About the West Boylston Land Trust
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What was the West Boylston Land Trust?
The West Boylston Land Trust has been a non-profit conservation established in March 2000. It was dedicated to the preservation of the natural beauty and rural character of the Town of West Boylston. The Trust has been guided by a board of Trustees, all residents or landowners in the Town.
In October of 2008, the Members of the Trust overwhelmingly voted to transfer the assets of the Trust to Greater Worcester Land Trust ("GWLT.") GWLT was established in 1987 has been involved in the preservation of 1545 acres of land in seven communities and presently owns 16 properties totaling 483 acres and 15 conservation restrictions totaling 753 acres. GWLT has a Volunteer Ranger Corps of 21 a Volunteer Corps of approximately 40, as well as a full-time Executive Director and a part-time Volunteer & Membership Coordinator.
The Trustees and Members of the Trust overwhelmingly agreed that this new affiliation with GWLT would help ensure a vibrant land trust presence in West Boylston. As part of this new relationship, the Trust has encouraged its Members and supporters to
become members of GWLT. As of January 31, 2009, the Trust has transferred all of its assets to GWLT and has discontinued its activities and a number of the persons who had been Trustees or members have formed a new group, to be called the West Boylston Advisory Group of the Greater Worcester Land Trust.
What is the West Boylston Advisory Group of the Greater Worcester Land Trust?
The duties of the new Advisory Group are:
- To act as land protection advocates;
- To develop linkages with the various Town officials, boards, committees, and commissions who may have interests and concerns regarding protecting open space in the Town;
- To develop contacts with landowners who may be interested in having their property protected against future development;
- To assist local citizens who may be able and willing to protect their land from development and to develop local financial support for land protection activities;
- To act as the local representative of the GWLT and the supporter of its activities in the Town;
- To assist the GWLT in gaining financial and other types of support from people in the Town; and
- To identify opportunities for the GWLT to provide financial, fund raising and other types of land protection support for the Town.
How can GWLT Help Me as a Land Owner?
As a tax-exempt organization under section 501c(3) of the Internal Revenue Code, the Greater Worcester Land Trust is qualified to receive charitable donations of land. In many cases, tax law incentives make it financially advantageous for you to set your land aside in perpetuity.
As indicated above, the Greater Worcester Land Trust also acquires and holds Conservation Restrictions -- a land-use tool which can enable a landowner to donate (or sell) the right to develop his/her property while retaining ownership and use. The Advisory Group welcomes your inquiry about various possibilities.
Advisory Group
There are currently seven members of the Advisory Group:
George Bernardin
Betsy DeMallie
Ted Gallagher
Tom Halpin
Rachel Peckar
Dave Sweetman
Vincent Vignaly
Comments or suggestions relating to the activities of the Advisory group are welcome and may be directed to any of the members. The Group can be contacted by mail at 78 Newton Street, West Boylston, MA 01583.