Year in Review
CPF made substantial progress in addressing the mission of the organization and meeting strategic plan goals in 2021 and early 2022.
Lands & Stewardship
In the area of land acquisition and stewardship, a major highlight of the past year was the purchase of the Burlingame Northwest Gateway property on Route 20 West to increase the contiguous area of protected habitat in that area and secure permanent public access to a significant section of the Sherman’s Gulch Trail. This is the first property purchase that CPF has made since 2016.
CPF’s Stewardship Committee and a dedicated group of volunteers completed several major parking, access, and trail drainage improvements at Fairchild Hill. These upgrades improved the user experience and aesthetics of this key CPF property. Many of these changes were critical to initiating winter trail grooming for cross-country skiing and snowshoeing at Fairchild Hill this year. With the help of the Friends of Stoney Pond (FROSTY) and volunteers from the local chapter of the North Country Trail Association, we were also able to successfully groom the Gorge Trail this winter.
Update on the Gorge Trail Gateway – CPF’s Signature Project
CPF was very pleased to secure a 20-year agreement for public access rights with Earl Buyea, Sr., the owner of the property of the CPF’s Signature Project site, making this exciting project viable for grant funding opportunities. We have been working with a project team from the National Park Service Rivers, Trails and Conservation Assistance Program through a grant awarded to Cazenovia Area Community Development Alliance (CACDA) last year to further refine the project conceptual designs. In the coming year, CPF will contract with a landscape architect and engineer for the next-level project design work. Funding will come from board-directed mission funds and grants awarded to CPF by the Madison County Planning Department from funding provided by the Finger Lakes Lake Ontario Watershed Protection Alliance (FLLOWPA).
Additional Projects and Partnerships
CPF has been working with CACDA to advance a project through the New York State Department of Agriculture and Markets Farmland Protection Implementation Grant Program that will add an additional 471 acres to CPF’s portfolio of conserved agricultural land.
With a grant from The Nature Conservancy of New York, which was awarded in the Spring of 2021, CPF hired a part-time Conservation Planner, purchased a Geographic Information Systems (GIS) software license, compiled an in-house geodatabase for future GIS project work, and initiated work on an updated Strategic Land Conservation Plan.
CPF hosted a Colgate University Upstate Institute fellow, Cassie Ferrante, over the summer and into the fall of 2021. Ms. Ferrante worked to develop a solar siting GIS toolkit to inform the Town of Cazenovia Solar Committee as it considered revisions to the Town of Cazenovia Code on Solar Energy Generation. Along with several partner organizations–CACDA, United Climate Action Network, (UCAN), and the Cazenovia Chamber of Commerce–CPF hosted the four-part Beyond Rooftop Solar panel discussion series to build a common base of knowledge about commercial solar development, which is a topic of emerging importance within our community.
Fundraising, Development & Community Engagement
CPF hired Development & Marketing Specialist, Levi Spires, in May of 2021 under a New York State Conservation Partnership Program (NYSCPP) Grant from the New York State Environmental Protection Fund (EPF). The NYSCPP is administered by the Land Trust Alliance in coordination with the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (NYSDEC). Mr. Spires helped CPF select new Customer Relations Management (CRM) software and complete the data migration to the new cloud-based platform. He also produced an inspiring video about CPF which we debuted at the fall fundraiser event. Mr. Spires is now finalizing work on a new brand guide which refines and standardizes the look of CPF’s public information materials across print and digital media.
CPF held a successful fall fundraiser event, Scenic Sunday, at the beautiful Windridge Estate and Red Barn 20, and, using the new database software system, conducted a successful year-end appeal.
Community engagement activities included re-initiating the three-part Fourth Grade History Walking Field Trip series that had been paused in 2020 due to COVID. CPF also hosted a new event, a “Preservation Property Tour and Picnic,” on a beautiful Saturday in May of 2021, showcasing several of CPF’s owned and conservation easement properties and the range of conservation values represented in the protection of these lands and buildings.
Thanks to Anne Saltman, contest chairperson, CPF’s first Community Photography Contest was a huge hit and we received over 250 photo submissions from students, and adult professional and amateur photographers showcasing the unique beauty of the Cazenovia area.
