HARDWICK – The Trust for Public Land (TPL) has begun the process of purchasing a 318 acre plot of land at the peak of Buffalo Mountain and surrounding it. The land, if purchased, will be owned by the town itself. The project was approved by the Hardwick Select Board on July 10.
The plot is made up of two adjacent parcels, one being 179 acres with frontage on either side of the Lamoille River and on either side of the Lamoille Valley Rail Trail, with access from Wright Farm Road, which runs along the western edge of the parcel. The other is 140 acres, containing the summit of Buffalo Mountain, with access from three roads in the village center.
The parcels are currently owned by Ken and Chris Davis, and listed for sale at $545,000.
“The whole process is really community driven. I would say the three of us will probably guess that there will be trails, that tends to be a way that people want to get outside, but it’s really up to the community,” said Hannah Redmon, a project manager at the Trust for Public Land.
Funding for the project will come from federal funds, the Vermont Housing Conservation Board and from private funding. The town will need to put up about five percent of the total project cost.
“It’s a very good deal for the town,” said Jack Travelstead, chair of the Northern Rivers Land Trust Board of Trustees.
The purchase of the property by the town could support community engagement, quality of life and flood resiliency. “In the Northeast Kingdom, we’ve seen some really huge flooding events in the past few years that have been really destructive to communities. And this property is on the Lamoille River, and there has been flooding in Hardwick. So any opportunity that we have to conserve streams that are flowing into the rivers, there’s a good bit of floodplain in this property,” said Redmon.
The land has not been logged since the 1970s, said Paul Cillo. The property is close to the elementary school as well. “I think having Buffalo Mountain as a community forest with accessible trails, if that’s where we end up, just creates a perfect laboratory for young up and coming citizens, as they learn about the environment,” he said.
In September, TPL will receive an appraisal and contract for an ecological assessment. A steering committee to be established in October will oversee the purchase and initial ownership of the land, It is hoped the purchase can be completed by 2027.
The mountain frames the background of many scenes in Hardwick. “I was just in the new library yesterday. And when you go into the new children’s room and look, Buffalo Mountain is right there. It’s actually beautiful to be able to do that,” said Cillo. “It’s a significant land form right near the village, so it’s iconic in that sense.”
Alex Strand
Alex Strand is a Hardwick Gazette reporting intern for this summer. She is a rising junior at the University of Vermont studying English and Psychology. She is from Boston, MA, but has begun to fall in love with the Northeast Kingdom. In her free time, she likes reading, swimming and canoe tripping.
