Barre Town Forest Proposal
Important information for all Millstone Trails enthusiasts
Project Update, December 2011
Millstone Trails Association and the Trust for Public Land are working with the Town of Barre to permanently protect up to 370 acres of former quarry land as a new community forest for the Town of Barre. This property lies at the heart of Millstone Trail Association’s 70 mile trail network and contains important cultural, forest, and wildlife resources. Most of the proposed Town Forest property is currently owned by Rock of Ages Corporation which is looking to sell this land. If this property were to be sold to a private owner, there’s no guarantee that recreational access would continue to be allowed. If trail access were to be closed off, this would threaten the integrity of MTA’s entire trail network. Not surprisingly, protection of this property as a town forest is a top priority of MTA. It is also a major challenge. Total estimated project cost (including purchase of land and associated costs) is approximately $1.3 million.
In November of last year, Barre Town residents voted overwhelmingly to support the Town’s purchase of the proposed Town Forest property. As part of this vote, residents authorized the Town of Barre to contribute $100,000 towards this purchase. Much progress has been made on this project since then. To date, approximately $700,000 in funding has been secured for this project! This past spring, the Trust for Public Land (TPL) was successful in securing a grant of $308,000 for this project from the Vermont Housing and Conservation Board. We recently learned that TPL was awarded a $200,000 grant from the Open Space Institute for this project. TPL will be seeking a $400,000 grant from the federal Community Forest and Open Space Program later this winter for the Town Forest project. Other smaller grant requests are pending or planned.
As part of this fundraising effort, MTA has pledged to provide TPL with a $100,000 contribution towards the purchase of the town forest property, matching the Town’s financial contribution for this project. MTA has now launched a capital campaign for the Barre Town Forest and is actively seeking donations from individuals, businesses, organizations, and other project supporters. Click here for more information on MTA’s capital campaign for the Barre Town Forest.
Last spring, the Town of Barre established a Barre Town Forest Management Plan Committee which was charged with developing a draft management plan for the property. During the summer and fall, the Committee sought public input and comment from area residents regarding their wishes for the new town forest. Committee members heard from many Barre area trail enthusiasts about how much they value the work MTA has done to develop and maintain the trail network on this property and the critical need for an ongoing role for MTA as a partner with the Town of Barre regarding future management of these trails. The draft management plan reflects this input and is expected to be finalized later this winter. The draft management plan is available for review here on the Town of Barre’s website.
Additional information on the Barre Town Forest Proposal:
