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New Jersey Project Map

1.   Wallkill River National Wildlife Refuge, Sussex County
Since 1992, TPL has helped the U.S. Fish & Wildlife service acquire 643 acres to expand the Wallkill River National Wildlife Refuge. Within an hour's drive of New York City, the refuge offers critical wildlife habitat and exceptional recreational opportunities for the public -- including access to the Appalachian Trail -- and is a key link in the planned greenway system for northern New Jersey's Highlands.

2.   Sterling Forest, Orange and Rockland Counties, New York
In February of 1998, TPL and the Open Space Institute protected 15,800 acres of Sterling Forest. The $55 million deal ends twenty years of struggle to create an extraordinary recreational greenbelt and preserve significant wildlife habitat. Although located in New York State, the property contributes to the drinking water supply of 86 New Jersey cities and towns that are home to more than 2 million people, or one in four residents of the state.

3.   Ramapo Mountains, Bergen County
Just 40 minutes outside New York City, TPL assisted Bergen County and the State of New Jersey in protecting four properties totalling nearly 3,600 acres as additions to the Ramapo Mountains County Park and the Ramapo Mountains State Forest.

4.   Weldon Brook Wildlife Management Area, Sussex County
In 1996, TPL protected 828 acres of woodlands in Sparta Township to be the Weldon Brook Wildlife Management Area. TPL acquired the property and transferred it to the State of New Jersey to be managed by the Department of Environmental Protection Division of Fish, Game and Wildlife. This property and the connecting 3,000-acre Mahlon Dickerson Reservation, Morris County's largest park, creates an uninterrupted recreational and wildlife corridor.

5.   Great Swamp National Wildlife Refuge, Morris County
The Great Swamp is home to one-quarter of the bird species found in North America. However, the health of the swamp's delicate ecosystem is seriously threatened by encroaching residential development. TPL has assisted the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service in acquiring 120 acres as additions to the Great Swamp National Wildlife Refuge.

6.   Newark Playground Program, Essex County
In an effort to help revitalize Newark's neighborhoods, TPL is testing, in bricks and mortar (or benches and basketball courts), the idea that urban playgrounds can be built and successfully sustained through partnerships with local grassroots organizations. TPL provides expertise -- overseeing design and construction, as well as helping local residents begin recreational and educational programs, and plan for maintenance. Local groups then assume responsibility for stewardship. Since 1995, TPL has created two community playgrounds, the Maple Avenue School Playground, located in Newark's South Ward, and the Saint Columba Peace Playground, located in Newark's East Ward. TPL and its local partners are currently in the process of planning three additional playgrounds.

7.   Clinton Township, Municipal Initiative, Hunterdon County
In 1997, TPL helped the Township acquire 95 acres of meadows and woods near the Round Valley Reservoir which had been the proposed site of a residential subdivision. Designated as the Bray's Hill Preserve, the land will be managed by the Township for hiking, birdwatching, horseback riding and cross-country skiing. TPL negotiated with the landowner to purchase the property and helped the Township use a new funding source from the State of New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection Planning Incentive Program.

8.   Readington Township, Municipal Initiative, Hunterdon County
TPL has been working closely with the Township of Readington and the Readington Greenways Group to create a recreational buffer zone along the banks of Pleasant Run Creek which drains into the South Branch of the Raritan River. The protection of this site significantly enhances the areas' existing public open spaces as specified in the Township's Master Plan.

9.   Hillsborough Township, Municipal Initiative, Somerset County
In 1998, TPL acquired and then conveyed a 50-acre farm to the Township. The landowner had received several purchase offers from residential developers, but wished to see the land preserved in its natural state. This beautiful, gently rolling, farmland property provides habitat for numerous plant and animal species. This was the Township's first protection effort using its Open Space Trust Fund.

10.   Bayshore Access Plan, Monmouth County
TPL worked closely with the Monmouth County Planning Board to develop the Bayshore Access Plan, which provides a framework for coordinating development, preservation, and continuous public access to the 25-mile-long Bayshore. In addition, TPL has helped to secure several properties, totaling more than 13 acres, that were conveyed to the County and preserved as open space.

11.   Fisher Place Park, Trenton, Mercer County
In 1993, TPL assisted ISLES, a city-wide gardening and low-income housing group, in creating a one-acre park. In addition to securing funding from several foundations, TPL negotiated to secure the property. The park provides desperately needed open space to local residents of a senior housing complex, historic single-family homes, and a low income neighborhood -- all of which have minimal access to open space areas.

12.   Barnegat Bay Initiative, Ocean County
Since 1989, TPL has worked closely with federal, state, and local governments, as well as nonprofit groups to protect the Bay's critical watershed. Besides being a popular recreational resource, Barnegat Bay is a migratory bird stopover point along the Atlantic Flyway and a major nesting and wintering ground for such species as the black duck, the endangered bald eagle and peregrine falcon. To date, TPL has protected more than 5,800 acres throughout the Bay area. In addition, TPL has conducted research, planning, and outreach resulting in the widely distributed reports -- The Century Plan and Beyond the Century Plan -- which are available to the public. In 1997 TPL was instrumental in helping local grassroots organizations pass an Open Space Referendum for Ocean County generating $3.8 million per year to acquire natural lands.