Summit County, Utah (May 24, 2024)— The County Lands and Natural Resources Department received a $2.5 million federal grant towards the conservation and protection of the natural landscape and recreation potential of a 320-acre portion of the Ure Ranch property in the Kamas Valley. This funding is facilitated by the Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF) and is sourced from the Great American Outdoors Act (GAOA) which upholds a goal to conserve water and land resources across the nation.
This grant operates as a matching fund and requires the county to contribute $2.5 million to the conservation endeavor. The matching contribution is committed from Summit County’s Open Space Advisory Committee (OSAC) funds. In total, the $5 million dollar project will secure a 320-acre portion of the Ure Ranch, an area situated in the far western uplands of the property south of SR-248. This acreage will be used for future open space, public recreation, and ongoing agricultural activities—all of which will be secured by a conservation easement in perpetuity.
“This funding propels us closer towards completing the purchase of the Ure Ranch property and demonstrates that our commitment to protecting open space in Summit County is shared by our great partners at the Utah Division of Outdoor Recreation which administers the funding for this grant program in Utah,” Jess Kirby, Director of Summit County's Public Lands and Natural Resources Department said.
The Summit County Council entered into an option agreement to purchase the property for $25 million in March of 2023. With the help of this latest grant, the County has secured over half of the necessary funding for the acquisition.
Summit County hosted two in-person and online public engagement opportunities this winter, and gauged interest in the use of the Ure Ranch for conservation, recreation, historic preservation, agricultural education, and more. With the North Meadows and Recreation areas accounted for with both funding and conservation easements, the next steps for County Lands staff includes securing additional conservation easements, exploring conservation buyers, and the possibility of a partnership with Utah State University for a 4-H agricultural education center on the remaining South Meadows and Homestead parcels of the property.
Subscribe for email updates from the Summit County Lands and Natural Resources Department at: summitcounty.info/countylandsnews.
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About the Land and Water Conservation Fund:
Created by Congress in 1964, the Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF) was a bipartisan commitment to safeguard natural areas, water resources and our cultural heritage, and to provide recreation opportunities to all Americans
For more information about the grant from the LWCF, please visit the Utah Division of Outdoor Recreation website: recreation.utah.gov/grants/lwcf/.
