East Haddam Land Trust Scores State Grant To Expand Holdings

EAST HADDAM, CT — Gov. Ned Lamont on Monday announced the award of more than $15 million in state grants to preserve 2,270 acres of open space and create six new community green spaces in 22 towns and cities across Connecticut.

Scoring $70,200 of the grant money was the East Haddam Land Trust, Inc., for purchase and protection of the R. Smith Connection Property, located on Tater Hill Road.

This 14.12-acre property in southeastern East Haddam contains mature hardwood forest and enhances bird habitat in a greenway of connected preserves. It protects two watersheds, a vernal pool and wooded wetland. Two-thirds of the property is in the Eightmile River Wild and Scenic Watershed, one-third is in the Whalebone Creek/Hemlock Valley Brook/Roaring Brook Watershed, and the entire property is in the Audubon Lyme Forest Block Important Bird Area. EHLT’s Walls Way Preserve abuts the property to the west, EHLT’s Miller Farm Preserve abuts to the north and the town’s Lena Reserve abuts the property to the south, further connecting to the DEEP Hand Property and The Nature Conservancy’s Burnham Brook Preserve.

The funding includes $14.3 million through the Open Space and Watershed Land Acquisition Grant Program (OSWA) and $725,353 through the Urban Green and Community Gardens Grant Program (UGCG). Both programs are administered by the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection (DEEP).

“Open space is a big contributor to our great quality of life here in Connecticut, and we are excited to help all these communities improve access to the outdoors with these funds,” Lamont said.

According to state law, Connecticut has a goal of preserving 673,210 acres, or 21 percent of its land area, as open space. That includes 10 percent managed by DEEP and 11 percent held by partners such as municipalities, land trusts, and water utilities.

As of Dec. 31, 2024, DEEP reported it had preserved 263,969 acres toward its target and that partner organizations had conserved about 255,169 acres—bringing the statewide total to 519,138 acres, or about 77 percent of the overall goal.

“From large tracts of land to small pocket parks, this group of projects benefits a variety of communities across the state,” said DEEP Commissioner Katie Dykes. “DEEP is excited to see recent program changes bringing new communities and partners to the table.”

Since its launch in 1998, the state’s open space initiative has provided more than $190 million to assist in conserving over 48,000 acres of publicly accessible land.

Recent legislative and policy changes have expanded eligibility and access to both grant programs. These include allowing reimbursement of incidental land acquisition costs under OSWA, as well as broadening UGCG eligibility to include more municipalities and nonprofit organizations.

Ten of this year’s 31 grant recipients took advantage of these updates. DEEP has opened the application period for the next round of grants, with a submission deadline of Nov. 3, 2025.

Application materials and more information are available here.