Our Business Fundraising Efforts Have Begun
Now Seeking Sponsors!
We are an all-volunteer organization that seeks funding to further our conservation goals. Your financial support enables us to maintain, beautify, and enhance the utilization of, the Town’s conservation properties.
Our fundraising appeal:
In late 2018 a group of Hudson residents formed a non-profit organization (501(c)3), the Hudson Land Trust. The Trust’s principal function is to assist the Town of Hudson in the oversight and management of its conservation lands, ensuring they are preserved for future generations as intended.
We are working with the Town, partner community organizations, and the public at large on initiatives ranging from trail building and signage to community engagement and education. In the coming weeks, we will be filing conservation restrictions with the Massachusetts Executive Office of Environmental Affairs, Division of Conservation Services, a legal process that ensures the land will be protected in accordance with the Community Preservation Act.
We are an all-volunteer organization. Our Board of Directors has worked hard to form the Trust, build relationships, and get the organization off the ground. Community support for the Trust has been strong and we have been humbled by the generous financial support of our neighbors.
With a mandate to protect these lands forever and with countless opportunities to enhance their utility today, we are seeking donations from local businesses who share our commitment to natural resource conservation.
We offer supporter opportunities as follows:
Benefactor, $5,000 Conservator, $2,500 Steward, $500
For more information, please visit our website hudsonlandtrust.org/supporters or reach me directly at contact@hudsonlandtrust.org or 978-568-1619.
We would welcome the opportunity to meet with you to discuss this further at your convenience.
Thank you for your support.
Sincerely,
Gregory Opp
President, Hudson Land Trust
Learn more and donate here.
Thank you for your support!
Stretch Energy Code Information Session
Build Greener, Win Grants
At the upcoming spring Town Meeting, Hudson will decide whether to implement a Stretch Energy Code for the purpose of becoming a Green Community. Green Community’s are eligible for grants which fund energy saving projects in municipal buildings.
So, in addition to the direct benefits of building greener here in Hudson, there are financial incentives for the Town adopting this higher standard that most Massachusetts communities have already implemented.
Upcoming Information Session
To learn more about the Stretch Code and becoming a Green Community, please attend the upcoming information session:
Background on the Stretch Energy Code and Green Communities initiative
Info on building energy codes
Stretch Energy Code
Green Communities Act, 2008
250 cities and towns in Massachusetts have implemented the Stretch Code. See the map, here.
FAQs and answers, from the City of Woburn (2011).
Business Fundraising Effort Kicks Off
Our Business Fundraising Efforts Have Begun
Now Seeking Sponsors!
We are an all-volunteer organization that seeks funding to further our conservation goals. Your financial support enables us to maintain, beautify, and enhance the utilization of, the Town’s conservation properties.
Our fundraising appeal:
In late 2018 a group of Hudson residents formed a non-profit organization (501(c)3), the Hudson Land Trust. The Trust’s principal function is to assist the Town of Hudson in the oversight and management of its conservation lands, ensuring they are preserved for future generations as intended.
We are working with the Town, partner community organizations, and the public at large on initiatives ranging from trail building and signage to community engagement and education. In the coming weeks, we will be filing conservation restrictions with the Massachusetts Executive Office of Environmental Affairs, Division of Conservation Services, a legal process that ensures the land will be protected in accordance with the Community Preservation Act.
We are an all-volunteer organization. Our Board of Directors has worked hard to form the Trust, build relationships, and get the organization off the ground. Community support for the Trust has been strong and we have been humbled by the generous financial support of our neighbors.
With a mandate to protect these lands forever and with countless opportunities to enhance their utility today, we are seeking donations from local businesses who share our commitment to natural resource conservation.
We offer supporter opportunities as follows:
Benefactor, $5,000 Conservator, $2,500 Steward, $500
For more information, please visit our website hudsonlandtrust.org/supporters or reach me directly at contact@hudsonlandtrust.org or 978-568-1619.
We would welcome the opportunity to meet with you to discuss this further at your convenience.
Thank you for your support.
Sincerely,
Gregory Opp
President, Hudson Land Trust
Learn more and donate here.
Thank you for your support!
Fundraising Letter
Sponsorship Opportunities
Our First Public Meeting. January 16, 2019
The Trust’s First Public Meeting
On Wednesday, January 16th, in the Avidia Bank Community Room, the Hudson Land Trust held its first public meeting. More than thirty residents attended the presentation by the Trust’s board of directors, who were joined by Pam Helinek, Hudson’s Conservation Agent, and Linda Ghiloni of the Community Preservation Committee.
The presentation covered important background information on the Community Preservation Act (“CPA”), the basis for the one percent property surtax that Hudson enacted in 2007. Since enacting the CPA at Town Meeting, Hudson has raised more than $3M and received approximately $1.25M in matching funds from the State.
The Board’s Presentation
Over the last decade, these Community Preservation Funds have been used, as intended and legally required, in support of various land acquisition for conservation and recreation, historic preservation, and affordable housing initiatives. It is the land acquisitions that necessitated the formation of the Trust.
Under the CPA, each property acquired with Community Preservation Funds must have a Conservation Restriction associated with it. A Conservation Restriction is a legal document that provides a thorough description of the property and a narrowly defined set of approved uses, as defined and reviewed by various state agencies. Conservation Restrictions on these CPA properties must be held by a private trust, one approved by the local Community Preservation Committee and by voters at Town Meeting. The Hudson Land Trust was formed to serve this purpose.
Following the Board’s presentation, various members of the community, including representatives from the Board of Selectmen, Hudson Public Schools, and the Boy Scouts, offered their support for the organization and its goals.
The Board would like to thank all who attended for your support and also Avidia Bank for the use of their Community Room.
The Hudson Land Trust is now welcoming members and donations. Join us, here.
Hudson Forms a Land Trust
Five Residents Form a Board of Directors
As the Town has acquired land resources under the CPA, the State requires that the conservation restrictions (CRs) on the properties be held in a trust. Regional trusts, like the Sudbury Valley Trustees, offer this service for a fee, generally between $12,000 and $25,000. The founders of the Hudson Land Trust believe we can offer more value to the Town and community while charging lower management fees.
Five conservation-minded residents have volunteered to drive the formation of the legal entity – a 501(c)3 nonprofit corporation – and to serve on its board. We are:
We have filed our registration paperwork with the State of Massachusetts and the IRS. Once we receive the necessary approvals, we can begin working with the Town on conservation restrictions, start fundraising, solicit volunteers, and commence our land stewardship responsibilities.
Thank you for your support.
https://www.metrowestdailynews.com/news/20180819/hudson-land-trust-waiting-for-state-approval