Open space will disappear without preservation trust

As unbelievable as this may sound, some say all the developable land in the state could be completely developed in 25 years or so, while Monmouth County has markedly less time - open space here will be gone here in less than seven years.

But, you ask, aren't there still many tracts of farmland and wooded areas in Central and South Jersey? Yes, but housing is quickly replacing horses and looks are deceiving. Many open tracts are already in developers' "land banks" for future construction. New Jersey and the entire East Coast are growing rapidly, and open space advocates fear the remaining land will soon be lost for future generations to enjoy.

Here's another scary fact: The state program that helps preserve open spaces, create parks, preserve farmland, and protect historical landmarks will run out of funds this year.

Called the Garden State Preservation Trust, the program will expire this year unless the Legislature and governor act soon to put the program on November's ballot for approval. So this is urgent.

But isn't Green Acres providing the money for open space? Yes, but that well-known program and the other programs are funded by the Preservation Trust. Unless our legislators act quickly, there will be no Preservation Trust to authorize matching funds for the state's 21 counties or for the many municipalities that have their own open space funding. No Preservation Trust means no funding programs for open space, farmlands, or historical preservation.

Nor are we maintaining the parks we already have. As the Preservation Trust withers and land gets gobbled up, well over $450 million in recent municipal and nonprofit Green Acres applications have gone unfunded. In addition, the maintenance backlog of existing state parks is $250 million parks, not counting county and municipal park repairs.

How much should the Preservation Trust be funded for? Estimates include $225 million a year for buying land, $100 million for capital improvements, and $56 million for operations -- a total of $381 million. This sounds expensive until you realize it amounts to $73 per household per year - about one months' cable TV. But also consider that development always, always increases property taxes. Studies prove it. So in the end, open space, farmland, and historical preservation actually stabilize taxes. Studies prove that also.

The Preservation Trust should be renewed on a long-term basis to allow land purchases to keep pace with land development. We also must carefully balance the needs of urban, suburban and rural populations and provide matching grants for state, county, local and nonprofit programs. In addition, we need innovative strategies for land purchases, capital improvements, and maintenance needs, such as purchasing development rights, non-contiguous clustering of developments, stronger land-use regulations, and incentives for corporate and individual donations.

With 18,000 acres getting bulldozed each year, the "garden" in Garden State is disappearing before our eyes. So please call your state representatives today. Tell them they must renew the Garden State Preservation Trust to protect our open space, farmlands, and historical resources. We can't afford any delays.

Judith Stanley Coleman

President

Monmouth Conservation Foundation