FoHVOS owns, or has an interest in, over 2,200 acres in the Hopewell Valley. Below is detailed information about a handful of our preserves, conservation easements, and information on how to gain access to preserves in the Valley
This map shows preserved land in
Hopewell Township as of August 2005.
This map was created by Friends of Hopewell Valley Open Space. Copy, use, or reproduction without written permission from Friends of Hopewell Valley Open Space is expressly prohibited.
The Albahary & Grossman Preserves
One of FoHVOS' long-standing initiatives has been to help create a network of preserved open space around the Borough of Hopewell. We have made progress on the "Hopewell Greenbelt" by working with landowners Ronald and Anne Grossman and Mary Albahary to permanently protect the parcels in Ralston Heights just north of the Borough. Ralston Heights was envisioned in the early twentieth century as a utopian community for followers of Ralstonism, a health and self-improvement movement based on the writings of Webster Edgerly. Buyers were not forthcoming, and many of the planned houses and public roads between Hopewell-Amwell and Hopewell-Wertsville Roads were never built.
In December 2001, the Grossmans' generously donated to the Friends a wooded one-acre lot in Ralston Heights. The parcel is adjacent to the public trail corridor on the Ruggieri farm, which was permanently preserved by a conservation easement that was negotiated by FoHVOS and is now held by Mercer County. In January 2003, FoHVOS purchased three contiguous wooded lots totaling seven acres from the Albaharys, who generously agreed to sell the parcels for less than market value. Funds for the purchase came from grants to FoHVOS from the State Green Aces Program, Mercer County's non-profit assistance program, and Hopewell Township's open space fund.
Baldpate Mountain
FoHVOS' commitment to preserving Baldpate Mountain for its natural resources and recreational potential began with our successful initiative to establish the Pleasant Valley Historical District, which is now on the State and National Registers of Historic Places. Our efforts continued with the preparation of grant proposals that, with the cooperation of the State of New Jersey, Mercer County, Hopewell Township and The Nature Conservancy, ultimately resulted in the acquisition of a number of properties, now totaling over 1,800 acres. We continue with our efforts to forge partnerships and expand Baldpate Mountain Park. A recent, important project is the Kuser property, a 119-acre woodlot just east of the preserved portion of the mountain that is owned by John Kuser and is now permanently protected by a conservation easement. The Green Acres Program and FoHVOS, with additional assistance from Hopewell Township, purchased the easement for less than fair market value in Spring of 2002.
The Kuser property runs between Pleasant Valley and Fiddler's Creek Roads, includes almost five hundred feet of Fiddler's Creek, and is adjacent to Washington Crossing State Park. The remains of Honey Hollow, an abandoned settlement founded in the early nineteenth century, is also on the property. Dr. Kuser, New Jersey's State Forester and Professor Emeritus at Rutgers University, continues to own the property and operate his award-winning tree farm. The conservation easement ensures that the property will remain undeveloped and designates over two-and-a-half miles of public walking trails, including one that will connect Baldpate Mountain Park to Washington Crossing State Park.
The Elks Preserve
The Watershed Nature Reserve, donated to the Stony Brook-Millstone Watershed Association by Dr. Muriel Gardiner Buttinger, serves as a focal point for natural resource protection, recreation, and environmental education in the Hopewell Valley. Over time, FoHVOS, government, and other conservation groups have worked to preserve land near the 585 acres donated by Dr. Buttinger to expand the Preserve and make it accessible by foot from the Boroughs of Pennington and Hopewell. One property preserved by FoHVOS as part of the "Hopewell-Pennington Greenway" was purchased in October 2000 from Trenton Lodge No. 105 of the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks. The Elks Property is on the south side of Crusher Road, next to land owned by Mercer County. The property is entirely wooded and includes headwater wetlands of a small tributary of the Stony Brook that joins the main stem on the Hopewell Valley Golf Course. Funding for the purchase came from grants to FoHVOS from the State Green Acres Program, Mercer County, and Hopewell Township.
