Orange County just stepped up its game in land preservation by reviving a long-dormant open space fund with an initial infusion of $1 million.
The fund provides grants of up to 50 percent of the costs for the purchase of land or development rights by local governments, nonprofits, and private landowners.
County Executive Steve Neuhaus reactivated the fund last month, following the preservation of parcels for a new county trail and a new county park through collaboration with the Open Space Institute and Orange County Land Trust, respectively.
“The only way to make our work more successful is to put more money behind it,” Mr. Neuhaus told The Epoch Times. “By this fund, we can identify and preserve more key parcels of land that are important for public enjoyment in the future.”
He said that if the $1 million seed money is used up by the end of this year, he will consider pumping another $4 million into the fund in 2025—with all of the funding to be drawn from the growing balance in the county’s main operating fund as revenue continues to outpace expenses.
“We wouldn’t be able to invest in open space for people living and working in our county without the success of our local economy today,” Mr. Neuhaus said, noting that past sales taxes outperforming costs have been the main driver of a fat county fund balance.
The open space fund will unlock greater grants and financing resources, according to Jim Delaune, executive director of Orange County Land Trust.
“It is important not only for us but for all our conservation partners—Open Space Institute, Scenic Hudson, and others—as it gives us the opportunity to go out and find partnerships and look to the county for the funding match,” he told The Epoch Times.
Mr. Delaune recently worked with the county to preserve the 300-plus-acre Sugar Loaf Mountain in Chester as a public park.
During the five years before the fund went dormant in 2009, under former County Executive Edward Diana, the county government contributed $6 million in matching grants to preserve more than 2,000 acres, for a total price tag of $13.5 million.
The majority of that land is in the town of Warwick, stretching more than 1,000 acres, followed by Goshen, Montgomery, and Crawford.
“I am hoping that through the 2024 open space fund, we will be able to continue to protect farms through the purchase of development rights and save them for future generations,” Alan Sorensen, commissioner of the planning department tasked with managing the reactivated fund, said.
In addition to local governments and nonprofits, private landowners can team up with eligible organizations to seek county matching funds for the farmland protection implementation grants meted out by the state Department of Agriculture and Markets, according to Mr. Sorensen.
Submitted projects will be scored on an enhanced grading sheet that takes into consideration the expansion of recreational opportunities and the protection of water, farmlands, historic and scenic landmarks, and biological diversity, he said.
The Orange County comprehensive plan, open space plan, and agricultural and farmland protection plan will serve as references for applications.
The first application deadline is set for mid-September; if there is any leftover money, the planning department will conduct a second-round solicitation in December.
After examining the planning department’s report of findings, a review committee will recommend a list of grant winners, subject to Mr. Neuhaus’s approval.
The Orange County Legislature, which approved the $1 million fund infusion in June, oversees further allocations to the open space fund from the county fund balance.
