Board of Public Works Approves $3.35 Million for Outdoor Recreation and Land Conservation in Four Maryland Counties
In the Anne Arundel South Rural Legacy Area, the county will acquire an easement to preserve a 136-acre farm, protecting more than 3,000 feet of stream buffers. Maryland DNR photo
The Board of Public Works today approved more than $3.3 million in grants from the Maryland Department of Natural Resources to local governments for outdoor recreation and land conservation in Anne Arundel, Calvert, Montgomery, and Washington counties.
More than $2 million in Program Open Space – Local funding was approved for two recreation projects. Calvert County will receive funds to purchase 1.1acres of waterfront property to expand the Calvert Marine Museum campus. Potential future improvements may include a boardwalk extension and improving the greenspace for recreation and educational purposes.
Montgomery County will use its funds to improve Stonehedge Local Park by renovating the playground and basketball court and constructing a community garden.
In land conservation, $1.26 million of Rural Legacy program funding was approved to acquire permanent conservation easements in two Rural Legacy Areas. In the Anne Arundel South Rural Legacy Area, the county will acquire an easement to preserve a 136-acre farm, protecting more than 3,000 feet of stream buffers along Lyons Creek and its tributaries in the Middle Patuxent watershed. In the Mid-Maryland Washington Rural Legacy Area, the county will acquire an easement on 61 acres of agricultural and forested land. This easement will protect water quality by preserving 840 feet of forested stream buffers along tributaries to Marsh Run, a waterway that flows directly to the Potomac River.
More detailed information on these and other items is available in the Board of Public Works June 3, 2026 meeting agenda.
The three-member Board of Public Works is composed of Governor Wes Moore, Treasurer Dereck E. Davis and Comptroller Brooke E. Lierman.
Information about these Maryland recreation and land conservation programs:
Program Open Space – Local provides funding for county and municipal governments for the planning, acquisition, and development of recreational land or facilities. Funds are allocated annually to every county and Baltimore City and projects funded are determined by the local government. Established under the Department of Natural Resources in 1969, Program Open Space, along with other state land conservation programs, symbolizes Maryland’s long-term commitment to conserving our natural resources while providing exceptional outdoor recreation opportunities for all citizens. The program is funded by a property transfer tax.
The Rural Legacy Program, created in 1997, conserves large working landscapes across 36 locally designated areas throughout Maryland. The Rural Legacy Program, along with the Maryland Agricultural Land Preservation Foundation, have recently earned the State of Maryland national recognition from the American Farmland Trust.
More news on funding approved for Program Open Space, Local Parks and Playgrounds Infrastructure, Greenspace Equity, Rural Legacy, and Conservation Reserve Enhancement Permanent Easement programs is available on the Maryland Department of Natural Resources’ Land News webpage.