The Granby Land Trust had a very active and successful 2010. The following is a list of some of the highlights of the year:

• $60,000 Richard P. Garmany Fund Grant. The Land Trust applied for and received a $60,000 grant from the Richard P. Garmany Fund at the Hartford Foundation for Public Giving to be used toward the purchase of – and construction of trails upon – the Crane Property, a beautiful hilltop wilderness that abuts two other Land Trust properties in the Old Messenger Road area.
• $40,000 State of Connecticut Open Space and Watershed Fund Grant. The Land Trust applied for and received a $40,000 grant from the State of Connecticut to be used toward the purchase of the Crane Property, as well.
• Preservation of the Crane Property The purchase of this 38-acre property, along with an adjoining parcel, has been completed and the properties have been renamed, “The Garmany Preserve.”
• Preservation of the Bushy Hill Orchard. The Granby Land Trust, working with the State of Connecticut and the Town of Granby and with the support of many town residents, was able to ensure the preservation of the 70-acre Bushy Hill Orchard through the purchase of the property’s development rights.
• Preservation of The Beman Preserve. The Land Trust received a generous gift from the Beman Family of nearly 30 acres of undeveloped property in the Broad Hill Road Area in West Granby, which will heretofore be known as the Beman Preserve.
• Eunice Flannery Bequest. The Land Trust received a very generous bequest from the estate of Eunice Flannery. Longtime Granby residents Eunice and Don Flannery were committed to Granby and its open space efforts and this gift gives the Land Trust resources to pursue its mission.
• Preservation of Grace Kellogg Property. The Land Trust is in the process of receiving a 22-acre conservation Easement on Loomis Street, the former Grace Kellogg Property, from Jamie Gamble and Dave & Jenny Emery.
• $10,000 Land Trust Alliance Grant. The Land Trust applied for and was awarded $10,000 to help with improvements to its property management and property stewardship program.
• Property Stewardship Program Improvements. We have embarked upon a program of better standardizing our property data and creating management plans and baseline documentation reports for all of our properties. While this effort will take years to complete, we are happy to announce that is well underway.
  National Land Trust Alliance Rally. For the first time, the Land Trust attended the National Land Trust Alliance Rally, which brought together more than 1,800 conservation practitioners and offered workshops, seminars, and guest speakers discussing the “how” and “why” of protecting private land in America.
• Dewey Granby Oak Damage and Care. After the Granby Oak was seriously damaged in a hit-and-run accident, the Land Trust took immediate steps to treat the tree with the counsel and expertise of Arborworks Tree Service, who donates their time to take care of this spectacular tree.
• Strong Partnerships. The Land Trust further strengthened its partnerships with organizations like the Granby Artists Association, Holcomb Farm, the Salmon Brook Watershed Association, the McLean Game Refuge, the Town of Granby, and the State of Connecticut, among others.
  

Granby Land Trust 2010 Events

• A New Year's Day hike on the Mary Edwards Mountain Property
• A Conservation Heroes Lecture about Mary Edwards given by Put Brown in partnership with Holcomb Farm and McLean Game Refuge
• A Winter Hike in the Broad Hill/Weed Hill Area
• Forces of Nature Play at Holcomb Farm (about the lives of Gifford Pinchot, Theodore Roosevelt and John Muir) starring Put Brown
• Two Bird Walks on Jamie Gamble's property with expert birders John Weeks and Christine Chinni
• A Plein Air “Paint-Out,” complete with lunch and a lecture by Melanie Anderson-Bourbeau of the Hillstead Museum, hosted by Paula and Whitey Johnson on their beautiful Simsbury Road Property
• The Granby Land Trust Annual Meeting at Bushy Hill Orchard, at which we awarded the 2010 Mary Edwards Friend of the Land Trust Award to Granby’s Board of Selectman, which has long recognized the community's core open space values and, with bipartisan conviction, has taken bold actions to further them.
• Our annual Preserve Our Properties Day, which drew out groups of eager volunteers to maintain and improve our properties.
• The Granby Land Trust Art Show – Our Scenic Valley: Celebrating its Beautiful Places -- showcased art inspired by beautiful scenes from across the Farmington Valley. This 5th annual show, which is organized in partnership with the Granby Artists Association each year, benefits local artists, the Land Trust and the entire community. This year, 20 pieces of art were sold, with 20 percent of the proceeds going to the Granby Land Trust. More importantly, all who saw the show were reminded of the beauty surrounding us each and every day.