The Virginia Land Conservation Foundation

News and notices

VLCF Grant Program

At its Aug. 7, 2008, meeting, the VLCF Board approved a schedule for grant applications. The schedule began Aug. 15 and has a deadline of Oct. 10, 2008, for applications. Grant awards will be made at a subsequent board meeting in early January. About $3 million will be available this grant round. Projects to be completed by Dec. 31, 2009, will be given emphasis.

A workshop on VLCF grant application was held July 24, 2008. Click here (PDF, 1.6 Mb) to view the presentations shown there.

For information about grant criteria and project eligibility, click here (PDF) to download the grants manual. The manual includes the application form. Click here to download the application form in MS Word format. Call (804) 225-2048 for more detail.

Land Preservation Tax Credits – Conservation Value Review Criteria

Also at the Aug. 7, 2008, meeting, the VLCF Board amended Land Preservation Tax Credit (LPTC) Conservation Value Review Criteria to incorporate guidance used over the past year by DCR's director to verify the conservation value of donated land or conservation easements or other less-than-fee interests in land that result in tax credit applications of $1 million or more. Click here (PDF) for the criteria the board adopted that day. Click here for more information about the LPTC.

Click here to download procedural guidelines for conservation donors whose tax credit applications are for $1 million or more.

The board also authorized DCR to establish a stakeholder group to further refine VLCF LPTC Conservation Value Review Criteria. To help that group, DCR is soliciting public comments on the criteria. Those with comments should email them to diane.dunaway@dcr.virginia.gov or mail them to Diane Dunaway, 203 Governor Street, Suite 302, Richmond, VA 23219, by Sept. 1, 2008.

VLCF Annual Report

Click here to download the VLCF's 2006 annual report (PDF).

Background

Virginia. The very word conjures images of pastoral beauty. There are special places here, special lands that have witnessed America's greatest human triumphs and tragedies. Our state's open spaces, farms, areas of cultural significance, parks and battlefields inspire and attract people from around the globe. About eight million now call the Old Dominion home. And Virginia's natural habitats, some found nowhere else on earth, are home to some pretty special plant and animal inhabitants as well.

Few would argue that our commonwealth's natural and cultural resources are less than astonishing. With such unmatched resources, however, comes responsibility; the responsibility to conserve and protect these special places for future generations. That's where the Virginia Land Conservation Foundation (VLCF) comes in.

In 1999, the General Assembly and the governor established the VLCF to help fund protection of these resources. Funds from the foundation are used to establish permanent conservation easements and to purchase open spaces and parklands, lands of historic or cultural significance, farmlands and forests, and natural areas. State agencies, local governments, public bodies and registered (tax-exempt) nonprofit groups are eligible to receive matching grants from the foundation.

The purpose of the foundation is to provide state funding used to conserve certain categories of special land. Those categories are open spaces and parks, natural areas, historic areas, and farmland and forest preservation. The money comes from the Virginia Land Conservation Fund, which is managed by the foundation. A portion of the fund may be used for developing properties for public use. Grants used for acquisition are generally used only for current projects; only in exceptional cases - where considerable public benefit and compelling, unusual financial need and circumstances have been shown - might grants be made for already complete purchases.

The foundation establishes, administers, manages - including the creation of reserves - and makes expenditures and allocations from the Virginia Land Conservation Fund, which is special, non-reverting money in the state treasury. One major function of the foundation is to make matching grants to holders and public bodies for:

• purchasing fee simple title to or other rights, interests or privileges in property for the protections or preservation of ecological, cultural or historical resources
• lands for recreational purposes
• lands for threatened or endangered species, fish and wildlife habitat
• natural areas
• and agricultural and forestal lands and open space.

The Virginia Department of Conservation and Recreation provides staff and administrative support. An Interagency Taskforce reviews and recommends grant applications to the Virginia Land Conservation Foundation. Grant awards are based on applications for 50 percent or less of total project costs pursuant to specific criteria defined in each category.

Categories: There are four application categories, and each has a particular set of criteria.

• Open Spaces and Parks
• Natural Area Protection
• Historic Area Preservation
• Farmlands and Forest Preservation

Eligibility: Applications can be submitted by agencies, localities, public bodies, and registered (tax-exempt) nonprofit organizations in accordance with application procedures.