Lake Erie Islands Conservancy

“At least annually, the organization will perform property boundary monitoring for encroachment or other activity that might impair the subject property, but the ogranization, along with put-in-bay township park district, expects to have a much more frequent presence at cooper's woods thorughout the year. A stewardship plan was developed & is in place to guide in the management & protection of the property. Hired interns & volunteer trail monitors will frequently walk the property to identify any problems, perform invasive species control as needed, monitor activity on the preserve, and anything else necessary to uphold conservation of cooper's woods. In addition, volunteers from the local communities, local schools & environmental clubs, and students from the ohio state universiy will assist in monitoring the property, while also using the property for research & course work. The property is also made available to scientists, such as herpetologist & bat experts, who continue to look for new species & evaluate the health of existing known populations.cooper's woods is in relatively close proximity to the conservancy & park district's other protected lands on south bass island, all of which are being managed in order to promote a mature forested and/or wetland condition with low invasive species population. Annual compliance reports will be completed to monitor condition of the land & ensure the terms of the conservation easement are being upheld.”

“Grants were received in 2020 for the organization's purchase of 18.64 acres of property/land known as "cooper's woods," a mature upland forest in put-in-bay, ohio. After purchase of the land, the organization transferred the land to put-in-bay township park district, a local government entity dedicated to protecting & preserving unique areas that sustain the heritage & natural habitat of the lake erie islands. The organization holds a conservation easement in perpetuity on the land owned by put-in-bay township park district.the grants received were recorded by the organization as government & other grant income in 2020. The purchase & subsequent transfer of the land to put-in-bay twp park district was recorded in the statement of functional expenses as a noncash grant in 2020. The conservation easement is not assigned a value in the organization's financial statements. In accordance with the conservation easement, the organization has no liability or obligation for costs, liabilities, taxes, or insurance of any kind related to the property. Any expenses the organization incurs to maintain the conservation values of the property are expensed & reported on the statement of functional expenses as incurred.”