Nature View Conservation Easement
On Monday, March 20, 2006 the Western New York Land Conservancy finalized the permanent protection of a 1,254 acre natural park in the midst of Western New York’s 2nd most populated community. After 10 years of planning and thousands of hours of hard work, the preservation of Nature View Park in Amherst has become a reality.
For both Amherst and Western New York, Nature View Park is an enormous asset that enhances the community’s quality of life. Andrew Giarrizzo, then president of the Land Conservancy board of directors, said that, “Great things are accomplished when people work together. Nature View Park has been created through the efforts of elected officials, Town of Amherst staff, non-profit community group leaders and members, and very engaged citizens. We hope that many other communities in Western New York will consider protecting large blocks of natural lands right next to densely populated areas so that the benefits of open spaces can be enjoyed.”
At the Amherst Town Board Meeting on February 27, 2006, Town Supervisor Mohan described the conservation easement with the Land Conservancy as protection that “will ensure that this park will be available to the Town’s residents forever. Our children, grandchildren, great-grandchildren, and generations to follow will see the forces of nature at work in the park.”
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| A new day begins at Nature View Photo by Kim Goodman |
A small pond at Nature View Park Photo by Tom Lawson |
Nature View Park is the largest municipally owned property protected by a conservation easement in Western New York. The benefits of protecting Nature View Park are many:
- An open space of this size provides residents with a natural setting for outdoor education and recreation. The park is crisscrossed by 20 miles of informal trails and is frequently used for walking, jogging, bird watching, and nature photography. It has captured the hearts of many neighboring children and youth.
- The Niagara River has been designated as a globally significant “Important Bird Area.” Thousands of birds, combining over 250 species, pass through this corridor on their annual migrations. Nature View Park will continue to be an important stopping place for these migrating birds because it is a large block of natural land only a few miles east of the Niagara River.
- Wetlands, which cover about half of the park, serve many important functions. They enhance water quality, buffer water levels to reduce flooding, balance and recharge groundwater levels, reduce soil erosion and provide habitat for wildlife.
- Nature View Park land was intensively farmed from the 1800s until the 1960s. As the land regenerates, it naturally becomes a habitat with abundant wildlife and a rich diversity of species. Because of its large size, it is likely that a number of mature ecological communities will eventually coexist, providing suitable habitat for rare plant and animal species.
- The open vistas of the park also provide important scenic and intangible aesthetic values that will continue to be enjoyed by the park’s immediate neighbors and residents traveling along the heavily trafficked routes that surround the park.
There were many other possible futures considered for this land. In the 1970s an incinerator was planned for this site. With bulldozers already beginning to clear the land, the project was prevented by a court injunction filed by a group of neighbors. In the 1990s a golf course was proposed for the site. After a series of public hearings with impassioned and carefully researched appeals, again by neighbors, this plan was replaced with the current idea of keeping the park forever wild.
The protection of Nature View Park has been a grassroots effort accomplished by teenagers that cared enough to go door-to-door with petitions, residents that spoke up at public hearings, and neighbors that held meetings in living rooms and around kitchen tables. The passion of these neighbors would eventually translate into the bipartisan support from elected officials needed to finalize the protection of the park.
Located in the northwest corner of the Town of Amherst, the park is bounded by Tonawanda Creek Road, Campbell Boulevard, North French Road and Sweet Home Road.
The signing of the Nature View Park conservation easement is an important milestone and accomplishment for the Western New York Land Conservancy.
An aerial view showing the boundaries of Nature View Park.
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