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Mission Statement
Conserve, steward, and advocate for the unique rural landscape of the Eastern Shore.

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ESLC

Cross Street Partners to help with Eastern Shore Conservation Center

QUEENSTOWN – Eastern Shore Land Conservancy contracted with Cross Street Partners, a real estate consulting company that counts among its projects Baltimore’s Food Hub, Harbor East and Belvedere Square, for assistance with the Eastern Shore Conservation Center. The company will provide financial advisory services, including polishing the project’s budget as ESLC prepares to close on a tax credit, representing ESLC as it pursues federal historic tax credits, and help with post-closing accounting needs. “I have seen the Baltimore work of Bill Struever and Cross Street Partners and it is amazing,” said ESLC Executive Director Rob Etgen. “They take beat up historic industrial buildings and turn them into vibrant, stimulating hubs of economic and community activities – and always with a focus on local food and sustainability.  Cross Street Partners is an ideal part of our team for revitalization of the McCord and Brick Row buildings into the Eastern Shore Conservation Center.” ESLC officially broke ground Friday, July 18, on the Eastern Shore Conservation Center. The design and renovation of the former McCord and Brick Row buildings will cost about $7.6 million. To date, ESLC has raised $5 million. The LEED-certified campus will be home to ESLC headquarters, as well as other conservation and community-centered nonprofits. A café, a courtyard open to the public, and meeting rooms will make this a community conservation center. The dilapidated and abandoned McCord building and neighboring Brick Row, which was damaged by fire, will become a place for nonprofit collaboration and will revitalize a forgotten section of South Washington Street. Other than financial advisory services, Cross Street Partners offers property and asset management, master planning and development service, construction management and general contracting, retail merchandising strategies, and marketing services. The firm also served as the owner’s representative for the Under Armour Headquarters/Visitors Center and Skywalk in Locust Point and provided development, retail

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Cambridge Gateways Report

Cambridge Gateways was designed to initiate a conversation among community leaders, City of Cambridge officials, residents and visitors about the impression the environment on U.S. Route 50 gives those who pass through Cambridge, the effect the physical conditions have on the local economy and culture, and how best to embody the character of a charming Eastern Shore waterfront city through gateway revitalization. The goal of the Cambridge Gateways engagement and design process was to develop strategies that would communicate to travelers that Downtown Waterfront Redevelopment District destinations exist and this Eastern Shore town is not to be missed. The City and Eastern Shore Land Conservancy  identified the intersection of Route 50 and Maryland Avenue as the primary gateway to Cambridge in need of revitalization. The Maryland Avenue Gateway encompasses the area beginning on the corner of Route 50 and Byrn Street, running to the intersection of Route 50 and Maryland Avenue, and then turning west down Maryland Avenue and extending to Cambridge Creek Bridge. The City and ESLC worked in partnership to manage the community engagement and design process for gateway revitalization of the streets and potential greyfield properties in the Maryland Avenue Gateway. The City and ESLC developed schematic visions for Maryland Avenue Gateway, aiming to make this major entryway into the City more welcoming, to treat stormwater issues with green street improvements and reduced impervious surfaces, to create more effective and attractive directional signage, and to make the gateway area more accessible for the whole community along this major entryway into downtown Cambridge. The Cambridge Gateways Report is a first step in the community process toward green and revitalized Gateways for Cambridge. There is much opportunity ahead for feedback and suggestions in the community as the Cambridge Gateways project moves forward. Please peruse a presentation of our report: THE CAMBRIDGE GATEWAYS POWERPOINT

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Oxford Stormwater

ESLC helped with the community mapping, diagnosis, and planning for the town’s increasing flooding/sea level rise challenges. Effort was led by the UMD Environmental Finance Center and Chesapeake Bay Foundation (2012). Via community conversations and convening experts, a strategy for funding and stormwater management is completed. Cheryl Lewis, Town Manager for Oxford, developed the following presentation for Maryland Municipal League. ESLC - Sustainable Oxford MML 093013 A Fact Sheet on Oxford Stormwater. Oxford_Fact_Sheet_Small

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Oxford starts stormwater management fund

"OXFORD — With support from residents in Oxford, commissioners unanimously passed ordinances creating a fund for stormwater management and shoreline protection, after a public hearing held at the Tuesday, May 13 town meeting. The residents who spoke at the meeting supported the ordinances." - in the Tuesday, May 20, 2014 edition of The Star Democrat. Read more at stardem.com.

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Recent Posts

  • Harboring Plans for Cambridge
  • What is a Mosaic?
  • Q & A: Brad Rogers, South Baltimore Gateway Partnership
  • Sponsorship Spotlight: PRS Guitars
  • Cloudy with a Chance of Carbon Emissions
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  • Big Changes on the Horizon for the CREP Easement Program
  • Trails Get a Boost Across the Shore
  • Seven Legislative Efforts That Could Impact Eastern Shore Land Use and Preservation
  • Land Protection for All
  • Board Spotlight: Jules Hendrix
  • New Regional Trail Map Shows Existing and Potential Trails for a Growing Network
  • Saving Maryland’s Tidal Salt Marshes
  • From the President: The Eastern Shore’s Most Urgent Conservation Need in 2024
  • Review: ESLC Forests and Forestry Workshop