PROFIT ORG NON POSTAGE S U PAID - Trustees · NON-PROFIT ORG. U.S.POSTAGE PAID HAYDENVILLE,MA ... An Inconvenient Truth, ... and her business sponsors the fall Harvest Dance.
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Working to enhancethe quality of life andrural character ofthe Highlands region of Massachusetts.
A program of The Trustees of Reservations, the HighlandCommunities Initiative is a group of neighbors and volun-teers working to enhance the quality of life and ruralcharacter of our communities. HCI connects people andprovides them with the information and support they needto preserve the special natural and cultural landscapes ofthe Highlands region.
The Trustees of Reservations are more than 100,000people like you who want to protect the places we love,or simply like to be outdoors.Together with our neighbors,we protect the distinct character of our communities andinspire a commitment to special places.
Highlands families are using the Internet to connect withone another, and with local treasures like the Chapel BrookReservation in Ashfield.
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6 HIGHLAND HAPPENINGS | WINTER 2008
DOES IT REALLY MATTER IF YOU KNOW YOUR
neighbors? Can being part of a tight-knit neighborhood
make a difference in any tangible way? To the residents of
a neighborhood on Nash Hill Road in Williamsburg, the
answers to these questions are a resounding “yes”. The families
and individuals that live in the Nash Hill area enjoy some
traditional aspects of a small town community – they know
one another by name, watch over each other’s animals and
houses, and celebrate special occasions together. But what is
more unusual about this neighborhood is that when a key
piece of wooded land was threatened with development,
they banded together to ensure its permanent protection.
Since Donna Gibson moved to Nash Hill in the 1960s, she
and the nearby residents who followed have put down roots
and made an effort to nurture their neighborhood. They
created some annual traditions – a Halloween get-together,
solstice celebrations, a Christmas Eve open house – and enjoy
Conserving a Neighborhood Together
JOIN THE CONSERVATION COMMONWould you like to connect with other people working to preserve the quality of life of their communities, to share resources, advice, and support? The Trustees’Putnam Conservation Institute has created a new website to act as a “cyber village”for conservation and community preservation activists of all backgrounds and levelsof experience. Visit WWW.CONSERVATIONCOMMON.ORG to get up-to-date news,participate in discussions, and find the links you need.
feeling like they are “part of an old farm community, borrowing
ladders, and trading garden produce throughout the season,”
Donna says. The seeds of expanded collaboration were sown
at one particular gathering, where the neighbors lamented
how much time they spent mowing their lawns. As a solution,
they jointly purchased a commercial mower and have shared
it among their houses for years. “We help each other in a variety
of ways, and we appreciate each other,” Donna says.
The relationships that they built over time came in handy
11 years ago, when 85 acres of prime woodland in the midst
of their neighborhood were put on the market for house lots.
Art Silver, a recent arrival to Nash Hill and direct abutter to
the land for sale, began negotiating with the landowner, while
other nearby households began meeting regularly to talk about
how to protect their neighborhood.
The process of negotiating with the landowner and one
another took more than a year, but in the end, each family
contributed to the purchase price according to their ability.
“It was a difficult and soul-searching process,” Donna recalls.
“Though it was long and complicated,” Art adds, “the desire
to conserve the land was strong enough to keep all of us
together.” To fulfill that desire, the group worked with The
Trustees and the Hilltown Land Trust to place a conservation
restriction on 65 acres to ensure it will remain in its natural
state forever. “The community spirit here largely led to the
whole thing happening,” Art claims. “We all got to protect our
quality of life and improve our property values by keeping the
neighborhood the same as it’s been. Our neighborhood is
very special. In my opinion, it has a sense of community that
we always hoped to find, and feel lucky to be part of.”
A stretch of Nash Hill Road will remain undeveloped foreverthanks to the actions of a group of neighbors.
MA Land Conservation ConferenceThursday, March 29 | 8AM – 4:30PM | Worcester Technical HighSchool | $38 before March 14; $58 after March 14Pre-registration required; call 978.840.4446 x1905 to register.
Private Land Conservation Consultations with an AttorneySaturday, April 5 | 25 minute appointments from 9AM – 3PM
Cummington | $15 per appointment. Open to landowners inFranklin, Hampshire, Hampden, and Berkshire Counties who ownat least 10 acres. Pre-registration required.
Stone by Stone: A History of New England’s Stone Walls Presentation by Author and Professor Robert ThorsonSaturday, April 12 | 1PM | Chesterfield Senior Center | FREE
Conservation by Design: A Practical Strategy forPreserving Town-wide Open Space NetworksPresentation by Randall ArendtMonday,April 28 | 7PM | Conway Town Hall | FREE
Restoring Old Growth Characteristics to Your WoodsPresentation by Paul CatanzaroThursday, May 22 | 7PM | Ashfield Town Hall | FREE
Call 413.268.8219 if inclement weather is forecasted, fordirections and more information, and to register for events.
A KeystoneOpportunityFORESTS ARE THE MOST DOMINANT NATURALfeatures in the Highlands, and if you’re interested in greatly
expanding your knowledge of forests and building relationships
with other people, then UMass Extension has an opportunity
for you. The Keystone Project, formerly called Coverts, is a
three-day training program at the Harvard Forest that provides
participants with a thorough understanding of forest ecology
and stewardship, wildlife management, and land conservation.
In exchange, participants agree to serve as local resources
for forest conservation in their communities with continued
support from UMass Extension. The goal of the Keystone
Project is to create a network of educated leaders who can
serve as a source of information for landowners, organizations,
and towns. For more information or to download an applica-
tion visit www.masskeystone.net or contact Paul Catanzaro at