Redding Land Trust featured in Town’s Annual Report

Lunch on the Ledge

By Emily d'Aulaire, December 2015

This year the Town of Redding Annual Report is dedicated to the Redding Land Trust in celebration of its 50th anniversary.  When the Land Trust began its work half a century ago its goal was a simple one: preserve the natural beauty of our town.  That goal has not changed over the years and today the Redding Land Trust is the steward of more than 1700 acres of prime open space--woodlands and  wetlands, splashing streams and quiet ponds, sweeping vistas across open meadows--all kept safe for generations to come.  You can pick up a copy of the report, which will be available in mid-January, at Town Hall,  the Mark Twain Library and at both Heritage Center and Park & Rec at the Community Center.

Redding Land Trust Property Restored to Natural Diversity

By Laurie Heiss & Jane Ross, November 2015

 There is one property preserved forever by the Redding Land Trust with two claims to fame. A 10-acre parcel once owned by Dan Beard, a founder of the Boy Scouts, is also the site of a legendary configuration of stones dubbed the “elephant walk” where P.T. Barnum is said to have once corralled his circus elephants. Now overgrown and full of invasives, the property was ideal for applying for and winning a grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Natural Resources Conservation Services in order to re-habilitate this historic land and to restore it to its natural diversity.

Boy Scouts from Troop 15 and Land Trust volunteers prepare to work at the Dan Beard property. - Photo by Wendy Halpern

On the misty, cool morning of October 3 this fall, the Land Trust’s project manager Laurie Heiss greeted Redding Scoutmasters Kevin Blackwell and Jim Anderson as well as a dozen or so Scouts and their various siblings to 2 Dan Beard Lane to work side by side with RLT volunteers and Trail Tenders under the leadership of Stuart Green.  Energy was high and everyone warmed up as they took on the removal of unwanted undergrowth, invasives and stacked cut-up fallen wood into several wildlife habitats. These wood stacks allow small mammals, like the endangered eastern cottontail and others, to run into the piles for protection from predators.

Scouts from Troop 15 clear invasive plants from the Dan Beard property

Tasks also included ‘selective trimming’ of barberry and a follow up of garlic mustard removal that had been the focus of the project’s first work party on May 9. Interpretive signs are being designed for installation next year; one will be about Dan Beard and will include information provided by Redding Boy Scouts.

Scout Project Restores Karraker Barn

By Jane Ross, October 2015

Cooper LeBlanc and Troop 15 Boy Scouts help restore the Barracker Barn

There is a corner in Redding Ridge, at the intersection of Cross Highway and Route 58, that has long been celebrated as Karraker’s Field, from the days when young riders assembled there for local horse shows to the open fields now preserved by the Karraker family’s gift to the Redding Land Trust. When Cooper LeBlanc, a member of Redding’s Boy Scout’s Troop 15, was searching for a needed community project to tackle in order to earn Scouting’s top badge of merit - Eagle Scout - he spotted a rotting red barn covered in weeds in the historic field. Cooper knew then that he had found his mission – a worthy community project and a chance to demonstrate his leadership skills.

Lining up eight fellow Scouts to be his volunteer workers - Noah Finchler, Conner Stackpole, Alex Czerkawski, Stephen Zigmond, Trevor Furrer, Wyatt Hoover, Chris Walker and Miles Martin – he also enlisted the help of his father Michael and Noah’s father Evan. Working over two weekends, they undertook to remove all the years of the barn’s neglect,   The Scouts removed rotted logs, fence board and other debris, cut back vines and weeds, shored up the structure, replacing windows, floor boards and a door. The final weekend was a “painting party” when the Scouts almost ran out of paint but were able to cover the whole barn outside in the proper tone of the original red.

The cost of the project was made possible by donations from Hugh Karraker, Ring’s End in Wilton, the Redding Land Trust and, of course, the hard work and commitment of Redding’s Scouts under the leadership of Cooper.

Cooper, 16, who is a student at Connecticut’s Kent School, said of the project, "It remains a constant reminder to me how scouting has taught me leadership and how much we can improve our community with small volunteer efforts.”

30 acres of open space will be preserved at Routes 53 and 107

 By Christopher Burns- July 30, 2015

Sean McNamara of the Redding Land Trust walks through a 30-acre site that will soon become the latest addition to the town’s protected land. The trust, the town, the state and Aquarion Water Co. are working together to preserve the property, now owned by the Biehn family. Photo: H John Voorhees III / Hearst Connecticut Media

There is more of what makes Redding beautiful coming to town, now that 30 acres of open space near the intersection of Routes 53 and 107 will soon be preserved by the Town of Redding in collaboration with the Redding Land Trust and the Aquarion company.

