Category Archives: SAVING LAND

We seek to acquire parcels of land that will provide a public benefit by preserving natural habitat, protecting environmental quality, and affording opportunities for passive recreation.

Trail to be named for former ALT president Larry St. Pierre

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On Saturday, June 1, a trail at the Handy Street Conservation Area, 109 Handy Street, will be formally opened to the public.  The 80-acre preserve was acquired by the City of Attleboro in 2014 in a collaborative project that also involved the Attleboro Land Trust and Mass Audubon.  The trail will be named in memory of Larry St. Pierre, who served as president of the land trust from 1991 to 1994 and 1997 to 2001.

The public is invited to attend the opening ceremony, beginning at 1:00 pm.  Following the ceremony, there will be a guided walk along the trail.  If you are planning to join the guided walk, wear footwear appropriate for muddy conditions.

Vehicle parking is limited. Additional parking on Doral Lane.

A temporary map of the trail is available here.

The program for the event may be downloaded here.

 

ALT Members Celebrate Achievements at Annual Meeting

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On November 16, 2023, we held our Annual Meeting. The event was a great success, with a fantastic turnout and a lot of positive feedback from attendees. The event featured a keynote speaker, updates on land acquisition, financials, and election of directors new to the board or continuing for another three-year term.

The event started with a warm welcome from our president Jay Burby. Our keynote speaker, Eva Vaughan, an environmental analyst for the Massachusetts Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs, then took the stage and delivered an engaging talk on backyard green infrastructure.  Eva explained how simple landscaping modifications can turn a backyard or home garden into a rain garden, thus helping to control and purify stormwater runoff.  A few native plantings can then attract pollinating insects, helping to preserve biodiversity.

After Eva’s talk, ALT President Jay Burby reviewed highlights from 2023, including the most recent donation of land from the Charron family, that put us above 500 acres owned by the ALT with an additional 236 acres protected for a total of 740 acres. The 12-acre Charron Farm Preserve will continue to be used for the production of hay, but will also be used to complete a trail that will connect to the adjacent Shaw-Denham Memorial Forest.  The trail will open to the public once completed.

Ted Leach nominates new and returning board members while President Jay Burby looks on.    Image credit: Erin Connell

Veteran board member Ted Leach nominated members Brian Hatch, Roy Belcher, Paula Murphy, and Dawn Bender, whose terms expire in 2023, to serve for another 3-year term.  Tarah Kinniburgh was nominated to her first term.  Members present voted unanimously to elect all the nominees.

Juliet Teixeira, who is stepping down as ALT Vice President and Community Garden Lead, was thanked for her service and dedication to the work of the land trust, and the community garden, over the past ten years.

The ALT hopes to give renewed emphasis to education and outreach in 2024.  Erin Connell, who joined the board last year, has agreed to chair the Education and Outreach Committee.  Membership in this committee is open to any ALT member.  You don’t have to be on the board.  The same is true for most of the ALT standing committees.

Overall, the ALT Annual Meeting was a great success, and we are grateful to everyone who attended and made it such a memorable event. Thank you for your continued support of the Attleboro Land Trust!

It’s Time to Update the City’s Open Space and Recreation Plan – NEW DATE

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The City of Attleboro needs to update its Open Space and Recreation Plan. Citizens are invited to attend a public workshop at Attleboro City Hall, 77 Park Street, on Thursday, , at 6:30 pm. At this workshop, attendees will join in small groups to generate recommendations for actions the City should be taking to protect open space and to provide recreational opportunities.  (This event was originally scheduled for Sept. 13 but was not held on that date due to weather.)
More information at:  attleboroosrp.com

Charron Family Land to be Preserved

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Attorney George Spatcher, Attorney and ALT Board Member Patrick Sullivan, Land Donor Ted Charron, ALT President Jay Burby, and ALT Board Member Charlie Adler, at the closing for the donation of the Charron Farm Preserve.

The Attleboro Land Trust has received a gift of 12 acres of land on Morse Avenue in Attleboro.  The land was donated by Morse Avenue resident Ted Charron and other members of the Charron family.  It was farmed by Ted’s parents and grandparents, and it is still used for the production of hay.

