On December 13, 2013, Milton Peterson, developer of National Harbor, donated 72 acres of land along Livingston Road to the The Conservancy of Broad Creek. Mr. Peterson said he was happy to give the land to the historic district’s Conservancy because he believed in the organization’s goals of preserving the land. “This group is absolutely focused and has a purpose to really preserve history,” Peterson said. “When I bought the property I had no idea that it had real, true historic significance. This is the right thing to do.”
Subsequently, the Conservancy renamed the forest from the Fennell Tract to Broad Creek Woods, developed a “Forest Stewardship Plan”with MD Department of Natural Resources and worked with Mr. Peterson to eradicate all trash from inside the Woods. The Conservancy created an easement agreement with Maryland Environmental Trust and had MD Highway Dept. install guard rails along Livingston Road to prevent illegal dumping. It also earned a Community Improvement Grant as well as a Prince George’s County Council “Special Appropriation Grant” and collaborated with the Smithsonian’s National Zoo to harvest the bamboo.
Over he last five years, the Conservancy began a process of removing the invasive bamboo from the property. We are currently contemplating a reforestation plan.
Below some pictures of our progress.
