MONKTON, Vt. (WCAX) – Some 450 acres in Addison County are now dedicated for the public to enjoy.
“This land is part of a larger block of about 2,500 that has been identified by the state as high priority for conservation,” said Bob Heiser, a project manager with the Vermont Land Trust.
The town of Monkton bought the chunk of forest, a move years in the works.
“We had some informal discussions with townspeople and then in 2019, the Town Forest Committee was formed,” said John McNerney, a member of the Monkton Town Forest Committee.
“The project really got going in 2022 when we identified this parcel as a likely candidate and started working with the owner on it,” said Jamie Schulte, a member of the Monkton Town Forest Committee.
Despite the lack of housing on a statewide level, Monkton Town Forest Committee members say the forest won’t take away from other development opportunities.
“We have lots of space in the community for affordable housing but also places like this,” Schulte said.
To make the town forest a reality, the town raised more than $1 million.
Most of the funding for this project came from grants from federal and state agencies and organizations, but some of the people in town pitched in, as well.
“We had some community fundraising and donations ranging from $20 to thousands of dollars,” McNerney said.
Now, there are funds leftover which will be used to keep the bills from future expenses off of town residents.
“We did set aside what is now $45,000 for a maintenance fund and that will– we’re going to carry that as far as we possibly can,” Schulte said.
The goal is to add trails and areas for things like hunting and horseback riding, but also to protect and conserve the nature already there. That, in turn, protects people.
“As we face global climate change, it’s important to have this big connected blocks of forest land as essentially a giant forested sponge to help soak up rainfall and keep it from increasing and flowing into rivers and streams and increasing flooding,” Heiser said.
The Town Forest Committee hopes to have a long-term plan in place and host an event celebrating the new town forest in the spring.