Partnership Advances Public Access to Future Woodland Park in Easton

Eastern Shore Land Conservancy is celebrating an important milestone in the creation of Woodland Park, the nearly 200-acre forested property on Oxford Road that ESLC helped advocate to protect and bring into public ownership. ESLC supported the Town of Easton’s successful pursuit of Maryland Program Open Space funding for the acquisition and has long promoted the property’s value as a publicly accessible park, natural area, and trail network connection. Recent action by the Talbot County Council approving a Memorandum of Understanding with the Town of Easton moves that vision one step closer to reality by helping solve a longstanding challenge: creating safe and practical public access to the property.

Woodland Park was acquired by the Town of Easton with assistance from Maryland’s Program Open Space program, which helps local governments acquire and develop parks, recreation areas, and protected open space. Since the acquisition, one of the primary challenges has been how best to provide public access to the future park without compromising the property’s conservation values.

The proposed agreement between the Town and County establishes a framework for a future transfer of approximately 1.785 acres of county-owned land at the southern end of Talbot County’s Poplar Hill Farm property which will ultimately provide access into the park via Easton’s Route 322 Bypass. According to Pete Lesher, Vice President of the Talbot County Council, the easement provides a practical solution for public access to the park while avoiding reliance on Oxford Road, where access could require clearing wooded areas that were among the property’s defining conservation values.

As Megan Cook, Mayor of the Town of Easton, explains, “This agreement is an important step toward connecting people with one of our community’s most significant natural and recreational assets. By creating safe and convenient public access to Woodland Park, we’re helping ensure that residents and visitors alike can enjoy this extraordinary space for generations to come. We are grateful to Talbot County for its partnership and shared commitment to making Woodland Park accessible to everyone.”

For ESLC, Woodland Park is a model of how conservation and community planning can work together. ESLC supported the acquisition because protecting open space and ensuring public access to nature are both essential to thriving Eastern Shore communities. The project demonstrates how strategic public investment and local partnerships can create lasting benefits for residents while conserving important natural landscapes.

Once completed, Woodland Park is expected to become one of the region’s largest public parks, creating new opportunities for residents and visitors to connect with nature and enjoy this special piece of the Eastern Shore.

To learn more about Program Open Space and its impact on conservation and public access, watch ESLC’s video: