Brewster Conservation Trust Details $1 Million For Sea Camps Properties

BREWSTER – In a letter to Town Manager Peter Lombardi this spring, the Brewster Conservation Trust announced $1 million in conservation-related funding for the Sea Camps parcels. Now the organization has followed up with details about its pledge.

The donation was gifted to the BCT by The Brewster Foundation, a nonprofit started by the Schaeffer family. The foundation will be commemorated with a fitting recognition once the projects are completed. 

“The generous pledge from the Brewster Foundation to the Brewster Conservation Trust is intended to reduce the burden on Brewster taxpayers for activities whose express purpose is the preserving, conserving, and protecting open space and natural resources related to the town of Brewster’s purchase, maintenance, and operation of the former Cape Cod Sea Camps properties,” said BCT President Charlie Sumner.

“You’re helping us so the taxpayers aren’t having to pay this money, which is wonderful,” said Select Board Vice Chair Cindy Bingham. 

The agreement between the donor and the BCT follows a 10-year payment schedule, which Sumner outlined in his letter. 

During the first five years, $250,000 will help the town with acquisition costs of the Pond parcel. Another $250,000 will be used, Sumner said, “to preserve, conserve and protect the natural resources on the Bay property” during that time period. After year five, $500,000 will be used to continue conservation efforts on the Bay property, projected to be doled out in $100,000 increments annually. 

Sumner also discussed different project ideas for the Bay property, consistent with the approved comprehensive plans. He listed projects such as the creation and maintenance of a pollinator meadow, tree plantings, coastal dune restoration, walking trails in ecologically sensitive areas, educational signage and habitat protection with removal of invasive species. 

Over the 10-year period, Sumner noted, the BCT will work closely with the town to prioritize projects and consult about funds as needed. 

“I’d just like to thank the Brewster Conservation Trust for their and their donors' continued generosity to the Sea Camps parcels and decades of collaboration on a number of open space and land acquisition projects in the town,” said Select Board member Ned Chatelain. “It’s an incredibly important partnership for the residents and I’m grateful to know we’re going to be continuing to collaborate as time moves on.”