The donated land will be permanently conserved as the Charron Farm Preserve.  The land trust plans to complete a trail beginning at Morse Avenue, crossing some wetlands, going around the hayfields, and connecting to an adjacent preserve, the 28-acre Shaw-Denham Memorial Forest.  The Charron Farm Preserve will not be open to the public until this trail is finished, which may take a year, as boardwalks will be required.  Completion of the new trail will also mean that the Shaw-Denham Memorial Forest will for the first time be open to the public, as it has been landlocked from the time it was donated to the land trust by the Denham family in 2013 until now.

Ted Charron, an artist, has had a long association with the Attleboro Land Trust, having served on its board from 1997 to 1999, edited its newsletter, and designed its logo.  Ted knows every inch of the donated land and has observed how it serves as habitat for a variety of wild animals.  Guaranteeing that the land will be forever protected has long been his goal.

This acquisition brings the total number of acres owned by the Attleboro Land Trust to 504.  Conservation restrictions are held on an additional 236 acres.

Learn More About the Attleboro Land Trust on March 1

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On Wednesday, March 1, at 7:00 pm, the public is invited to attend a program that will provide an introduction to the land conservation work of the Attleboro Land Trust.

The program will give some background on the founding of the non-profit organization in 1990, describe the various public walking trails available on its 492 acres of conservation land, and explain how citizens can get involved to help maintain trails, save more land, and ensure that the organization continues to thrive.

The meeting will be held in the Balfour Room at the Attleboro Public Library, 74 North Main Street, Attleboro.

Some volunteers serve as site stewards by “adopting” one of the Attleboro Land Trust nature preserves, individually or with a group, such as a group of neighbors, church group, youth group, or fraternal organization. The duties of a site steward are to:

  • Walk the property on a regular basis
  • Pick up litter
  • Report vandalism
  • Help with routine trail maintenance
  • Assist with special projects

Volunteers are also needed to help with educational outreach, fundraising, social media, real estate transactions, boundary monitoring, and event planning.

For more information, contact Charlie Adler by emailing [email protected] or by calling 508-223-3060 ext. 4.

A New Partnership in Plainville

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The Attleboro Land Trust has partnered with Wildlands Trust, a regional land trust based in Plymouth, Massachusetts, to ensure the continued preservation of land that has been under the stewardship of Crystal Spring, a spiritually-oriented ecology center in Plainville, since 1991.  Until recently, Crystal Spring was a vital center for learning and practicing ecological pursuits such as organic gardening.  Sadly, the center is now closed and a 6-acre portion of the land containing residential buildings and meeting spaces has been sold.

While Crystal Spring has closed its doors, the vision of the Dominican Sisters who founded the center was that most of the land would remain in its natural state as forested upland, and they made sure that the necessary protections would be in place before they left.  In 2008 Wildlands Trust agreed to play a role in this plan by holding a legally-enforceable conservation restriction on the vacant portion of the property.  Last year, Wildlands Trust transferred the responsibility for that conservation restriction, which protects 36 acres, to the Attleboro Land Trust.  Soon, the Dominican Sisters will convey ownership of the 36 acres to Wildlands Trust.

Once that final step is completed, Wildlands Trust will assume an expanded role as as owner and manager of the property and its hiking trails, which will be open to the public.  The ALT will carry the ongoing responsibility for monitoring the condition of the property on an annual basis, and making sure that the terms of the conservation restriction are observed.

The completion of this agreement with Wildlands Trust brings the total area of conservation land protected by the Attleboro Land Trust up to 728 acres.

O’Donnell Preserve to open on July 24

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On Saturday, July 24, the public is invited to a new nature preserve to be opened by the Attleboro Land Trust. The 14-acre Joseph and Margaret O’Donnell Nature Preserve is located on Bishop Street. A ribbon-cutting ceremony will begin at 10:00 am to thank Dr. Robert B. O’Donnell, who donated the land in memory of his parents. Attendees should park and gather in the Finberg Field parking lot on Bishop Street next to the preserve.

