KINGFIELD, Maine — The Town of Kingfield held a historic vote Tuesday to accept the Shiloh Pond parcel in a landslide vote of 119-64. 215 acres will now be gifted to the town, protecting public access to the land and water for generations to come.
The High Peaks Alliance, a western Maine land conservation group, has been working to raise money to buy the land and pond ever since they became aware the family that has owned it for years decided to sell. Like many parts of the Maine woods, the private owners have always allowed public access. But once it was placed on the market, future access to this prized brook trout pond, and the acreage around it, was no longer a given.
So, the Alliance teamed up with the Trust for Public Lands a national group, to raise roughly $500,000 to purchase the property. Betsy Cook of the Trust says they got a grant from a state program for part of the total, as well as many private donations and even a donation from a national hunting and fishing advocacy group called Meat Eaters.
"I am so pleased that the Shiloh Pond conservation project has attracted such broad and overwhelming support, both from the local community and from national partners," High Peaks Alliance Executive Director Brent West said. "High Peaks Alliance is proud to have served as the local voice throughout this project that has attracted wonderful partners like The Trust for Public Land to bring resources to our region, and we look forward to continuing to work with the town to manage this parcel going forward."
Cook says land ownership patterns have been changing, so protecting access matters.
“Some of this land we’ve loved and families have used for decades or even centuries are being closed off. So a place like Shiloh is one of the most important places to protect,” she said.
And for locals, like Walter Kilbreth, preserving access to Shiloh Pond matters. Like Cook, he called it “a gem."
“The woods (are) a cathedral of sorts, a place you can go find yourself,” Kilbreth says. “And you look at negative things a lot more positive in a trip to the woods, and everyone should be able to do that, especially when it's in our backyard.”