2025-02-18T13:56:12-06:00 2024-06-30 010463013 Purdy Powers & Company 130 Middle Street Portland ME 04101 990 2023-07-01 222714194 Brunswick-Topsham Land Trust Inc BRUN 2077297694 179 Neptune Drive Ste 200 Brunswick ME 04011 John Berry Treasurer 2077297694 2025-01-30 1 1 David J Shorette CPA P00086553 2077753496 2025-01-30 2023 2025-03-06 01:10:19Z John Berry 179 Neptune Drive Ste 200 Brunswick ME 04011 2842220 0 X www.btlt.org X 1986 ME Brunswick-Topsham Land Trust conserves and stewards vital natural areas, supports a vibrant local food system, and connects people with the natural world through inclusive education and recreation programs. Our goal is to protect our natural resources, cultivate care for the natural world, and in so doing, foster resilient, connected communities now and for generations to come. 19 19 28 290 0 0 1840825 2182178 51366 183349 40893 77220 0 316938 1933084 2759685 0 0 0 0 473457 714457 0 0 163768 555936 865035 1029393 1579492 903691 1180193 6509211 10102762 190736 2465882 6318475 7636880 X Brunswick-Topsham Land Trust conserves and stewards vital natural areas, supports a vibrant local food system, and connects people with the natural world through inclusive education and recreation programs. Our goal is to protect our natural resources, cultivate care for the natural world, and in so doing, foster resilient, connected communities now and for generations to come. 1 1 452173 0 Land Conservation - BTLT conserves in perpetuity highly valued natural areas, working lands, and shorefront using all the tools of private land conservation. At the close of FY 2023, BTLT owns 1,207.58 acres outright, and held conservation easements on 1,929.5 acres. These lands include ecologically significant coastal estuaries, wetlands, important plant and wildlife habitat, agricultural fields used for local food production, and small parcels providing green space and public access to rivers and ocean. Landowners donate or sell land or an interest in their land (i.e. conservation easement) to the trust. The public benefits of this program, available to residents of and visitors to Midcoast Maine, include: scenic landscapes; outdoor recreation opportunities; local agriculture; habitat and resource protection; flood protection; and water access for fishing and commercial shellfish harvesting. 214192 20716 Land Stewardship - BTLT actively stewards its fee and easement properties to ensure that their conservation values are maintained. Every fee property is managed according to a site-specific management plan and every easement property is monitored annually to ensure the terms of the easement are being upheld. Other stewardship responsibilities include: managing property; defending easements; maintaining 24 miles of trails on properties that provide public access; building new trails; building and maintaining bridges, kiosks, and other amenities; providing appropriate signage; outreach and public education focused on conservation and natural resources. Stewardship activities are carried out on the 1,207.58 acres that BTLT owns outright and the 1,929.5 acres on which it holds easements. 278359 34982 Support for Local Agriculture - An important part of BTLT's mission is support for local agriculture. The trust supports agriculture in the following ways: protecting farm and pasture land for agriculture, including a 331-acre working farm; operating a farmers' market that provides a much-needed retail outlet for 40 local farmers and producers; providing a community garden that makes 80 individual garden plots available to community members and a 11,000 sq. ft. common good bed available to a local food bank to raise produce for its clients; and establishing the Merrymeeting Food Council in collaboration with other regional stakeholders. The purpose of the food council is to enhance the local food economy, raise awareness of the benefits of local food, and to increase the production and consumption of local healthy food in our region. 358567 444589 BTLT continued their community education, offering a total of around 70 guided nature walks, workshops, and speakers this past year; their school-based programs served around 800 elementary school students annually with experiential, nature-based science lessons; their summer camp provided a week of nature exploration and learning for 224 children, including 10-15 scholarship campers. 358567 444589 1303291 1 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 1 1 0 0 0 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 22 0 1 28 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 X 19 19 1 0 0 0 1 1 1 1 1 0 0 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 0 X X X Jessica Nixon 2077297694 179 Neptune Drive Brunswick ME 04011 Bill Ferdinand Secretary 1.00 X X 0 0 0 Doug Bennett Director 1.00 X 0 0 0 Elizabeth Armstrong Director 1.00 X 0 0 0 Emily Swan President 1.00 X X 0 0 0 Jamie Tatham Treasurer 1.00 X X 0 0 0 John Lichter Director 1.00 X 0 0 0 Keisha Payson Director 1.00 X 0 0 0 Lloyd Van Lunen Director 1.00 X 0 0 0 Margaret Wilson Vice President 1.00 X X 0 0 0 Richard Mersereau Director 1.00 X 0 0 0 Rol Fessenden Director 1.00 X 0 0 0 Sandy Stott Director 1.00 X 0 0 0 Ellen Trout Bennett Director 1.00 X 0 0 0 Tim Paul Director 1.00 X 0 0 0 Susan Rae-Reeves Director 1.00 X 0 0 0 Tom Settlemire Director 1.00 X 0 0 0 Janvier Smith Director 1.00 X 0 0 0 Rick Wells Director 1.00 X 0 0 0 Nick Whatley Director 1.00 X 0 0 0 Angela Twitchell Executive Director (former) 36.00 X 84280 0 2413 Stephen Walker Executive Director 40.00 X 5144 0 0 89424 0 2413 0 0 0 0 0 459843 -14949 1737284 995131 2182178 Camp Tuition 721210 73833 73833 Contracts Income 900099 47126 47126 Crystal Spring Farm 111000 34982 34982 Land stewardship prog 111000 20716 20716 Program Service Revenu 900099 6692 6692 183349 83213 83213 45800 1700 53493 0 -7693 1700 -5993 -5993 29042 -14949 29042 0 Contribution from CREA 900099 316938 316938 316938 2759685 500287 0 77220 89424 66273 6793 16358 552772 409665 41988 101119 14487 10590 1318 2579 3410 2493 310 607 54364 40208 4223 9933 6958 3951 2854 153 