Recorder Staff

NORTHFIELD — The Trust for Public Land — a national nonprofit land conservation organization — continues to stay in touch with the parties involved in its deal to ensure the 1,650-acre Northfield Forest is preserved for recreational purposes and protected from development. 
The trust regularly organizes conservation purchases, but doesn’t take long-term ownership itself. Instead, it coordinates purchases between a seller and a group or groups that would become permanent owners. The trust’s Senior Project Manager J.T. Horn said the Northfield arrangement is complex as it deals with two separate transactions — the sale of a water utility and the sale of land. 
The forest is owned by Northfield Mount Hermon School, which consolidated all of its operations to Gill when the 217-acre Northfield campus closed in 2005. The school wants to break its ownership commitment to the East Northfield Water Co. and plans to sell the utility to Connecticut-based Valley Water Systems or a subsidiary. The purchase price has yet to be determined as negotiations continue. However, the land price of $2.3 million was locked in by the school and the nonprofit organization in 2014. 
Since his presentation to the Selectboard in October, Horn has continued to finalize the proposal to split the land into three separate parcels, each under a different owner. The general idea has been kept the same, although the final acreage of each plot might change slightly by the time the plan is implemented due to parcel boundary negotiations with all the stakeholders.  
The plan 
Approximately 44 acres containing the water company’s operations will be purchased by the utility’s new owner. To place a conservation restriction on the approximately 273 acres surrounding the water company — which includes the Grandin Reservoir and its watershed — Northfield will go forward with the recommendation from the Department of Environmental Protection to purchase the plot and grant an easement to the utility to manage the land with the assurance that the water quality maintenance practices will align with DEP regulations. The rest of the land — approximately 1,333 acres — will fall under the ownership of The Department of Conservation and Recreation and be turned into a new state forest with public trails.
Winchester, N.H., has also been added into the mix with approximately 24 acres of Northfield’s property extending across the state border. Horn said it will be a challenge for the trust to protect the entire reservoir and its adjacent watershed property if New Hampshire isn’t willing to comply with its neighboring town, adding that it’s legal for a town to own property in another state, although, the owning town is usually required to pay property taxes for the land outside its jurisdiction. Horn also mentioned that — pending New Hampshire’s decision — Northfield may pay a reduced tax rate because the New Hampshire property is categorized under the current use criteria — similar to Article 61 under the Massachusetts General Laws — which states that land not deemed for development purposes may qualify for a discounted rate. 
“If Northfield has to pay taxes in New Hampshire, it will be at a reduced forestry rate, not at the market value rate,” Horn said.
The land purchase involves four funding sources including a $250,000 grant from the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation, a $1.1 million grant from the state’s Energy and Environmental Affairs office, a $100,000 contribution from Northfield’s Community Preservation Act Committee and the DCR will contribute the remaining funds from its capital budget. 
“Since Northfield is getting a significant chunk of land at the conclusion of this, we thought it was appropriate for the town to be a financial contributor,” Horn said, adding that the approximately 290 acres within the town is worth more than the final payment price as it serves a number of benefits including hiking trails, scenic views and water protection. “It would be great to give it to them for free, but the reality is that it’s a transaction and it has to be paid for.” 
Horn submitted two warrant articles for the May 2 annual town meeting to request that voters authorize the land purchase and approve the town’s $100,000 contribution toward the project. Horn plans to host a public informational session to ensure residents understand the project before it comes forward at the town meeting with the date, time and location to be announced. 
“We are trying to nail down the final details of the transactions and get agreements signed and details firmed up so we can schedule some sort of a public briefing in advance of the town meeting,” he said.