Campaign to Conserve the Spencer Brook Corridor
Campaign to Conserve Spencer Brook Corridor
In the northern half of Concord, the Spencer Brook meanders through the meadows, swamps, and forests west of Lowell Road. As it rises and falls with the seasons, it is home to a rich variety of wildlife and a critical corridor for water, animals, and for people seeking refuge from the hustle and bustle of our daily lives.
For more than forty years, the Concord Land Conservation Trust community has been working to preserve the brook, its valley landscape, and the extensive network of walking trails that run through its woods and fields. Between the point where the brook enters the town at the Carlisle border to where it flows into the Assabet River, the Land Trust has protected 179 acres in the valley – 88 that are now owned outright as conservation land, and 91 that are under a conservation restriction – and has pieced together more than 6.8 miles of trails here.
Today we have the opportunity to connect two of the Land Trust’s most significant properties in this area and preserve a key piece of the Spencer Brook corridor. This will create an uninterrupted trail of more than 2.5 miles open to the public, and will make a major contribution towards the long-term goal of providing a continuous path through permanently undeveloped, natural landscapes from Barrett’s Mill Road to Carlisle.
The Land
The land we are seeking to protect is approximately 30 acres in the heart of the Spencer Brook valley – part of a larger estate that, incidentally, was the setting for the 2019 film Little Women. Its gatehouse, brick wall, and white gate are well-known to travelers on Lowell Road. For many years, we have been working with the owners to develop a plan that will preserve the most ecologically and recreationally valuable portion of the property, while reserving the remainder for a limited number of private residences.
We have reached an agreement to purchase this beautiful tract of forest, marsh, and glaciated hillsides for conservation, including walking trails that will connect the Land Trust’s Newbury Field to the north and our Hallenbeck Land to the south. We will construct a boardwalk across Spencer Brook in the center to connect the northern and southern portions and provide long views down the brook and its broad floodplain, an experience unique in Concord. Neighbors along Strawberry Hill Road will be able to walk onto the land through the trail easement that parallels Macone Farm Lane.
We have been waiting for decades for the opportunity to preserve this key property for its intrinsic values and because it is such a critical piece in the “jigsaw puzzle” of conserved land we have been assembling, piece by piece, for so many years. Now we finally have it.
The Natural Landscape
The walking trail in the southern portion passes through a mature white pine forest. Growing on well-drained and droughty glacial soils, these 80- to 100-year old pines are mixed with red and white oaks, black birches, aspens, and other hardwoods. The open understory in places is the result of the ‘European’ style of woods management that occurred under an earlier owner.
Adjacent to the trail in the north part of the site is another natural habitat – a red maple swamp. Here, the understory is thick with ferns and skunk cabbage, and the adjacent damp edges support partridgeberry, pipsissewa, princess pine and even – unusually – bunchberry. This wetland and floodplain system slowly flows to Spencer Brook and provides resilience against downstream flooding.
Spencer Brook itself flows through a broad floodplain with an open marsh habitat of cattails and sedges. It is a remarkable feeling to step from the deep pine woods into the open expanse of the Spencer Brook corridor.
The Agreement
We are fortunate and grateful that the owners of this property have been generous with their time and in their willingness to work with us to arrive at a plan that preserves the portion of the property that is so valuable from a conservation and recreation perspective. We have agreed to acquire these 29.4 acres for conservation for $2,500,000, a price that reflects a significant contribution from the sellers. The land will remain undeveloped and its trails open to the public in perpetuity. In addition, to connect the trails we will construct a new boardwalk, which will cost approximately $300,000. Thus, we must raise $2,800,000 to complete this conservation project.
Successful land conservation is a long term proposition requiring planning, patience, diligence, and generosity. It is often accomplished over time, parcel by parcel, gradually leading towards a larger, long-term goal. It is hard to imagine a more meaningful gift for future generations.
How to Make a Campaign Donation
We can accept gifts of cash, checks, securities, and electronic funds transfer. Grants from donor advised funds are also gratefully accepted.
To make a donation by credit card or PayPal, click on the button beneath:
To mail a check, click on the button beneath:
(Print the form, complete the information, and return it with your check to the Land Trust.)
To make a gift of securities, follow these instructions:
Contact our broker, Matt Williams, directly at 603.577.4908 — and — please also contact the office at 978.369.6526 to alert us about the incoming gift so we may credit the gift appropriately. In order to make the transfer you will need the following information:
Name of brokerage – RBC Wealth Management
Routing Number – 0235
Account Number – 30077539
FEIN Number – 04-6113618
Making Your Donation
The Concord Land Conservation Trust (CLCT) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization and donations to it are tax-deductible. Any funds raised beyond the amount needed to purchase the property and cover related expenses will be allocated toward future land acquisition.
Thank you for being part of this community effort to protect this important link in the Spencer Brook valley and Concord’s open space.
