The Guilford Land and Conservation Trust (GLCT) announced last week that it had met its fundraising goal and completed the acquisition of a 25-acre field and wooded area on Great Hill Road. The parcel, opposite the North Guilford churches and the Melissa Johns School, is an exciting acquisition, according to GLCT members. It has several unique ecological features and is integral to North Guilford’s history.

GLCT President Spencer Meyer said preserving this parcel was a true community effort.

“We are so grateful for the many friends and neighbors, particularly the hundreds of individual Guilford donors who contributed have contributed since the project was announced,” Meyer said. “These donations, combined with support from the Town of Guilford, who will hold an easement across the property, and a United States Department of Agriculture grant, made the $592,000 purchase possible.”

Meyer also said a number of entities were involved in securing funding for the parcel, including more than $200,000 from the town.

“Guilford Land and Conservation Trust has led the project with significant partnership with the town. The US Department of Agriculture has made a $247,000 dollar grant to the project, and that is a major award,” said Meyer. “We also had a very generous local individual donor who made a leadership grant of $100,000, and the Guilford Preservation Alliance has also given generously to this project. Also, the donations of our friends and neighbors was incredible. They contributed to keeping this part of North Guilford the way it’s been for a very long time.”

According to Meyer, despite the relatively modest acreage of the parcel, there are several key ecological and historical aspects of the acquisition.

“The property is connected to this scenic hilltop both visually and historically. The area next to Melissa Jones school, including the churches, the cemetery, and the small green, is called the Meeting House Hill National Historic District and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places,” said Meyer. “The area represents a time in Guilford’s history when the town was a majority agrarian community that was establishing itself culturally and religiously as separate from England. The hilltop was the North Guilford community gathering place. “

Meyer said the GLCT is excited about the funding for this unique ecological parcel. He noted the generosity of the Rusconi family and their dedication to the town in forging the deal to preserve the property.

“As we have seen elsewhere in town, fields can be lost to development in the blink of an eye. We have been most honored to work with the Rusconi family, who, led by Janet Rusconi, approached GLCT for help protecting this property, which has been in her husband James’s family for generations. The field, which includes some wet areas and a small former cranberry bog, will be maintained as such going forward but will likely move to a different mowing schedule to enhance the ecological benefits for nesting birds, pollinators, and turtles,” Meyer said.

First Selectman Matt Hoey said the proposal between the town and the GLCT highlights the importance of their long-standing cooperation in saving open space in Guilford.

“In acquiring a crucial piece of property, with vistas that are absolutely spectacular and will remain so in perpetuity, this is another example of the great relationship between the town and the Land Trust,” said Hoey. “I give a significant amount of credit to the Land Acquisition Committee and to Sarah Williams of the Land Trust, who actually wrote a grant that secured federal funding. The Land Trust and Guilford decided they would partner on this and essentially split the cost. But the advantage of the Land Trust being the acquiring entity allowed for them us to apply for these federal funds because the town was not.”

The Guilford Land Conservation Trust is a non-profit organization run entirely by volunteers. Contributions go directly to the purchase and conservation of natural places in Guilford. The GLCT has been acquiring conservation land since 1965. Today, through the generous financial support of the Guilford community, GLCT protects 3,200 acres in Guilford. For more information about GLCT, visit guilfordlandtrust.org.