After the formal ceremony, Evan Foster will lead a guided walk of a new 0.7 mile trail which leads through red maple and pine forests and past wetlands to a stand of beech and birch trees. The opening of the O’Donnell Preserve and trail is one of several projects completed by Foster during a seven-month term of service with the land trust under the TerraCorps program, which is affiliated with AmeriCorps. The project included photographic and GPS documentation of the baseline condition of the property, a property management plan, and a trail map generated using a digital geographic mapping system that Foster built for the land trust.

Rain date for the event is Sunday, July 25, at 1:00 pm. Event updates will be posted on this website.

A Day of Celebration

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June 9th at the Deborah and Roger Richardson Nature Preserve was a day for education, recreation, and celebration as more than 200 visitors participated in walks, talks, games, geocaching, and expressing appreciation to those who made it all possible.

Following acquisition of the property in June, 2016, the event was two years in the making.  New trails have been marked and boardwalks have been installed.  Signage has been put up to recognize and thank the major donors.  Interpretive panels describe the site’s history, flora, and fauna.  A new split rail fence marks the west edge of the property.  The 18th century Barrows House has a new coat of paint and is enhanced with historically-appropriate plantings.  Years of untamed growth have been removed to reveal an expansive lawn dubbed The Glen.  More overgrowth has been removed to reveal hardy perennials not tended for decades in Deborah’s Garden.

Visitors participated in various guided walks–viewing vernal pools, wetlands, fields, forests, gardens, and foundations of farm outbuildings.  Children petted a visiting herd of alpacas and went on a nature scavenger hunt.  Local residents interested in the history of the site could hear a historical narrative by Bill Lewis and then view the evidence with their own eyes.  Geocachers sought their own treasures.  And those with energy to burn could circle the trails in either low or high gear.

The weather could not have been better–showing the preserve in a perfect light.

Opening ceremony in the Glen at the Richardson Preserve.    Image credit: C Adler

A sign recognizing the many significant donations and grants that made acquisition of the preserve possible.    Image credit: C Adler

Land trust president Roy Belcher with Richardson family friend Robin Pantuosco, dedicating a tree in memory of Deborah and Roger Richardson.    Image credit: C Adler

Ted Leach thanks Charlie Wyman, Mass Audubon Land Protection Specialist, for his key role in preserving green spaces in Attleboro.    Image credit: C Adler

Opening Celebration attendees took an inaugural walk of the Charlie Wyman Trail.    Image credit: C Adler

Peonies in Deborah’s Garden.    Image credit: C Adler

Deborah’s Garden is one of the last stops on the Charlie Wyman Trail.    Image credit: C Adler

A side trail passes by this vernal pool.    Image credit: C Adler

This eighteenth century tableau prepared by local historian Bill Lewis could be viewed by any visitors curious enough to peek into one of the front windows of the Barrows House on June 9th.    Image credit: C Adler

The owners of Happy Snowman Alpaca Farm in Attleboro kindly brought their alpacas and demonstrated wool spinning techniques to the delight of all.    Image credit: C Adler

Read more about this event in an article published in The Sun Chronicle.

A New Gift of Land

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On June 29, the Attleboro Land Trust received 36 acres of conservation land as a gift from Donald DesVergnes, Roger G. DesVergnes, and Marette & Sons, Inc. The land, to be named the DesVergnes Family Nature Preserve, is in two parcels located east of Lindsey Street. The larger of the two parcels (26 acres) has frontage on Lindsey Street and consists of undeveloped land between residential areas on Roadway A, Roadway B, and Colt’s Way. The smaller parcel (10 acres) lies between a residential area on Kennedy Drive and the Mansfield line. A utility easement allows power lines to cross the parcel. Future plans for the property include walking trails on the larger parcel off Lindsey Street. We are grateful to the DesVergnes family for this generous gift, which brings the total acreage protected by the Attleboro Land Trust in the city to 690 acres (490 owned and 200 under conservation restrictions which we hold).