The Borough’s Open Space Advisory Committee announced last week that the NJDEP Green Acres Planning Incentive Grant Program awarded open space funding totaling $400,000 to the Borough. This funding was applied for last March, with the help of the Morris Land Conservancy.
Open space progress continues on several fronts, including a new project area along Pottersville Road. The Borough anticipates closing on the acquisition of an 11+ acre open space parcel on Pottersville Road by the end of the year. These successes will help preserve the green “gateway” to the Borough and help protect the character of the community.
The Committee, with the help of the Morris Land Conservancy and the Borough’s Agricultural Committee, is now launching a landowner outreach program in hopes of interesting more of the Borough’s land owners in preserving their land.
Sandy Urgo, a Land Preservation Specialist with the Conservancy, said that she is looking forward to working with the Open Space and Agricultural committees on this important new program. Urgo congratulated the Borough on its proactive approach to preservation and its Green Acres award. The State planning incentive grant program is a versatile funding mechanism that allows towns access to State funding when it is most needed. Only communities with active open space programs, like Peapack-Gladstone, tend to be awarded this funding, she added.
