Funding
To accomplish all of its open space goals, a municipality will have to seek funding support from a variety of sources.
Nonprofit Land Conservation Organizations
Nonprofit land conservation organizations are eligible for nonprofit grants from the state Green Acres program. Nonprofit grants may total $500,000 and require a dollar for dollar match. Land trust associations are good partners for land acquisition in the sensitive and natural areas in the township. These organizations have experienced staff knowledgeable about benefits to a landowner interested in preserving property as well as strategies for open space preservation. Nonprofit land trusts can also "sign on" to the township's Open Space and Recreation Plan registered with Green Acres. This process makes nonprofits eligible for Green Acres' funding to acquire land important to the township.
Historic Preservation
A total of $6 million a year is available from the state Green Acres program for historic preservation projects. Coordinating historic preservation and open space goals would promote access to this funding.
State Land Management Agencies
The state is a likely partner to help the township protect large resources. The New Jersey Division of Parks and Forestry and the Division of Fish and Wildlife have access to Green Acres funds. The Garden State Preservation Trust Act, passed in 1999 and the source of Green Acres funds, includes funding for historic preservation, farmland preservation, and public parkland acquisition. Almost a third of the public parkland allocation goes to state land management agencies, with the rest to municipalities and nonprofit organizations. The township needs to communicate its open space priorities to the state land managers and make a case for state acquisition of large sites.
New Jersey Green Acres and State Agricultural Development Committee
The state is under a 1998 mandate to protect one million acres of open space and farmland over a period of 10 years. The Green Acres program provides funding assistance for the acquisition of township park and recreation areas listed in the Open Space and Recreation Plan. Through its Planning Incentive Program, Green Acres will provide a grant that will cover up to 50 percent of the land acquisition costs of a particular tract.
The State Agricultural Development Committee (SADC) operates similarly to Green Acres. SADC provides funding for farmland preservation, and farmland enhancement projects. SADC coordinates its operations at the state, county, and local levels.
Federal Land & Water Conservation Fund
Federal funding from the Land & Water Conservation Fund is channeled through the Conservation and Reinvestment Act (CARA). This is a comprehensive, bipartisan effort to provide money to New Jersey for a variety of purposes including open space acquisition, urban park and recreation recovery, coastal conservation, wildlife conservation, historic preservation, payment in lieu of taxes, and conservation easement/species recovery efforts. Large, environmentally significant areas will be likely candidates for funding and will most likely be distributed through the Green Acres program.
Gloucester County Open Space and Farmland Preservation Trust
Gloucester County residents pay three cents for every $100 of assessed property value to a dedicated trust to preserve land. The Trust funds are used to acquire county watershed land and parkland, municipal and nonprofit parkland, and development rights for farmland. The Gloucester County Open Space and Farmland Preservation Trust Fund is a competitive grant program to which municipalities in the county apply for land preservation funding. The county accepts applications on a rolling basis. A township can apply directly to this fund for open space and farmland acquisition dollars.
Camden County Open Space Trust Fund Tax
Funds raised through the collection of a maximum tax of one cent per $100 of assessed valuation in any given year will be used for open space and farmland preservation land acquisition or easements, recreational facility development, and historic preservation projects. This funding, estimated at about $2 million per year, will supplement the county's participation in the State's Farmland Preservation Program and Green Acres land acquisition program.
South Jersey Land & Water Trust
South Jersey Land & Water Trust is a regional land trust whose mission is to protect and preserve the natural, cultural, and historic heritage of southern New Jersey. South Jersey Land & Water Trust preserves land through fee simple acquisition and conservation easements. The organization also assists state, county, and local entities in open space planning, acquisition, and management. The Trust's primary project areas, for which it has a Green Acres Planning Incentive Grant, are the Raccoon and Oldmans creeks watersheds.
Stewart Estate Land Trust
This small Trust funds land acquisition in Gloucester, Cape May, Atlantic, Cumberland, and Ocean counties. To be eligible, a property must either contain water or be adjacent to water. The Trust was established in the 1950s with the goal of preserving wildlife habitat.
Transportation Enhancements Program of the Transportation Equity Act for the 21st Century (TEA-21)
Transportation Enhancements (TE) is a set-aside of federal highway and transit funds for the funding of projects designed to mitigate the impacts of transportation facilities on the environment and to enhance community character. Examples include bicycle and pedestrian trails, restoration of historic train stations, downtown streetscape improvements, roadside beautification, and preservation of scenic vistas. The amount of funding for these purposes is substantial, and funds for trail development and enhancement and for land acquisition are available. An eligible project must show that the trail is part of the community's overall transportation system. Funds can be used for improvements such as signage, bike racks, and surfacing, as well as acquisition of land through easement or fee simple. It is likely that this program will continue through the successor to TEA-21, although Congress had not yet authorized the new Act as of July 2004.
National Recreational Trails Act Projects
The New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection, Division of Parks and Forestry, Office of Natural Lands Management administers this trail development program. Funds are available to public agencies and nonprofit organizations. Proposed trails must be located on land that is publicly owned or privately owned with a government agency holding an easement or lease for public access. A special category of funding is dedicated to enhancement of National Recreation Trails.
Environmental Infrastructure Trust
The New Jersey Environmental Infrastructure Financing Program administered by the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection provides low interest loans to acquire open space that will preserve water quality. This program is a partnership between the New Jersey Environmental Infrastructure Trust and Green Acres. The mission of the Trust is to assist in achieving a cleaner and healthier environment by providing low interest financing for projects that enhance and protect ground and surface water resources, and ensure the safety of drinking water supplies.
Delaware Valley Regional Planning Commission Open Space and Natural Resource Planning Services for New Jersey Municipalities
DVRPC is a regional planning organization focused on wise land use within the Delaware Valley. DVRPC has developed a program of open space planning and advising for municipalities in southern New Jersey and has helped townships compile it open space, recreation and farmland preservation plans.
Eligible applicants: New Jersey municipalities in the DVRPC region
Eligible projects: DVRPC offers the following services: Natural Resource Inventory, Open Space and Recreation Plan, Master Plan Conservation Element, Natural Resource Protection Ordinance Assistance, Municipal Assessment, Community Vision.
Application round: open year round
Grant amount: DVRPC subsidies range from about $1,000 to $5,000, depending on the project type. The grants are non-competitive - all DVRPC region municipalities in NJ are eligible.
Contact: Patty Elkis, Manager of Environmental Planning, 215-238-2838
Website: http://www.dvrpc.org/planning.htm
