Land Conservation:

In 2012, the Land Trust continued our work to permanently protect three properties in the northern part of Ashby as part of the Forest Legacy project known as the Southern Monadnock Plateau (SMP), Phase II. The Land Trust’s initial role in this project was landowner outreach and organizing preliminary appraisals. After the Forest Legacy funding was awarded, the Land Trust worked closely with the landowners, the Nashua River Watershed Association (NRWA), and the Ashby Conservation Commission to move each individual land project to closure. Our primary responsibility in this phase was to organize and fund due diligence activities such as appraisals, review appraisals, surveys, and title work. In order to fund the due diligence for multiple simultaneous projects, the Land Trust applied for and received a bridge loan from the Fields Pond Foundation.

We are happy to report that closings were held on all three properties thereby adding 265 (+/-) acres to the others that have been permanently protected in Ashby using Forest Legacy funding. These projects are quite complex and involve coordination among many different players. We’d especially like to thank Al Futterman and Gary Howland from NRWA, and Cathy Kristofferson from the Ashby Conservation Commission for their efforts to conserve land in Ashby.