As was announced earlier this spring, the Open Space Alliance, an initiative of the Greater Lewes Foundation, has partnered with the Sussex County Land Trust on a mission to acquire two separate parcels of property in and around Lewes, totaling almost 120 acres. The Ard na Greine Preserve located just outside Lewes city limits between Savannah and New roads, as well as the Fourth Street Preserve within Lewes, when purchased, will become permanently protected open space for future public use. These open space areas will provide the public with passive recreational opportunities and offer habitat preservation for a diversity of flora and fauna.
The Fourth Street Preserve will have a conservation easement placed on the property by SCLT. The easement is a legally binding document that will permanently protect the property as open space, and also protect the ecological assets. A master plan will be developed with public input, but uses will be limited to the parameters written into the conservation easement.
The OSA campaign team has initiated our fundraising efforts. We have focused on governmental and foundation requests and are extremely grateful to Lewes Mayor and Council for its unanimous decision to pledge $500,000 toward the purchase of the Fourth Street Preserve. While continuing with those funding sources, we also are now turning to private donors to show additional support from our community. Strong community support reinforces our appeal to private and governmental funding sources. At least 15 different fundraising events in various locations of Lewes are already scheduled, and we are seeking more to reach as many people as possible. Let us know if you would like to host an event. We will be hosting public events at the Rollins Center.
To keep the public informed of our progress, we plan to provide an electronic newsletter beginning in August, share information on social media, display information on our website and regularly announce our progress in the Cape Gazette. Here are some ways to obtain information:
• Visit greaterlewesfoundation.org and click on the menu icon to go to the Open Space Alliance page
• Search Open Space Alliance Lewes
• Email Campaign Manager Pam Costanzi at pcostanzi@horizonphilanthropic.com
• Search OSALewes on Facebook
• Call 302-644-0107.
Donations can be made via the GLF web page, The Sussex County Land Trust, or sent to Greater Lewes Foundation, P.O. Box 110, Lewes, DE 19958.
I urge you to become part of our future and help achieve this once-in-a-lifetime preservation opportunity. Together, we will make this happen.
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