. It is nice to know we can call him with grassland management questions and he always points us in the right direction. Nancy Jones of Logansbrook Equine Center has helped us hay our newly established timothy in Frelinghuysen Field and we appreciate her assistance in helping to manage the field for nesting grassland bird species.

Stewardship: The other side of the coin

2010-11-09T15:41:00.002-05:00

by John R. Murray, President, Harding Land Trust

There is nothing more energizing and rewarding in the open space preservation business than acquiring control of a beautiful piece of property with high ecological value. Harding has an abundance of those opportunities and they can pop up at anytime to attract attention and resources. As a result, it is understandable that the far less glamorous but equally important follow up stewardship of acquired lands can easily be overlooked.

If we are not careful any of a number of threats, some subtle, some obvious, can divert the use or appearance of a preserved property in the wrong direction. Invasive plant species, over or under maintenance, encroachments, unsafe trees, inappropriate uses, can undermine the beautiful and environmental value of a property.

And here is where the institutionalized discipline of the Land Trust’s stewardship program comes in. In the Fall every year, every property that the Land Trust has any responsibility for is walked and audited by trustees and staff - no exceptions. Current conditions are compared to the property baseline and to prior audits. If the property is jointly held by the Township and the Land Trust, the Land Trust has taken leadership in drafting Management Plans that define what is to be done, by whom, so responsibilities don’t slip between the cracks. Encroachments are referred back to the encroacher for correction or if necessary, legal action is started. Physical problems are dealt with immediately if appropriate and planned for future action consistent with the management goals for the property if necessary.

Twenty years and 300 preserved acres later for the Land Trust its “so far so good.” Never forget, however, that land is always evolving, some appropriate, some not, so if you notice something that looks amiss, be a steward, let us know. No badges, no name in lights, just the satisfaction that we are staying true to the values that keep Harding as one of the best places in the world to live.

Celebrating 20 Years

2010-10-26T17:12:00.004-04:00

On September 19, 2010, The Harding Land Trust celebrated twenty years of land conservation. Founding members of the Harding Land Trust, as well as former trustees and generous land owners were honored for their hard work and accomplishments. The event was held at the home of Richard and Cathy Herbst of Harding Township on a beautiful Sunday evening.

Jay Kemmerer, the original founding member of the Harding Land Trust, spoke about the conception of the Harding Land Trust in the wake of the donation of 56 acres of land to the Township by the Margetts family. In late 1989, while driving past the scenic field, Jay Kemmerer decided there should be a local land trust to preserve and steward more properties like it. Kemmerer wanted his children to enjoy the same beauty and open spaces he had loved for so many years. Having no experience forming a land trust, Kemmerer picked up a land trust book, the first of its kind, published in 1990, and got to work.

Now, twenty years later, the Harding Land Trust has over 300 acres of open space and environmentally sensitive land acquired by working with its neighbors, the township and its conservation partners. The original mission statement of the Harding Land Trust, which sought to protect the entry ways into our community, protect large open space parcels, acquire easements for bridle trails and wetlands and to protect stream corridors and trout production streams, has changed very little. By preserving open space, the HLT seeks to protect the character of Harding's countryside and ensure integrity of its water sources.

In attendance at the celebration were fellow land conservation enthusiasts, The Hons. Peter and Rodney Frelinghuysen; Harding Township Committee Members, Marshall Bartlett and Nic Platt; founding officers, Sally Dudley, W. Thomas Margetts and Jay Kemmerer. Former and present trustees were all honored, as well as many land donors. Tom MacCowatt, past President and Tina Bologna, Executive Director, both spoke to the honorees and thanked them for their generous time and support.

UPS Spruces Up Harding Land Trust Headquarters

2010-10-26T17:07:00.000-04:00

Employees from UPS’s Morristown office spent a recent Saturday beautifying the property that houses the Harding Land Trust. UPS employees volunteer several times a year with the Land Conservancy of New Jersey’s Partners for Parks Program. This program recruits corporate and civic volunteer groups to work on projects designed to improve federal, state or locally-owned open space lands.

The group of 10 volunteers worked on the James Street property, co-owned by Harding Land Trust and Harding Township. The 14-acre property was preserved in 2002 through a combination of funds from the State Green Acres Program and Morris County Open Space Trust and Harding Township open space funds. Work included tree trimming, spreading mulch, removing invasive plants, and repairing an old post and rail fence. Even a portion of the house was scraped and prepped for a new coat of paint.

It is difficult for small nonprofits like ours to fund maintenance projects, said Harding Land Trust Director, Tina Bologna. “We can secure grants to conduct ecological restoration projects on our properties, but it is difficult for us to fund landscaping and beautification projects.” Harding Land Trust is a privately funded organization that has preserved over 300 acres in Harding Township since it’s origin in 1990.

The Land Conservancy's Partners for Parks program was instituted in 1996, and has since completed over 285 projects, affecting over 16,000 acres of federal, state, county, municipal, and non-profit lands in 7 northern New Jersey counties. More than 5000 volunteers from 60 corporations and businesses have participated in this program.

“Partners for Parks is has provided us with a wonderful opportunity to improve the appearance of our property. I am sure our neighbors will be just as grateful as we are,” concluded Bologna.