We Accept Gifts of Land!

The mission of the Newton Conservators is to protect open space. It is to protect it, enhance it, appreciate it and share our appreciation with others. In this issue of our newsletter, you can read some of that appreciation. And you can see it on NewTV, where the Conservators broadcast footage from Newton’s wild, open places.

Protection of open space is often a struggle. We struggle against private interests that have development goals for the land. We struggle to create workable government rules to help keep our wetlands and streams in good health. We lobby hard for the funding to preserve a Kesseler Woods or to revive an Angino Farm. We are so dedicated to this effort that we are taken aback when an outright gift of land comes our way. With gifts, we gain what we are after without the struggle. Often, we don’t need to do much more than just say “yes.”

The gifts of land we receive come from people who have spent years as owners and stewards. They see the pressure to develop small, unused parcels and look for a permanent solution for protecting the land into the future. And they come to us to make it happen.

In 2004, the Conservators received a gift of a quarter acre of steep, wooded land near the Laundry Brook. The neighbors appreciate this small parcel of wild land in their midst. A hawk is in the neighborhood, too.

In 2005, we received a half acre of land that makes up part of a hollow where another brook rises. This half acre could easily have become the backyard of a large, new house. But the owners saw its value in a different context. The hollow occupies the backyards of house lots that front on two streets. The hope of the Conservators and the owners is that their neighbors choose to protect adjoining parcels as well—and that over the years we can protect the rest of the hollow, to leave it natural, as it now stands.

The Conservators make certain that the gifts we receive have value as open space. (See our criteria for accepting gifts of land.) We receive land in a natural state, assure that there is access, set up a stewardship program so we can ensure it is cared for and not misused.

When a gift comes our way, our part is to accept it. The hard part—the struggle—is gone. Our part is to get familiar with the land, to be as good a steward as were its prior owners. We are fortunate for their generosity. So is the hawk.

When it comes to gifts, we don’t need to do much. We only need to say “thank you.”

If you own developable land in Newton, even a small parcel, and would like to be assured that it will always be protected in its natural state, please contact us.

Other Ways to Support The Conservators

Land Conservation Resources

Massachusetts Division of Conservation Services

Land Conservation Options
(brochure from The Trustees of Reservations)

Land Trust Alliance

UMass Amherst MassWoods Forest Conservation Program

Land Owned by the Newton Conservators