The Biehn property, which many in town already mistakenly recognize as open space, lies next to the last stretch of the Saugatuck River before it dumps into the Saugatuck Reservoir.

“Environmentally, it's pretty hilly and rocky” says Laurie Heiss of the Redding Land Trust, but the land could have been divided into at least one to three building lots had the owner held out for a developer, she added.

Both the Town of Redding and the Redding Land Trust are contributing $170,000 each towards the purchase of the $400,000 property, while the Aquarion company is contributing $60,000. The town’s contribution is covered by a State of Connecticut grant for the acquisition of open space.

As a tenet of the grant, the Town of Redding and Redding Land Trust become deed owners of the land after the sale is final, while the state holds a permanent easement over the land. Aquarion will also hold a easement over the land, though that easement is secondary to the state’s.

“The grant finally got announced last October, and then the town could negotiate with the seller. There wasn’t quite enough money [between the town and the land trust] so then Aquarion kicked in a donation to make it a triumvirate partnership."

“That’s not typical,” Heiss said, but was a welcome partnership.

“It's really in the heart of Redding,” she said. “When you tell residents about this property, they already assumed it was open space,” she said. “It's already part of our town’s visual look.”

“The number-one reason for purchasing this land is its visibility,” adds Charles Couch, a member of the Redding Open Space Committee since it was first formed.

“The location stretches along the south side of Hill Road, which everybody travels on. It’s a beautiful piece of open space that everyone gets exposed to on a daily basis, including people commuting to and from work from outside of Redding."

“I always thought it would be a shame if it got developed,” Couch said.

First Selectmen Julia Pemberton, who led the town’s pursuit of the Biehn property, said Tuesday she’s very happy the acquisition will help Redding maintain clean water for itself and its neighbors.

“It’s an important part of our effort to preserve clean drinking water. There are three streams that run through the property right into the Saugatuck,” she said, adding development may have had the potential to affect the Saugatuck watershed area in a “negative way.”

In terms of woodlands, this piece of Redding’s open space roster is in great shape, Heiss says.

A map of trails to be connected by the Biehn property.

“It has good forest cover as opposed to being filled with totally invasive forest cover. And the woods come right up to the edge of the property, while the neighbor right next to the river is Aquarion,” which is why they are contributing to the purchase, Heiss said.

An additional feature of this parcel of open space, Heiss says, is its potential ability to connect to large systems of trails.

“This parcel can provide linkage between two extensive trail systems on the east and the west side,” says Heiss. “Toby Wells made a overview map of how the property would fit into the Redding system. That was maybe pivotal in helping us get money from the state.”

Specifically, the new parcel has the potential to connect Sandy’s Trail —which itself connects to Redding’s trail systems — and the Saugatuck Valley Trail, which runs down to the reservoir. 

Redding Land Trust

The trust is making a $170,000 donation for the purchase of this land in honor of the group’s 50th anniversary in town.

“We very carefully manage our money,” says Heiss. “We’ve been granted some wonderful endowments, and we spend infrequently and wisely. Mostly the only thing we want to spend money on is going to be open space."

“Because it's been 50 years, we wanted to clearly show the Town of Redding that 50 years is worth celebrating. It's also an opportunity to give back and do a partnership with the town."

“Land savings remains about partnership,” she added, “and this is a nice one. Its a nice tidy little package. We’re getting a good deal and the seller is getting a good deal. Everyone’s getting a good deal.”

Land Trust Values Easement Holding at Buddhist Center

By: Jane Ross

John McLeran, Open Space Manager for the Redding Land Trust, visits the DNKL Buddhist Center.

“Many people may not know that the DNKL Buddhist Center for Universal Peace on Putnam Park Road is one of the Redding Land Trust’s largest and most precious conservation easements,” says Redding Land Trust President Mary Anne Guitar, as she looks back over the achievements of the RLT on the fiftieth anniversary year of its founding. She recalls the days when Martha Lucas Pate, former president of Sweet Briar College who purchased the 95.5 acre estate she named “Godstow” in 1952, would host parties attended by Redding luminaries; she would elicit interesting stories and opinions from each.

