2005 News
September 21, 2005
Commissioners Approve Conservation Grants
Land preserved in Richland and Durham townships
The Bucks County Commissioners helped add to the county's growing
inventory of protected open space with grants provided to the Heritage
Conservancy and Richland Township for conservation easements on 120
acres in Upper Bucks County.
The action took place at the commissioner's bimonthly meeting, held
today at the Quakertown Train Station and hosted by Quakertown Borough.
The Heritage Conservancy grant is for a conservation easement on
three separate parcels in Durham Township owned by members of the
Limantour family. Together, the 47 acres are a critical link to nearly
700-acres of preserved land nearby.
The Conservancy noted the three parcels are within the Cooks Creek
Watershed, a high priority natural area and an outstanding aquatic
resource that supports a native brown trout population. The properties
also fall within the Conservancy's Cooks Creek Watershed Lasting
Legacy program, which strives to unite the preservation of open space
and historic resources.
The three parcels are linked to other lands protected through the
county's Agricultural Land Preservation, Municipal Open Space, Parkland
Acquisition and Natural Areas programs.
The total purchase price for the three parcels is $434,844, with Bucks County
paying half the cost, or $217.422. According to the Natural Areas Program guidelines,
an applicant may be eligible to receive 50 percent of the average of two accepted
appraisals, or $500,000, whichever is less. Additional funding will be provided
by the Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources and the
William Penn Foundation.
Richland Township received a Municipal Open Space grant of $40,971
to help purchase a conservation easement on 73 acres of farm and
woodlands owned by Louise A. Berger on Paletown Road. The township
will provide matching funds in the amount of $72,529.
Located in the Bog Run Watershed, which includes the Quakertown
Swamp, the property also is listed in the Natural Areas Inventory
as a "Priority I" site.
For more information:
Kris Kern, open space coordinator
Bucks County Planning Commission