Expansive Riverfront Land Protected

Thank You for Supporting Parker River Conservation Projects

Thank you to all supported the opportunity to significantly expand an area of protected land on the Parker River in Byfield.

The Creed property has successfully been conserved, and we're looking forward to getting the property ready for the public. The Cavanaugh property campaign should be completed shortly.

The Cavanagh property on Middle Road and Creed property on Orchard Street are beautiful, expansive properties providing both high-quality habitat and a stretch of intact marsh and upland critically important for climate change resiliency as sea levels rise.

Their conservation adds to 66 nearby acres Greenbelt has already preserved. Further, conserving these lands preserves the historic, scenic landscape of this part of Byfield – scenery that has remained largely unchanged for well over a century.

The Cavanagh conservation project is a partnership between Greenbelt, the Massachusetts Department of Fish & Game, and the family to preserve the majority of the property in two parts: a purchase by Fish & Game of 13.8 acres, and the purchase of a conservation restriction by Greenbelt on 2.9 acres that will remain with the existing historic homesite.

Greenbelt worked with the Creed family to preserve 15 acres adjacent to the Cavanagh land. The Creed acquisition allows Greenbelt to create a new reservation, with a footpath passing through open fields and leading to a scenic overlook of the Parker River.

  Conserving this land:

•  Protects a high-quality habitat and a stretch of intact marsh and upland critical for adapting to sea level rise.
• Conserves the scenic and historic views of the area.
• Because the uplands drain to the Parker River, a major river feeding into the Great Marsh and the coastal areas of Newbury, the acquisition would protect this significant natural resource.