RCLC President’s Message
Tina Batt
Dear friends, supporters, and new residents,
We are all looking forward to summer on the North Coast! Summer brings warmer weather (sometimes!), time spent with family and friends, and increased opportunities to enjoy our natural surroundings.
For those people who are new to the area, or just visiting, I want to take some time to explain the role of RCLC as a community-based land trust conserving our local land and water.
RCLC is a 501 (c) 3 incorporated land trust. We received our nonprofit designation from the IRS in 1992, and we’re already starting to think about our 30th Anniversary celebrations! If you look at our web site, rclc.org, you’ll find more information about our local land holdings and coastal properties. You can download our public access brochure, which will guide you to Hearn Gulch, Cooks Beach, the Gualala Bluff Trail, and Mill Bend. They are all open to the public, and we want you to enjoy what those incredible properties have to offer.
As a non-profit land trust, we own some properties and hold conservation easements on others. All are managed in perpetuity. We have two part time staff members and a large group of dedicated volunteers, but we need your help and support to responsibly manage these unique properties. We are not a park agency which has a guaranteed source of operational funds. Our funding comes from grants and private donations. State and Federal grants help fund acquisition, planning and restoration for our properties. These grants are very competitive and require a lot of detailed research and time to prepare.
Our part-time Mill Bend Project Manager, Dave Shpak, is very talented, and he now has our part-time Outreach Coordinator, Joel Freston, helping with grant writing and grants management. To broaden our grant writing capacity, we also rely on a team of skilled volunteers.
Equally skilled volunteers help manage and steward all our properties, and are helping to develop our Environmental and Cultural Outreach Program. Volunteer involvement has helped us keep our costs low, but we will continue to rely on our donors and supporters to help fund our operational costs. Without this yearly operational support, we cannot meet our current land management responsibilities.
I hope you will want to learn more about the Redwood Coast Land Conservancy, visit and explore our properties, and engage in our work! We will be offering tours of Mill Bend throughout the summer and fall, and if you prefer a private tour, we can arrange that at your convenience.
Thank you and welcome to summer on the North Coast!
Tina Batt
RCLC Board President
Member
Member