When Martha Pate died in 1983 she established an institute – the Maurice Pate Institute for Human Survival - in memory of her late husband, UNICEF founder and celebrated humanitarian Maurice Pate, who shared with her a devotion to world peace and compassion toward others. The recipient of many honors, awards and government decorations, Maurice Pate brought humanitarian relief – food, medicine and other essential supplies – to millions suffering the effects of both World Wars I and II.  Martha chose as executor of her will Joan Dydo, the secretary to Maurice and before that to his good friend President Herbert Hoover. Dydo asked her nephew Stephen Dydo and his wife Susan Altabet to join her in choosing a non-profit organization that shared the Pate Institute’s goals to run the center. They chose the Mahayana Sutra and Tantra Center of Connecticut (MSTC)

In 1998, MSTC honored Martha Pate’s wishes that the property be protected and preserved forever by a conservation easement held by the Redding Land Trust. “Martha left generous legacies to many of those who attended her parties,” Ms. Guitar said, noting that she is grateful for Pate’s recognition of the importance of the Land Trust.

DNKL Buddhist Center for Universal Peace

Today, the Center is renamed the DNKL Buddhist Center for Universal Peace and is qualified as a monastery with Tibetan Buddhist monks in residence. The Center provides classes on Buddhist thought and meditation and hosts festivals, dialogues and events for families and community organizations to promote more compassion in daily living. In, 2012, DNKL co-sponsored with Western State Connecticut University a visit by the Dali Lama to the Center and to the campus, where a very active Center for Compassion, Creativity and Innovation has been newly established. Both the Dali Lama and his Buddhist community have been in exile since the advent of Chinese Communist Tibetan rule in 1959.

Driving by the DKNL on any weekend today, one can see colorful Tibetan flags flying outside the former Pate home, now transformed into a proper monastery, with cars and buses parked outside and scores of people of all ages from as far as New York City enjoying the pastoral ambience of the site and celebrating the wisdom and insights of Buddhist philosophy. Susan Altabet and Stephen Dydo remain active Board members and leaders at the Center today.

Barlow Senior Receives Redding Land Trust Award

By: Jane Ross

Sean McNamara of the Redding Land Trust presents Shannon Perrott with award.

Barlow senior Shannon Perrott was presented with a $500 Redding Land Trust award by Land Trust Treasurer Sean McNamara at the high school’s annual Awards Ceremony on June 4.   The award recipient, chosen each year by the faculty, is an outstanding student who is interested in pursuing studies in the fields of conservation and environmental studies, forestry and ecology.  

Redding Hikes on CT & National Trails Day, June 6th!

CT TRAIL DAY HIKE: THE BRINCKERHOFF & BEYOND

Saturday, June 6, 2015, 9:00 AM (rain date Sunday, June 7, 2015)

Celebrate the Redding Land Trust’s 50th Anniversary with an 8-9 mile hike connecting the Brinckerhoff Preserve with the Great Ledge (and back) through trails of the Nature Conservancy’s Devil’s Den. This hike highlights Ensor’s Trace, a lovely but less well known approach to Devil’s Den. Although the terrain is moderate, this is a longer hike for experienced hikers. Please bring water and a lunch or snack.  Pre-registration is required to receive special parking instructions nearby the Brinckerhoff Preserve trail head. To pre-register contact Stuart Green, (203) 216-9584, shgreen@optonline.net. Co-Leader: Jeff Morgan. Sponsored by the Redding Conservation Commission.

CT TRAIL DAY: 3 HIKES IN TOPSTONE PARK!

Saturday, June 6, 2015 beginning at 9:00 AM, 11:00 AM and 2:00 PM

Redding Park and Recreation in conjunction with New Pond Farm is hosting this outing in celebration of National Trails Day®. Join an enthusiastic educator from New Pond Farm for an eye-opening hike on our trails. Search for signs of our wild neighbors and see what they leave behind—perhaps you will find a squirrel's breakfast table, the scratching’s of a skunk, the nibbling’s of cottontail rabbits, and more! Bring your bright eyes and get ready for exciting discoveries on our trails. Space is limited, so pre-registration is required. Family oriented 1-2 mile hikes. Contact Robert Blick, (203) 938-2551, rblick@townofredding.org. Sponsored by the Town of Redding and New Pond Farm.

Redding Land Trust: 50 Years in Pictures and Words on Display at The Mark Twain Library

Written by Mark Twain Library- May 2015

Fifty years of the Redding Land Trust’s highlights and heroes are on display at the Mark Twain Library through the month of May and visitors are invited to get a feel for the organization that has worked so diligently to preserve land in town.

