Rhode Island

Girl Scouts of Southeastern New England, GSSNE

• Camp Nokewa, Glocester

Sold in 2010 to the RI Dept of Environmental Management with grants from the US Fish and Wildlife Service and and The Nature Conservancy

Originally listed for $2.2 million, sold for $1.3 million

• Camp Wahaneeta, Westerly

Sale to Westerly Land Trust completed in 2012, with help from the RI Dept of Environmental Management and the Forrest and Francis Lattner Foundation

DEM, PARTNERS PURCHASE 81-ACRE PARCEL ABUTTING CARR POND IN NORTH KINGSTOWN FROM GIRL SCOUTS OF RHODE ISLAND, INC.
http://www.dem.ri.gov/news/2010/pr/1207101.htm

The Department of Environmental Management, with funding assistance from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service's Wildlife Restoration Program and The Nature Conservancy, has purchased an 81-acre tract of land on Carr Pond in North Kingstown from the Girls Scouts of Rhode Island, Inc. This property has been known as Camp Nokewa, where the Girl Scouts ran a day camp until 2006. Girls now attend a day camp program at nearby Camp Hoffman.


"I am pleased that the Department of Environmental Management has been able to partner with The Nature Conservancy and the US Fish & Wildlife Service to protect the valuable natural resources of this property in North Kingstown," said DEM Director W. Michael Sullivan, PhD. "The addition of the Girl Scout property will contribute to the more than 1,000 acres of protected land along the Pettaquamscutt River in the Narrow River Watershed."

"We are thrilled to assist the State of Rhode Island in acquiring this magnificent property for all to enjoy," said The Nature Conservancy in Rhode Island state director, Janet Coit. "This project helps ensure that one of the state's most productive fish runs remains an important part of our natural heritage."

"Our decision to sell Camp Nokewa came with the caveat that it be sold to an organization that would appreciate its environmental significance and preserve its natural beauty for the enjoyment of all Rhode Islanders," said Janet A. Feyler, CEO of the Girl Scouts of Rhode Island, Inc.

Former camp up for sale in Saunderstown 
http://www.independentri.com/local/article_fa99c123-a13c-5517-940c-d574972ceb71.html

“This was the result of a study that we undertook for the past couple of years to look at our properties and our needs and decide which ones we wanted to keep and which ones we could afford to part with,” she said. “We’re just not using [Camp Nokewa] that much. It just doesn’t suit our needs right now and we use Camp Hoffman in West Kingston, which is our crown jewel, much more often.”

The organization decided to sell the property with the stipulation that it is sold to a buyer who was committed to preserving the land’s open space. The 88.3-acre waterfront property is listed with RD Denelle and Company Realtors, and real estate agent Carol Dugan said the property only has been on the market for one week.

Westerly Land Trust completes purchase of former Camp Wahaneeta
http://www.theday.com/article/20120512/NWS01/120519898/-1/NWS

The Westerly Land Trust announced Wednesday that it has completed its purchase of the 72-acre former Camp Wahaneeta property from the Girl Scouts of Rhode Island, bring its total conservation land properties to 1550 acres.

Harvey Perry, land trust president, said in a news release that there is particular excitement about this property because it is within a large scale conservation area targeted for protection running east from Route 78 to Charlestown, and north to the trust’s preserves along the Pawcatuck River.

Perry thanked the Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management and the Forrest and Francis Lattner Foundation for helping make the purchase possible. The trust’s Conservation Land Stewardship Committee plans to establish walking trails on the property and offer environmental education programs in the lodge on the property during the winter, he said, once repairs are completed.

For information, visit: www.westerlylandtrust.org.