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Posted by: Reena Ramos

  • 04/27/2020

Moving Forward In Alignment

2018-2019 Strategic Evaluation Findings & Updates

Following a period of unprecedented growth, the ACRES Board of Directors chose to focus the 2018 – 2019 Strategic Plan on evaluation. This time of reflecting together allowed us to prepare for continued growth. Here’s what we found, and how we’ve responded.

Land Management: Committing to caring for our growing land

ACRES is responsible for caring for more places. Recent growth brought our total protected land from 5,000 acres in 2014 to over 7,000 by 2019. In five years, ACRES total land owned grew 40 percent.

To further bolster land management efforts (especially efficiency in tackling non-native invasive plants), ACRES purchased during this five year period our first-ever heavy equipment: a utility vehicle, a skid steer, a forestry mulcher, a trailer, and a new heavier-capacity truck to haul it all. This equipment brings a tremendous shift in capacity to our work. With your support, ACRES is renewed by these efforts: we are helping our lands heal at a much faster pace.

Building for the Future: Dedicating space to serving the land

As the epicenter of a 7,000-acre (and growing) nonprofit serving people in 27 counties, the ACRES office is a hub of activity. After six decades of making do, ACRES is ready to create a modest campus—a headquarters for our work. Giving our work the space it deserves will further clarify our forever promise: ACRES is here to stay, and these lands aren’t going to protect themselves.

We are building a new barn for field work; remodeling the Dustin home office for accessibility, customer service, and function; and creating an accessible trail with a Cedar Creek overlook to invite more people to appreciate and enjoy nature’s majesty. Plans also include space to welcome land lovers to gatherings—a real home for the folks who are making this work possible, and for those who will join us.

We’re grateful to take these actions with member support for a healthy future for our nonprofit, our land, and the people who care for both.