Moira Rader

Governor Ned Lamont is awarding $14.3 million in state funding to aid in the purchase and protection of more than 2,270 acres of open space through 25 properties in 22 towns and cities across Connecticut. Additionally, $725,353 is being awarded to support the creation of six new community green spaces.

These funds are being provided through the state’s Open Space and Watershed Land Acquisition Grant Program (OSWA) and the Urban Green and Community Gardens Grant Program (UGCG), both of which are administered by the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection (DEEP).

Guilford will be receiving funds for two projects in which I was pleased to write letters of support:

Project Name: Westwoods West
Sponsor: Guilford Land Conservation Trust, Inc. (GLCT)
Location: Moose Hill Road, Guilford
Grant Amount: $412,750.00
Size: 33.46 Acres
Description: This mostly wooded property is on the northwest side of the 1,000+-acre Westwoods Forest (mostly GLCT-owned with a portion in Cockaponset State Forest). It is home to a mature upland oak-hickory forest, as well as an increasingly rare early successional habitat created by a powerline cut (the lines and structures were removed in 2022). It contains boulder fields of Stony Creek Granite and a small surface stream that is part of the watershed flowing into Lost Lake and then Long Island Sound. The property hosts a range of imperiled flora and fauna and serves as a buffer for this rare core forest located along the I-95 corridor in New Haven County. This acquisition will complement the well-loved hiking trails in the Westwoods Trail system.

Project Name: East River Preserve - West Side
Sponsor: Town of Guilford
Location: Tanner Marsh Road, Guilford
Grant Amount: $1,592,500.00
Size: 20 Acres
Description: This is a habitat-rich parcel on the East River in Guilford. The property contains tidal river wetlands, inland wetlands, a hayfield, and a mature upland oak/hickory forest. It is located across the river from the town-owned 610-acre East River Preserve and Eastwood Preserve, owned by the Guilford Land Conservation Trust, and upstream from the Guilford Salt Meadows Audubon Sanctuary and the State of Connecticut’s East River Marsh Wildlife Management Area. This acquisition will protect numerous imperiled flora and fauna and the health of the East River and the East River Marsh complex as it reaches Long Island Sound. Just one mile from downtown Guilford, the acquisition will create access to views of the East River from the western bank. Visitors will enjoy a trail that begins at Tanner Marsh Road and runs along the edge of the hayfield and river. The acquisition will also increase access to the historic Smallpox Burial Ground owned by the Madison Historical Society. For those enjoying the East River through kayaking, fishing and other types of water recreation, this purchase helps maintain the quality of the river.

This grant funding was the 27^th grant round under both programs. DEEP has opened the application period for the 28^th grant round for both programs, and the deadline to submit applications is November 3.