North Branford Land Conservation Trust General Information Contact Information Nonprofit North Branford Land Conservation Trust Address PO BOX 378 North Branford, CT 06471 0378 Phone (203) 484-4566 Web Site Web Site Facebook Facebook Email info@nblandtrust.org At A Glance Year of Incorporation 2012 Organization's type of tax exempt status Organization received a competitive grant from the community foundation in the past five years Public Supported Charity No 1
Mission & Areas Served Statements Mission The North Branford Land Conservation Trust (NBLCT) acquires and preserves open space in our town and environs. We promote the conservation of land and its natural resources. We protect and sustain the natural state of these lands as well as historic buildings and sites for the benefit of the community and to protect, enhance and maintain the rural character of North Branford and the value and benefits of these places for posterity. A Great Opportunity We are in the process of acquiring 18+ acres of woodland complete with about 5 miles of trails. Although the property is a generous donation from a family, it will cost our organization a minimum of $20,000 for surveying, signage, trail upgrades, boundary markings, legal expenses and title transfer. We hope to complete this acquisition by 2018. A Great Opportunity Ending Date 15 2018 Background The North Branford Land Conservation Trust was established in 1968. In 2010, by appointing himself as "acting president", Otto Schaefer led a great effort with only a handful of remaining members to revive the Land Trust. He organized monthly meetings, wrote articles in the Totoket Times (a local newspaper) and held talks and tours to encourage participation. Today we have a full board of energetic and dedicated volunteers. Although we have grown significantly in the recent years, we are short handed and we are looking for ways to expand our membership and volunteer base. Impact Some of our accomplishments this past year were: We successfully participated in The Great Give for our first time! We successfully negotiated and received title to 1+ acres of river front land from a developer. We uncovered several serious encroachments on our properties. We surveyed the 18+ acres to be acquired, performed a title search and completed most necessary items to take title of the property. Some of our near term goals are: Apply for grants to pay for expenses associated with land acquisition. Complete the 18+ acre acquisition of woodland. Resolve some of the more significant encroachments we discovered. Expand our membership and our all-volunteer workforce to accomplish our goals. Needs Our top priority is to acquire meaningful open space in the town of North Branford. Donations are needed to support acquisition, land stewardship, legal fees, insurance, and documentation for new and existing properties. We also need individuals with a general knowledge and interest in nature willing to donate their time and expertise. This would include people with backgrounds in business, secretarial, legal, land stewardship and the trades for our all-volunteer land trust. In addition, we need to improve signage which includes boundary and trail markings. 2
Board Chair Statement In the 1960's, there was a land trust revolution. People around the country realized their communities had valuable acreage including pristine fields, woodlands and unique natural features that were unprotected from development. Land trusts popped up everywhere, formed by citizens who cared about and wanted to protect these places. The NBLCT was no exception. However, enthusiasm for the NBLCT slowly waned over the years until it was just a handful of members. We were recently revived by a couple of members who never lost their mission. We now have a good group of members, some with great energy, but we still have many growing pains and need help. In 2014, at the urging of the CT State Dept. of Energy and Environmental Protection (DEEP), the NBLCT listed our 5 most valuable parcels to protect in our town. This document entitled "Critical Choices for Open Space" includes hundreds of acres of open space. One of the parcels includes a section of the Mattabesett Trail - which is a significant state recognized trail. The document was presented to town officials and State DEEP officials. To date, all of these parcels (along with others), remain unprotected. Our long-term goal then is to protect these lands in their natural states. As one might imagine, protecting hundreds of acres can cost thousands or millions of dollars, lots of planning, negotiation, etc.. We are a small and young organization with great ambition. Only six years into our new life, we need volunteers, energy, ideas and financial aid to reach our goals. Service Categories Primary Organization Category Environment / Land Resources Conservation Secondary Organization Category Public & Societal Benefit / Areas Served North Branford North Branford and Northford 3
Programs Programs Land Stewardship The Land Stewardship program is responsible for the NBLCT properties. To that end, the members organize work parties to find and mark property boundaries, check on the condition of our properties, including maintenance such as clearing invasive species and improving trails. The members organize and lead hikes for the community who want to explore and learn about the flora and fauna in North Branford. Budget $0.00 Category Environment, General/Other / Population Served General/Unspecified / / Annual Art Contest The contest is open to various age categories from Kindergarten to High School. The winning artworks are displayed in the Atwater Library in North Branford and the Smith Library in Northford. The theme of the art submitted should be representative of North Branford, with preference given to natural features. The Art Contest helps create public awareness of our organization to all age groups Budget $650.00 Category Environment, General/Other / Population Served General/Unspecified / / Program is linked to organization s mission and strategy Outdoor Classroom We discovered an old overgrown trail behind Totoket Valley Elementary School that was created in 1971. Although owned by the town, we cleared invasives and marked the trails for easy access. We labeled the trees and so that students could learn about their land. We are updating a guide to the trail for teachers to use. (Under development) Work with teachers and students to create a student driven outdoor education program on our Mill Road property in North Branford. Students would be supervised by teachers and NBLCT members. Budget $0.00 Category Youth Development, General/Other / Youth Development, General/Other Population Served Children Only (5-14 years) / Children and Youth (0-19 years) / 4
Hikes and walks We are committed to hold more than four seasonal hikes per year for the public, often in conjunction with North Branford Parks and Recreation and the Regional Water Authority. To make the trails more accessible, we recently GPS mapped all the public trails in town which can be downloaded on a smartphone. Budget $0.00 Category Population Served Program is linked to organization s mission and strategy Long Term Success Program Success Monitored By Environment, General/Other / Environmental & Urban Beautification General/Unspecified / Families / Adults At the present time, we hold 4 seasonal hikes per year. Our goal is to increase our membership so we can get more active volunteers to help maintain the trails and lead hikes. We would also like to increase public awareness so that more open space that is suitable for hiking, would be donated to the organization. Membership would be increased, more volunteers would be able to lead hikes so that we are not dependent on the same people all the time, and we would be able to hold more 4 seasonal hikes per year. Educational Talks Several times a year, we have guest speakers talk about a variety of topics related to the environment including local geology, plants, animals, farming, etc. Budget $0.00 Category Education, General/Other / Educational Programs Population Served Adults / / Program is linked to organization s mission and strategy 5
Leadership & Staff CEO/Executive Director This organization is made up of all volunteers. There is no paid Executive Director. Staff Number of Full Time Staff 0 Number of Part Time Staff 0 Number of Volunteers 20 Number of Contract Staff 0 Staff Retention Rate 0% Staff Demographics - Ethnicity African American/Black 0 Asian American/Pacific Islander 0 Caucasian 0 Hispanic/Latino 0 Native American/American Indian 0 Other 0 0 Staff Demographics - Gender Male 0 Female 0 Unspecified 0 Plans & Policies Organization has a Fundraising Plan? Organization has a Strategic Plan? Management Succession Plan? Organization Policy and Procedures Nondiscrimination Policy Whistleblower Policy Document Destruction Policy Under Development Under Development No Under Development No Formal Evaluations CEO Formal Evaluation CEO/Executive Formal Evaluation Frequency 6
Senior Management Formal Evaluation Senior Management Formal Evaluation Frequency Non Management Formal Evaluation Non Management Formal Evaluation Frequency Collaborations We work in multiple capacities with the Regional Water Authority, the North Branford Dept. of Parks and Recreation, local area Land Trusts, Connecticut Land Conservation Council, Boy Scouts, local womens' clubs, Connecticut Forest and Parks Association, and Yale. 7
Board & Governance Board Chair Mr. David H. Sargent Company Affiliation President Term July 2013 to 0 Board of Directors Name Mr. Ken Albin Mr. Mike Ferrucci Mr. Wayne LaFond Ms. Patty Meglio Mr. Hank Petroskey Mr. David Sargent Mr. Scott Small Mr. Geoffrey Smith Ms. Bonnie Symansky Affiliation Land Steward Treasurer Retired Retired Board Demographics - Ethnicity African American/Black 0 Asian American/Pacific Islander 0 Caucasian 9 Hispanic/Latino 0 Native American/American Indian 0 Other 0 0 Board Demographics - Gender Male 7 Female 2 Unspecified 0 Governance Board Term Lengths 3 Board Term Limits 0 Board Meeting Attendance % 90% Number of Full Board Meetings Annually 12 8
Written Board Selection Criteria Written Conflict of Interest Policy No Percentage Making Monetary Contributions 100% Percentage Making In-Kind Contributions 100% Standing Committees Investment Membership Special Events (Golf Tournament, Walk / Run, Silent Auction, Dinner / Gala) Communications / Promotion / Publicity / Public Relations 9
Financials Financials Fiscal Year Start June 01 2017 Fiscal Year End May 31 2018 Projected Revenue $10,260.00 Projected Expenses $13,912.00 Endowment Value $0.00 Spending Policy Percentage (if selected) 0% Detailed Financials Prior Three Years Total Revenue and Expense Totals Chart Fiscal Year 2017 2016 2015 Total Revenue $8,942 $5,741 $2,778 Total Expenses $9,281 $2,924 $1,093 Prior Three Years Assets and Liabilities Chart Fiscal Year 2017 2016 2015 Total Assets -- $161,264 $158,447 Current Assets -- $126,775 $121,792 Long-Term Liabilities -- -- -- Current Liabilities -- -- -- Total Net Assets -- $161,264 $158,447 Prior Three Years Top Three Funding Sources Fiscal Year 2017 2016 2015 Top Funding Source & Dollar Amount -- CT Botanical Society -- $1,000 Second Highest Funding Source & Dollar -- -- -- Amount Third Highest Funding Source & Dollar Amount -- -- -- Solvency Short Term Solvency Fiscal Year 2017 2016 2015 Current Ratio: Current Assets/Current Liabilities -- -- -- Long Term Solvency Fiscal Year 2017 2016 2015 Long-Term Liabilities/Total Assets -- 0% 0% 10
Capital Campaign Currently in a Capital Campaign? Anticipated In 3 Years Capital Campaign Purpose We are anticipating the acquisition of two properties during this present fiscal year. Goal $20,000.00 Dates June 2016 to May 2017 Amount Raised To Date 1000 as of 2016 Capital Campaign Anticipated in Next 5 Years? Comments CEO Comments Our budget involves the anticipation of using Equity funds for expenditures. However, we have just finished our Fiscal Year Ending 5/30/16 without having to spend any equity funds. We hope to be able to raise enough funds to continue this practice. Foundation Staff Comments This profile, including the financial summaries prepared and submitted by the organization based on its own independent and/or internal audit processes and regulatory submissions, has been read by the Foundation. Financial information is inputted by Foundation staff directly from the organization s IRS Form 990, audited financial statements or other financial documents approved by the nonprofit s board. The Foundation has not audited the organization s financial statements or tax filings, and makes no representations or warranties thereon. The Community Foundation is continuing to receive information submitted by the organization and may periodically update the organization s profile to reflect the most current financial and other information available. The organization has completed the fields required by The Community Foundation and updated their profile in the last year. To see if the organization has received a competitive grant from The Community Foundation in the last five years, please go to the General Information Tab of the profile. Created 07.13.2018. Copyright 2018 The Community Foundation for Greater New Haven 11