Ipswich Board of Selectmen have scheduled a Special Town Meeting on January 24, 2017 to allow the Town to vote to appropriate funds from the Open Space Bond for the purchase of the Pony Express Farm for open space and athletic fields.
The Town of Ipswich is working with Essex County Greenbelt Association and the Massachusetts Division of Fisheries and Wildlife to acquire the property. Greenbelt has reached agreement to purchase the land, contingent on securing the funds needed to acquire the land from a variety of sources, including the Town and the Commonwealth.
Ipswich voters will be asked to allocate $2.15 million from its current $6.35 million open space bond for the purchase of the property and up to $227,000 to develop the athletic fields, at the Special Town Meeting in January. Greenbelt will raise $1.4 million through private fundraising and the private sale, subject to conservation restrictions, of a portion of the northerly area of the property. The Massachusetts Division of Fish & Wildlife will contribute $500,000 from a combination of state and federal funds.
More information about the project can be found in the Frequently Asked Questions and the project map. Also, please join representatives Greenbelt, Fisheries and Wildlife and the Ipswich Open Space Program for a site walk of the Pony Express Property on Thursday, December 1st at 10:00am or Saturday, December 10th at 10:00am. We will meet at the entrance of the property on Candlewood Road.