37435 21255 15355 825 14475 14475 136188 118415 15247 2526 5566 2529 143 2894 68143 55804 6101 6238 22855 18280 1358 3217 3266 3146 45 75 41453 41165 288 14277 12371 1146 760 Donated Easement 400000 400000 Community Project Expen 29606 29606 Property Taxes 23889 23889 0 0 Printing 23814 12393 506 10915 37110 31258 283 5569 1579492 1303291 112433 163768 10000 755661 799896 51442 213067 2393 2826 10696 20173 7850149 755585 3931967 7094564 1721521 1925214 35531 37022 6509211 10102762 136723 137305 55474 0 2000000 54013 273103 190736 2465882 X 5893572 6825063 424903 811817 6318475 7636880 6509211 10102762 1180193 138212 0 X X 0 1 X 1 0 X 1035168 673669 1115078 1840825 2182178 6846918 1035168 673669 1115078 1840825 2182178 6846918 1361494 5485424 18244 14267 14971 40839 83213 171534 52391 52327 49980 51366 500287 706351 7724803 0.71010 0.78200 X RESTRICTED RESTRICTED RESTRICTED RESTRICTED RESTRICTED RESTRICTED RESTRICTED RESTRICTED X X X 36 1955.00 0 1 1 439.00 13463 1721521 84968 164525 45800 1925214 769088 847392 138841 33800 1721521 874160 8809 -80081 33800 769088 731601 10000 155839 23280 874160 632661 71702 27238 731601 0.86864 0.09790 0.03347 0 0 6405828 6405828 1306504 679162 627342 33753 28960 4793 104064 47463 56601 7094564 Brunswick Food Shed 21788 Lease Obligation 15986 Line of Credit 235329 273103 X 2909425 138212 26003 164215 2745210 14475 14475 2759685 1591020 26003 26003 1565017 14475 14475 1579492 Part II, Line 5: Current policy is to expense land easements when received. Part X, Line 2: The organization is exempt from taxation under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code. No provision for income taxes is required. The organization does not believe they are subject to unrelated business income tax during current or previous years. The organization is no longer subject to U.S. federal and state income tax examinations for years before 2017. X 1 400000 Fair Market Value X 2 570000 Fair Market Value X Miscellaneous 65 25131 FMV 0 1 0 Form 990, Part III, line 2 We continued our community education, offering a total of around 70 guided nature walks, workshops, and speakers this past year; our school-based programs served around 800 elementary school students annually with experiential, nature-based science lessons; our summer camp provided a week of nature exploration and learning for 224 children, including 10-15 scholarship campers. Form 990, Part III, line 3 BTLT merged with Cathance River Education Alliance in July of 2023, combining our community educational programs, and adding school-based education programs and a nature immersion summer day camp for 6-13 year-old children. Form 990, Part VI, Section A, line 2 Three sets of board members are married to each other, Margaret Wilson & Lloyd Van Lunen, Rol & Averil Fessende, and Douglas & Ellen Bennett. Form 990, Part VI, Section A, line 6 The Brunswick-Topsham Land Trust is an organization of members. Form 990, Part VI, Section A, line 7a The members of the Brunswick-Topsham Land Trust elect the governing body. Form 990, Part VI, Section A, line 7b No interest of the Land Trust in any real estate may be transferred, exchanged, encumbered, or in any other way alienated unless authorized at a meeting of members duly held at which a quorum is present by an affirmative vote of two-thirds of the members represented at such meeting entitled to vote on the subject matter. The notice for any such meeting shall contain a description of the proposed transaction and the reasons therefore. Such membership approval, however, shall not be required to mortgage or sell a portion of real estate in connection with its acquisition for the purpose of financing said transaction. Nor shall such membership approval be required to transfer, exchange, encumber, or otherside alienate an interest in unrestricted land held exclusively for investment purposes, or for transfers, exchange, and sales involving public authorities or other conservation organization in good standing so long as the said property is encumbered by a permanent conservation easement or the equivalent. However, such sales or a mortgage of a portion of any large parcel acquired, and such alienation of interests in unrestricted land held exclusively for investment purposes shall require the affirmative vote of two-thirds of the total number of directors then in office. No such real estate, however, shall be transferred, exchanged, encumbered, or in any other way alienated in such manner that it fails to meet the requirements of the Internal Revenue Code of 1954, as amended, and the regulation issued thereunder for a corporation qualifying as an exempt organization under the provisions of Section 501(c)(3) of said code and regulations as they now exist or may hereafter be amended. Form 990, Part VI, Section B, line 11b The finance committee and the treasurer review the return prior to filing and present it to the board for review and acceptance. The treasurer has the responsibility for final approval and signing of the 990. Form 990, Part VI, Section B, line 12c The Organization requires new board members to review the conflict of interest policy and sign a disclosure upon joining the board and annually thereafter. They list on the disclosure form any relevant associations and potential conflicts. Form 990, Part VI, Section B, line 15 The executive committee conducts an annual performance review for the executive director to assess performance and recommends any salary increases to the finance committe and board of directors. The committee recommends salary increases based on the cost of living changes and periodic reviews of comparative compensation for executive directors. Form 990, Part VI, Section C, line 19 The organization makes its governing documents, conflict of interest policy, and financial statements available to the public upon request. Form 990, Part XII, Line 2c: The organization has a committee that assumes responsibility for oversight of the audit of its financial statements and selection of an independent accountant. There have been no changes in the process from the prior year.