Foundation preserves 268 acres

The Greater Culver Lake Watershed Conservation Foundation (GCLWCF) has permanently protected 268 acres of land in Frankford Township.

Preserved are the 95-acre former Culver Lake Golf Course, now called Culver Brook Preserve, and an adjacent 173-acre forested parcel, which has been labeled Culver Brook Preserve East.

Funding for the purchases was provided by GCLWCF, New Jersey Conservation Foundation (NJ Conservation), the Open Space Institute’s (OSI) Delaware River Watershed Protection Fund (DRWPF), the New Jersey Green Acres Program, the Sussex County Open Space Fund and Frankford Township.

The former golf course, which was acquired by GCLWCF in December, will be “rewilded,” or returned to a more natural state, so the public may enjoy walking trails, ponds and meadows. Existing golf paths on the Culver Brook Preserve will become the backbone of a new trail system.

Grant funding from the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation’s Delaware Watershed Conservation Fund Program, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and state Department of Environmental Protection’s Office of Natural Resource Restoration has been secured by the Sussex County Municipal Utilities Authority-Wallkill River Watershed Management Group (SCMUA-WRWMG) to implement natural resource conservation practices on Culver Brook Preserve.

The funds will be used to restore, reforest and enhance 20 acres of the property. Plans include planting native trees and shrubs, installing an educational kiosk and interpretive signage throughout the site as well as adding a wildlife viewing platform overlooking an open meadow.

Culver Brook Preserve - along with Culver Brook Preserve East, which was acquired by GCLWCF in 2023 - will help restore and protect the Culver Brook, which flows to the Paulinskill River, a tributary of the Delaware River.

It also will enhance habitat connectivity for threatened and endangered species; and increase outdoor recreational opportunities for residents and visitors to Sussex County.

Culver Brook Preserve East has been designated as a “core area” by the DEP’s Connecting Habitat Across New Jersey project.

“I can enthusiastically state on behalf of my fellow trustees that we are all extremely excited about having been able to preserve these two properties. Not only for the protection of the watershed but for the outdoor recreational enjoyment by the general public,” said Rick Ferruggia, president of GCLWCF. “We very much look forward to organizing members of the community to lend a helping hand to begin the rewilding process.”

Alison Mitchell, executive director of NJ Conservation, said, “NJ Conservation is thrilled to have partnered on this important project in the North Jersey Highlands. We are grateful to have been able to contribute grant funding through our longtime partnership with OSI as part of our decades-long preservation work in the Highlands region.”

Launched in 2014 with funding from the William Penn Foundation’s Delaware River Watershed Initiative, OSI’s DRWPF has protected more than 25,000 acres of forested land to safeguard water quality in the Delaware River Watershed, a source of drinking water for about 15 million people, including residents of northeastern Pennsylvania, Trenton, Philadelphia, Wilmington and New York City.

“This project was a rare opportunity to support a re-wilding effort aimed at improving water quality on this large property,” said Bill Rawlyk, OSI’s senior program manager. “As a developed site, the project initially would not have qualified for our funding, but this fantastic group of partners worked hard with us to make sure the land will be restored and reforested to OSI’s Delaware River Watershed Protection Fund standards.”

Martha Sullivan Sapp, director of Green Acres, said, “Green Acres is pleased to have assisted Greater Culver Lake Watershed Conservation Foundation through our highly successful Local and Nonprofit Assistance Program, which provided major grants to fund these important acquisitions. These preserved properties will help protect critical forest, wildlife habitat and wetland areas as well as water quality in trout-maintenance streams and Culver Lake while providing numerous trails for people to enjoy.”

SCMUA-WRWMG will coordinate numerous community planting events at Culver Brook Preserve during the next two years.

“This project represents a tremendous example of conservation organizations and community partners collaborating to leverage technical and financial resources to acquire, permanently protect and now rehabilitate a valuable piece of open space property for everyone to enjoy,” said Nathaniel Sajdak, SCMUA-WRWMG’s watershed director.

“It is very exciting to be able to create a hands-on opportunity for local residents and outdoor enthusiasts to be actively engaged in the physical work needed to help improve the ecological health of this new public preserve.”

To help with plantings and projects to highlight the flora and fauna of the preserve, send email to info@gclwcf.org

For information about the proposed restoration projects for Culver Brook Preserve, contact Nathaniel Sajdak, SCMUA-WRWMG’s watershed director, at nsajdak@scmua.org or Kristine Rogers, SCMUA-WRWMG’s watershed programs manager, at krogers@scmua.org