Putnam County Community Open Space Fund
Fact Sheet
(5/4/05)

The proposed Putnam County Community Open Space Fund will create a $20 million fund for the protection
of vulnerable open space in the county

• Moneys from the fund will be used to acquire land in Putnam County that is important for our drinking water quality, air quality, passive recreational opportunities and the natural environment, as well as farmland and other important open landscapes.
• Protection recommendations will be made by a committee of individuals appointed by the legislature, the County Executive and the two land trusts in the county (the Hudson Highlands Land Trust and the Putnam County Land Trust).
• The average residential homeowner will pay only $44.58 per year over the 20-year life of the fund ($0.16/$1,000 of equalized full value assessment).

Polling shows that Putnam County voters strongly support substantial funding for open space

• 58 percent would support a $20 million bond measure to create an Open Space Preservation Trust Fund to acquire environmentally sensitive open space threatened by development.
• When provided with additional information about the ballot measure, including uses for funds and arguments both for and against, support for the Open Space Preservation Trust Fund increased to 67 percent.
• The survey of 400 registered Putnam County voters was conducted in June 2004 by Barry Zeplowitz and Associates, a Buffalo-based firm.

Voters are very concerned about growth and over-development

• Voters polled cited growth and development as the most important issue facing Putnam County, receiving a greater number of responses than other typical top tier local issues including taxes, schools and education, and the economy.
• 74 percent of survey respondents feel that sprawl and over-development is a serious problem compared to other issues facing Putnam County.
• Putnam County is the fourth fastest growing county in New York State.
  • According to the Census Bureau, the population grew 5 percent between 2000 and 2004, from 95,745 to 100,570, nearly four times the state average of 1.3 percent.

The Putnam County Community Open Space Fund will be put to the voters for approval this November

On May 3, the Putnam County Legislature voted unanimously to put the fund on the ballot this November, for voter approval.

The $20 million Putnam County Community Open Space Fund ought to go to voters for approval, as is the practice across the country

• If Putnam County seeks voter approval for a bond measure, it would follow the lead of other New York counties. In 2004, voters in Nassau County overwhelmingly approved a $50 million open bond measure by 77 percent and voters in Suffolk County overwhelmingly approved a $75 million open space bond measure by 68 percent.
• 92 percent of Putnam County voters surveyed believe that if the county proposes to establish a $20 million Putnam County Community Open Space Fund, then the proposal should be referred to the voters to decide.
• Across the country, county governments routinely seek voter approval for open space ballot measures, in most cases general obligation bonds.
  • Between 1996 and 2004, 267 county land conservation ballot measures were taken to the voters and 207 were approved nationwide (78 percent passage rate).

Establishing a Putnam County Community Open Space Fund at $20 million could leverage land protection funding of $40 - $50 million

• With county funds leveraging matching funds from municipalities, non-profit land conservation groups, the state, and the federal government, a total of $40 - $50 million in land protection activity could be generated.

Establishment and funding of a Putnam County open space program would likely inspire towns in the county to approve their own open space ballot measures

• The voters in Hudson River Valley towns approved sixteen of eighteen municipal land conservation ballot measures between 1998 and 2002, a passage rate of 89 percent.
• Putnam County municipalities also feel the pressure of growth and the need to address the loss of open space; the incentive of county matching funds may cause towns to seek passage of their own open space funding measures.