The Franz Preserve
The Franz property, on Pennington-Titusville Road, is one parcel in a proposed greenway along the Jacob's Creek, a tributary of the Delaware River that drains the southwestern portion of Hopewell Township. Andrew Franz, working with FoHVOS, sold more than eighteen acres of upland and riparian forest in 1999/2000 and retained two acres around his house. FoHVOS obtained funding for the purchase from Green Acres, Mercer County and Hopewell Township. Protection to the property's stream corridor and associated uplands will help maintain water quality, ensure adequate base flow and prevent flooding and erosion.
The Jacob's Creek Greenway is a work in progress. Several privately owned properties upstream from the Franz property are already protected by conservation easements held by the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection and FoHVOS. Future projects are planned to consolidate rights-of-way for public walking paths among Washington Crossing State Park, local neighborhoods, the Hopewell Township Municipal Building and beyond.
The Hoge Preserve
Some the most scenic views in Hopewell Valley can be found along Crusher Road, which runs atop a narrow band of diabase known as the Mt. Rose Ridge. Looking north, one can look over Hopewell Borough and out to the southern flank of Sourland Mountain. The Friends have helped to protect several properties on the Mt. Rose ridge, including the Hoge property, which was protected in 1998. This property is an important part of the "Hopewell Pennington Greenway", a planned network of preserved land that would link Hopewell and Pennington Boroughs via hiking trails running through the Watershed nature Reserve. The 48-acre property, which the Friends transferred to Mercer County, includes woodlands on the north slope of the ridge that leads down to Hopewell Borough. At the base of the ridge are several fields that remain in active agriculture.
The Lawrence Preserve
Sourland Mountain is a prominent ridge that runs from Lambertville northeast into Hillsborough and includes northern portions of Hopewell Township. The rocky soils and perched water tables of the area are rich in history and today support central New Jersey's largest expanse of contiguous forest. A long-term goal of FoHVOS, other land conservation organizations, and government has been to protect large swaths of the Sourlands for passive recreation, water quality protection and biodiversity conservation. In 2003, FoHVOS purchased a 14-acre parcel on Mountain Church Road from Vinton Lawrence. The Lawrence Preserve is predominantly wooded and includes a headwater stream of the Stony Brook.
The Batcha Farm
The 143-acre farm, owned by Judy and Frank Batcha, is located on Pennington-Titusville Road next to the Jacob's Creek. The main part of the farm is nestled in a small valley dotted with horse paddocks. The farm has been preserved in perpetuity with a conservation easement held by the Friends. Prior to its acquisition by the Batcha's, the farm was owned by Phillip Alampi, the long-serving Secretary of Agriculture for the State of New Jersey. The conservation easement on the property restricts any further residential development, but allows the property to be operated as a farm. The easement allows for public access along the stream in a 40-acre section.
The conservation easement was purchased under a cooperative agreement among FOHVOS, Mercer County, the State of New Jersey with a generous contribution of land value from the Batcha's.
The Driver Property
Although only eleven acres in size, protection of the Driver Property in 2001 was critical for FoHVOS. Located north of Hopewell Borough on the southeastern flank of the Sourland Mountains, this beautiful privately-owned property includes a portion of the Bedens Brook stream corridor. Mature deciduous forest covers the entire property, with the exception of an area around one-3-story residence. Completion of the acquisition in 2001 culminated years of work by FoHVOS and Delaware & Raritan Greenway Land Trust to secure a public right-of-way connecting Hopewell Borough with the Sourland Mountains, where there are expansive preserves in Mercer, Somerset, and Hunterdon Counties.
Edwin Driver sold FoHVOS a conservation easement, which prohibits further development, protects the woodlands and stream corridor, and allows FoHVOS to create a public walking path on a portion of the property. Green Acres, Mercer County and Hopewell Township provided funding for the project. Mr. Driver generously agreed to sell the easement to FoHVOS for less than its value and subsequently re-sold the private property. FoHVOS holds the responsibility of monitoring the property in perpetuity.
For access to land FoHVOS and its partner organizations have helped protect, please visit
www.njtrails.org.
