NEWPORT – The Aquidneck Land Trust received last week a conservation easement on Rovensky Park.
The easement will ensure that the park will stay undeveloped, said the Preservation Society of Newport County, which gifted the easement. The Preservation Society said that it will retain sole ownership and management of the property. John E. Rovensky deeded the park to the organization in 1959 in memory of his wife subject to the condition that it “be kept and maintained … as a park, and for no other purpose.”
The deal between the land trust and society creates a legal prohibition against subdivisions, recreational buildings, permanent billboards, parking lots and the like.
“We applaud the Preservation Society’s long-term vision, leadership and generosity along with this creative partnership of historic preservation and conservation interests,” said Ted Clement, executive director for the land trust. “Too often, parks conserved with conservation intent alone or basic deed restrictions have been wholly or partially lost to development pressures.”
The trust has conserved more than 2,300 acres on 60 properties. The society, which owns and operates many of Newport’s historic mansions, said that the latest easement would demonstrate “our support for the protection of Newport’s historic landscapes.”
“We want to do everything we can to protect the historic viewsheds and landscapes of Aquidneck Island, and I can think of no better partner in that endeavor than the Aquidneck Land Trust,” Preservation Society CEO and Executive Director Trudy Coxe said.
