The Friends of the Dyken Pond Center received an early Christmas present when they were recently awarded a grant of $53,310 to help fund the Friends’ acquisition of the Newcomb Pond 2 parcel. [private]This Environmental Protection Fund Municipal Grant from the New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation covers half of the purchase price of the land and associated costs, and is a major component of the fundraising plan, so we are extremely pleased to receive it!
In July the Friends purchased the Newcomb Pond 2 parcel, 56 beautiful acres of woods and wetlands that are adjacent to land already protected and open to Dyken Pond Center visitors. This new property contains the majority of Newcomb Pond, and is home to otters, beaver, and other wildlife.
The Friends took out a one-year no-interest $100,000 loan from the Norcross Wildlife Foundation to allow us to purchase the Newcomb Pond 2 parcel, and they have until this coming June to repay the loan. Adding this grant to awards from the Fields Pond Foundation and the Broughton Foundation, and to contributions from members, they have raised almost the entire amount needed to pay for the project!
There are still some administrative steps before they receive the funds from New York State and pay back the loan to Norcross. The Friends hope to complete the whole process by June. In the meantime, this coming summer they will be laying out a trail on the new land that will link the Spring Trail with the Old Road Trail, and run along the shore of Newcomb Pond and through the surrounding forests. Watch for news about the trail-opening celebration in 2016![/private]