The Land Trust got its start in 1965 when it received a gift of four acres of high woodland on Wayside Lane. Today, it encompasses almost 1,800 acres of preserved open space: woodlands and wetlands, splashing streams and quiet ponds, sweeping vistas across open meadows—all kept safe for generations to come.

“Thanks to those who have put their land in trust with us over the decades, and the hundreds of Redding citizens who donate money each year, we continue to keep Redding the green oasis we all love,” said President Mary Anne Guitar.

The display, which was put together by Redding Land Trustee Silvia Erskine, includes mounted black and white photos of some of the Trust’s early donors and supporters, which were taken by Elyse Shapiro of Bethel, as well as important documents from the Trust’s history. The display also includes different editions of the Trust’s Book of Trails, which is on sale at the Library for $10, maps, brochures and newspaper clips from major the highpoints of the Trust’s history.

Redding Land Trust Celebrates Fiftieth Anniversary

Mary Anne Guitar blows out the candles on the Redding Land Trust's 50th Anniversary Cake.

Fifty years ago, Redding conservation pioneers had a great idea – incorporate a land-saving organization in a town blessed with one of the most beautiful natural areas in Connecticut. An original incorporator of the Redding Land Trust (RLT) who is today its president, is renowned Mary Anne Guitar. She blew out the candles on the anniversary cake at the annual meeting at Highstead on April 12 and delighted her audience of Trust supporters with her humor, wit and clear-sighted vision.

Introducing the dedicated trustee volunteers, Guitar also recognized former trustee and RLT President Joan Ensor, who at the age of 102 years was in the audience to celebrate this golden anniversary occasion.  Reporting on the achievements of the past year, Guitar also offered former trustee Gene Connolly special thanks for his gift of an easement with rolling distant views from Redding Ridge and noted that another generous donor, Lottie Fields, had left the Trust in her will a magnificent property in West Redding that would soon have public walking trails.

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Confessing that she was at heart a Luddite drawn reluctantly into the digital world, she accused her computer of sensing this treason and going blank in revenge as she was composing her final report. That report she assured her audience would be available on the Land Trust’s new website at www.reddingctlandtrust.org soon. Recalling her childhood days spent roaming freely in the streams and woods of her native Missouri she urged today’s generations - wedded to cell phones and computers - to abandon their devices and wander among the wonders and surprises of the natural world instead.

Trustees Sean McNamara and Henry (Buzz) Merritt spoke of the sound fiscal position of the RLT, offering copies of the 2014 financial statement for all to examine and confirming the expert investment management of the Trust’s endowment fund. Trustee Emily d’Aulaire placed the names of David Heald, Gordon Loery and Laurie Heiss in nomination for re-election to the Board and introduced Kevin Tschudi for first time election, citing his commitment to Redding, his contributions as a Trail Tender and his organizational skills as manager of all new construction at 700 Starwood Hotels. All were unanimously elected by the Membership.

First Selectman Julia Pemberton presented a proclamation to the RLT on this milestone anniversary, citing its dedication to preserving the natural priceless treasures of this unique town. The text of the citation may be read on the Trust’s website.

John Hayes receives The Redding Land Trust Leadership Award in Conservation

Long-time civic planner John Hayes who has prepared Redding’s Town Plan of Conservation and Development received the Redding Land Trust Leadership Award in Conservation, with praises offered by Trustee Merritt for his consummate credentials and commitment which have benefitted not only Redding but surrounding towns. Chair of the Planning Commission Diane Taylor also paid tribute to Mr. Hayes, citing his ground-breaking role in establishing model land-saving procedures and policies for the Town.

The meeting closed with the showing of photographer Paul Shapiro’s new film, “A Love Letter to Redding,” which left its audience entranced with the magical views of the special beauty of Redding’s unspoiled wild and peaceful landscapes, bright with fall colors or blanketed in stately snow – Saugatuck Natural Area, Brinckerhoff Preserve, the Great Ledge, and Warrup’s and New Pond Farms, among them,. The film is available on the Trust’s website and CD copies will soon be available.

A warm sense of community and shared love of Redding permeated the room and continued as friends and neighbors drank wine, ate and socialized while the sun grew hazier in the western sky.

