This year’s application process for grants from the Bergen County Open Space trust fund is now open and, for the first time, will include a historic preservation category.
The funding varies year to year, but the county estimates that about $18 million will be available, the same amount given out last year.
“The Bergen Open Space Grant Program presents municipalities with an excellent opportunity to apply for funding that supports local park improvement projects, historic preservation and the acquisition of open space,” Bergen County Executive Jim Tedesco said. “Every year, this program further advances our shared goal of protecting the environment, promoting sustainability and preserving public space for future generations to enjoy here in Bergen County.”
The grants are given through the county Parks Department’s Division of Land Management. Applicants can seek aid for land acquisition, historic preservation, flood plain protection and municipal park improvements.
All Bergen County municipalities and qualified nonprofit organizations may apply. Each applicant must file a letter of intent by April 14.
Applications are reviewed by a Trust Fund Advisory Board, and the Bergen County Board of Commissioners finalizes all grant awards.
The commissioners set the 2023 open space tax assessment rate at 1 cent per $100 of total county equalized real property valuation. Of the available 2023 trust fund money, 30% will be allocated to the municipal program for park improvements and the other 70% will go to land acquisition, historic preservation and flood plain protection countywide.
For the first time, the Historic Preservation Program will accept grant applications for the preparation of historic preservation documents. Documents may include historic surveys, historic design guidelines and the historic preservation element of a municipal master plan, said Elaine Kiernan Gold, historic preservation specialist with the county.
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Historic documents include a historic sites survey, which is an inventory of properties that are 45 years old or older.
“It identifies the historic significance of properties and historic districts and, ideally, puts them into historic context,” Gold explained.
Also included will be design guidelines, which give property owners and developers working with locally designated historic properties a framework to ensure compatibility of new construction as well as the preservation of key historic elements, Gold said. Design guidelines are appropriate only if the municipality applying for this funding has a seated historic preservation commission.
The preservation element of a master plan is a planning tool enabled by the New Jersey Municipal Land Use Law, and its purpose is to identify, assess and analyze the impacts of other planning elements on historic elements in a municipality.
Information and application materials for the 2023 funding round for all Open Space Trust Fund programs are now available on the Department of Parks website at co.bergen.nj.us/division-of-land-management/open-space-trust-fund.
After the deadline for letters of intent, grant applications must be submitted by May 12.
