Leaders call for boost to state open space funding
BY CHRIS GAETANO
Staff Writer

PLAINSBORO - Local leaders and civic groups said last week that the one-year funding source for the Garden State Preservation Trust (GSPT), set to run out this year, is not enough and called on the government to find a more permanent solution.

The fund, which fuels land preservation efforts across the state, was supported by bonds, a point of contention with Gov. Jon Corzine, who was uncomfortable with the prospect of increasing New Jersey's multibillion-dollar debt load. His refusal to support a resolution that would have used sales tax revenue to extend the fund for the next decade led to an uneasy compromise between his office and the Legislature, which mostly supported the bond measure. The deal worked out gives the GSPT a $200 million boost, which should hold it over for about a year.

In the meantime, Corzine will push his asset monetization plan, the revenues from which he hopes can fuel the program. If his plan, the fine details of which have yet to be made public, is rejected, then he will support a bond measure for the next year.

State lawmakers, civic groups and local officials joined together in a June 20 press conference at the New Jersey Audubon Society Plainsboro Preserve stating that the one-year compromise funding is a start, but is still not enough. They called on the Legislature to call a summer session in order to work out a more sustainable source of funding as soon as possible.

"We don't need things for one year, we need things for a 10-year period. … There is still much work to do," said Freeholder Director David Crabiel.

Crabiel said that local preservation efforts could stall if a sustainable source of funding is not found, because the local funds maintained by counties and municipalities could have difficulty competing with developers' deep pockets. He also noted that as more land is preserved or developed, the price of what's left goes up, making things more difficult.

Rich Goldman, chair of the D&R Greenway Board of Trustees, said that negotiations for open space can take many years, not just one, but that not having a reliable source of funding over those years can make land preservation purchases problematic.

"You cannot go to a landowner and say we'd like to buy … and we might have the money two or three years from now, so keep your fingers crossed," said Goldman.

Assemblywoman Linda Greenstein (D-Middlesex/Mercer) said that while she supports the notion of a summer session to secure funding for the program, she is skeptical that this will happen, given the deal struck between Corzine and the legislative leadership. She noted that a summer session would need support from all three branches of the government.

"If you're asking if there's a real plan in place to do something this summer, I'd have to answer, honestly, probably not, because it's very rare to come in for a summer session," Greenstein said.

Greenstein that she will continue efforts to press the top leadership nonetheless, saying that changing Corzine's mind is important.