Land Trust Thanks Gene Connolly And Family For Land Easement Gift

The Connelly family standing in the field they have protected with a Conservation Easement.
Photo by Jane Hamilton-Merritt

By Jane Ross, April, 2015

Gene Connolly

On Easter Sunday, Gene Connolly and his six children and their spouses and some of his fourteen grandchildren gathered at the home on Meeker Hill Road where the children had been raised to celebrate a farewell meal in the house and on the land before its sale to a new owner.  Gene and his late wife Virginia had given a two-acre easement on a beautiful property with a distant vista behind the house.  Trustees of the Redding Land Trust gathered to toast Gene and his family and offer thank-yous for this magnificent gift.  They pledged to make sure that the new easement is mowed but kept in its natural state forever.    

Annual Meeting- Sunday, April 12 at 4pm

By Emily d'Aulaire, March, 2015

By now you have received a letter from Redding Land Trust President Mary Anne Guitar inviting you to our 50th birthday party.   We’re celebrating 50 years of a great idea and we want you to celebrate with us.

Redding Land Trust Board Members

There is much to celebrate. Thanks to the work of the Land Trust, a gift of four acres of high woodland on Wayside Lane half a century ago has grown to almost 1800 acres of preserved open space: woodlands and wetlands, splashing streams and quiet ponds, sweeping vistas across open meadows—all kept safe for generations to come. Thanks to those who have put their land in trust with us over the decades, and the hundreds of Redding citizens who donate money each year, we continue to keep Redding the green oasis we all love.

Our birthday celebration, to be held at Highstead (127 Lonetown Road, Redding) on Sunday, April 12 at 4 pm, will begin with a short business meeting. Once we’ve taken care of business, we will be treated to a new video by Paul Shapiro. Mr. Shapiro, who for many years taught filmmaking at Greens Farm Academy, produced an earlier film about the Land Trust called “A Passion for Place”. The filmmaker’s new work, which will be shown at the Land Trust’s birthday celebration, is entitled “A Love Letter to Redding” -- and it is just that. As Ms. Guitar wrote in her letter, “his shots of Land Trust woodlands, open fields with nesting birds and Revolutionary-era stone walls will make you want to get away from the computer and explore what’s been saved.”

In addition to the premier viewing of Mr. Shapiro’s video, the Land Trust will be honoring Town Planner John Hayes for his many years of behind-the-scene work that have been indispensable to the Land Trust in its landsaving efforts.

There will be wine and hors d’oeuvres and of course a birthday cake. Come chat with your neighbors. Raise a glass to Paul Shapiro and John Hayes and enjoy a (hopefully) sunny spring evening at beautiful Highstead.

In the meantime, you can view Redding Land Trust memorabilia at the Mark Twain Library beginning April 1. Stop by the library and stroll through 50 years of a great idea. If you haven’t yet checked out our new, redesigned and updated website have a look at it now.  

If you are already a member of the Trust, please renew.  If you aren’t yet a member, please join. We are an all-volunteer board but need your support to finance school programs, purchase open space and pay for legal, accounting and technical help. We are your Land Trust and we continue to rely on your support so we can remain Redding: The Open Space Place.

Land Trust Helped To Purchase Historic Site

By: Jane Ross

While most of the acreage the Redding Land Trust holds, outright or in easement, has been given by conservation-minded citizens, the Trust stood ready in the past – and stands ready today - to use funds donated by generous individuals to purchase desired sites in partnership with others. When 12 years ago, a large property valued for its environmental and historic importance as a Revolutionary War encampment came on the market the Trust pledged $50,000 toward the purchase, contributing an immediate $11,000 binder to hold the property until The Nature Conservancy and the Town could secure the purchase funds.

When Land Trust President Mary Anne Guitar handed a check for $39.000 to TNC’s Steve Patton, director of its Saugatuck Forest Land Project, at the time of the Trust’s 2003 Annual Meeting, and in celebration of the closing on the purchase, she said, “The money has come from the Trust’s annual membership drive, from private donations and from bequests in wills.”

Today, the Redding Land Trust again stands ready with a $170,000 pledge to match a grant of $170,000 that has been awarded the Town of Redding by the state in order to purchase a treasured 30-acre property at the gateway to Redding Center near the intersection of Routes 53 and 107 in a historic watershed area. This gift, too, is made possible by the generosity of the Land Trust friends and supporters. We are counting on you again to help us preserve our precious open space in a time when donated land grows scarce and we must often help to buy land to preserve the unspoiled environment that makes Redding so unique among our neighbors.