HD3 - Criteria for Evaluation of 2005 Virginia Land Conservation Foundation Grant Applications


Executive Summary:
On November 15, 2004, the Virginia Land Conservation Foundation (Foundation) met and approved the grant evaluation criteria contained in this document. The existing criteria of the Foundation were revised to incorporate those items identified in Item 383H3 of Chapter 4 of the 2004 Virginia Acts of Assembly, Special Session 1. This item directed the Foundation to develop new review criteria that better quantify the relative merits of each prospective grant parcel. In addition to the recognized existing criteria that are relevant too the particular classes of open space preservation provided under Virginia law, the new measurable criteria were to include the following:

(1) the status of the parcel under a locality's master plan as a Chesapeake Bay Preservation Area

(2) the degree to which securing the parcel will protect local drinking water supplies

(3) the degree to which the parcel satisfies recreational needs of population centers, or recreational needs as identified in the Virginia Outdoors Plan

(4) the extent to which the affected localities have identified the parcel as having important local water quality or recreational benefits, and

(5) the cost-effectiveness [value added] of the parcel in satisfying these criteria compared to alternatives.

An inter-agency task force comprised of representatives of the Department of Conservation and Recreation, Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, Department of Forestry, Department of Game and Inland Fisheries, Department of Historic Resources, and the Virginia Outdoors Foundation worked together to analyze the legislative directive and to develop recommendations to the Chairman of the Foundation. The final recommendations that were presented and adopted by the Virginia Land Conservation Foundation are presented in this report.

The scoring criteria presented in this document total to I 00 points and are comprised of 80 points allocated to one of the 4 primary funding categories for which the applicant has applied (Open Spaces and Parks, Natural Area Protection, Historic Area Preservation, and Forest and Farmland Preservation) and 20 points allocated amongst the5 new criteria (outlined above) and wildlife benefits.

Of the five new criteria, three points have been allocated to each of Chesapeake Bay Preservation Area, Drinking Water Supply Protection, Virginia Outdoors Plan (VOP) Identified Need, and Water Quality or Recreation Benefit. Five points have been allocated to the Value Added category and three points have been allocated to wildlife benefits identified in the project proposal.

These criteria will be utilized to evaluate grant applications received during the January I" through March 18th, 2005 grant round that was announced by the Virginia Land Conservation Foundation Board at their November meeting.