[MassChestnutOrchards] conservation restrictions & easements

[John Meiklejohn]

To:  John Mirick
From:  John Meiklejohn
Re:  structuring conservation easements or restrictions

In reading the sample CR held by the Princeton Land Trust that you'd forwarded several questions arose pertinent to our planned CR or CE in Granville, MA, and the same questions may be relevant for others setting up seed orchard related easements on behalf of the MA/RI-TACF.  Briefly -
    1.  We expect to have two fields totalling about 2 to 2.5 acres that will need to be put into a CE or CR for the benefit of TACF.  One is a BC3 existing orchard and the other is the planned seed orchard.
    2.  These fields are a part of  50-55 acre parcel that we plan to put into a CE or CR in 2010.  These two fields are also on the edge of this larger acreage, so conceivably these fields could either be a part of the large CE/CR or a separate smaller one.

Questions:
    1.  Is it possible to set up, with a land trust, a CE or CR for the entire acreage in question, including the 2+ acres dedicated to TACF's mission, specifying carefully under "permitted uses" the various aspects of TACF's work?  Could this adequately protect TACF's access to and maintenance of the orchard fields?

    2.  If #1 is possible, is it preferable to setting up a CE or CR for the TACF fields, separate from the larger acreage?

    3.  What might the pros and cons be of #1 for TACF [and ourselves as landowners]?

    4.  Are either MA-TACF or the national TACF legally permitted to hold CEs or CRs or would a land trust or other entity need to be involved on TACF's behalf?  [I assume they will need an alliance with one or more land trusts.]

I look forward to and appreciate your thoughts on all this.

Thanks, in advance,

John
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