Rising Mill purchase to benefit wildlife, walkers, boaters

Monument Mountain and the Housatonic River frame the Rising Mill

After several years spent cultivating relationships with the Fox River Paper Co., and another year spent anxiously awaiting the results of its funding application, BNRC was delighted to learn in March that it had been awarded a grant of $261,000 to purchase approximately 161 acres along the Housatonic River adjacent to the Rising Mill in Great Barrington.

The news turned bittersweet, however, with the revelation that Fox River had decided to sell the property to Neenah Paper, which subsequently closed the plant.

Although Neenah intends to honor Fox River’s agreement to conserve the land, the layoffs of scores of mill employees cast a cloud over the neighborhood that has the most to gain from turning excess mill land into a public recreational area.

The pending transaction involves land both upstream and downstream
of the Rising Pond Dam. Crucially, Fox River agreed to sell an easement around the dam to BNRC, meaning that canoers and kayakers will have a legal right to portage past the obstacle as they head downstream (or upstream, for that matter).

Both parcels offer excellent scenic and wildlife resources. The downstream parcel will provide excellent access to gravelly river banks — perfect for nature study and sun basking, if not yet for fishing and swimming.

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