The town of Newbury is considering an offer of 127 acres of forested land as an addition to the Tucker Mountain Town Forest. The land is north of the Tucker Mountain summit and follows the same high ridgeline.
Last March, town forest neighbor Bob Bailey notified the management committee that he was planning to sell the land and wanted to first offer it to Newbury as an extension of the town forest. He offered the land at a $30,000 discount as a contribution to what he sees as a thriving town forest project. Mr. Bailey is a direct descendent of General Jacob Bayley and has a strong attachment to Newbury.
Aside from the original purchase of the original 635 acres for $25,000, all funds for the development of trails, parking lots, kiosks, benches have come from grants and donations from individuals and businesses. Tom Kidder, chair of the management committee, said, “We knew right away that we were not about to ask the taxpayers to pay for this new parcel, but we felt that since the property was offered to the town, it should be up to the town to decide if they want to accept it, and we explored other ways to fund it.”
What seemed impossible suddenly became possible with a call to the Vermont Land Trust, the original partners in helping the town acquire the forest. VLT approached the Vermont Housing and Conservation Board who said that since the property bordered the town forest and because the seller had offered a discount, then the town could very likely qualify for help with the purchase, covering 66% of the cost and contributions to an appraisal, closing costs, and a maintenance fund.
By happenstance, just prior to Mr. Bailey’s offer two brothers managing their parents’ estate had informed the committee that they wanted to donate $50,000 toward a land purchase to honor of their parents. With the asking price (after the 30K reduction) of $235,000, taking away the 66% grant and the donation of $50,000, the Friends of Tucker Mountain, the town forest’s fundraising organization, is left with $29,000 to raise. Friends believes that is quite doable.
The property would be purchased by Friends of Tucker Mountain and given to the Town of Newbury.
If the land becomes part of the Town Forest, Newbury will forgo municipal taxes which were $994 in 2025. To counter this, the Newbury Selectboard will again be asking the town if they are willing to sell what is known as the Ski Tow Property in West Newbury. Money from the sale of this 24-acre parcel would go to the town treasury and, having transferred to private ownership, the Ski Tow property would be added to the tax rolls.
The Ski Tow Property was purchased using Federal Funds tied to a recreational easement and cannot be sold unless that easement is passed on to another piece of recreational land. The new parcel on Tucker Mountain would qualify as recreational.
The vote for the town to accept the property as a gift is not a commitment to purchase the land. Should the Vermont Housing and Conservation Board grant fall though, the Friends of Tucker Mountain purchase would likely not take place unless other outside funding sources stepped in.
There are two articles on the warning: one is whether the town will accept the property as a gift, the other is whether the town will be allowed to sell the Ski Tow Property.
Lying north of the current summit and bordered on two sides by the town forest, Mr. Bailey’s land fits into the town forest map like a keystone. On the boundary is the State’s Woodchuck Mountain property that’s being sold to the Upper Valley Land Trust for preservation.
The wildlife corridor that passes through the town forest and enters the Woodchuck property would be enhanced with the preservation of the new parcel. This corridor extends to Groton State Forest to the northwest, the Fairlee Town Forest to the south, and into the White Mountain National Forest to the east. The land’s remote, wilderness characteristics make it key wildlife habitat
The forest has a diversity of tree age with a mix of hardwood and softwood that hasn’t been logged in over 35 years. There is at least one majestic stand of legacy oak trees that look to be over a century old. Much of it was cleared for agriculture some 200 years ago and stone walls that outlined fields remain throughout the woods. Along the height of land, directly north of Tucker Mountain, cleared meadows spread out over the ridge.
The new property would be added to the town forest conservation easement held by Vermont Land Trust.
This and other articles will be part of the discussion at an informational meeting prior to the Town Meeting. The public is encouraged to attend.

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