Mission Statement
The purpose of the Pacifica Land Trust is to preserve, protect and enhance the natural, scenic, recreational, cultural, historic and open space environment including waterways and wildlife corridors of Pacifica and the surrounding community for present and future generations. To further this purpose, the Pacifica Land Trust will:
- Acquire by donation or purchase, land, easements, or other conservation mechanisms, for public benefit
- Encourage public awareness of the values of conservation and open space
- Coordinate with the Pacifica Open Space and Parkland Advisory Committee to implement the Open Space Task Force Report
- Educate citizens to respect and value open space
- Encourage economically viable community development in accord with the mission of the land trust
How Do We Work?
Land Trusts work in a variety of ways by directly negotiating land transactions, many of which offer direct income, estate, or property tax benefits to a landowner.
- Donation
A landowner may give property to the land trust by a gift or will - Purchase or Bargain Sale
The land trust buys the property, usually at a reduced rate that benefits the land trust and offers certain tax advantages to the landowner. - Life Estate
The landowner sells or donates the land but retains the right to live on it throughout their lifetime - Limited Development
The land trust arranges a strategy whereby the least environmentally significant portion of a property is carefully developed to finance conservation of the rest. - Conservation Easement
The landowner enters into an agreement with the land trust that retains the land in its natural, scenic, historic, agricultural, forested or open space condition.