Orange County Municipality Receives Preservation Funding

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The Madison Lewis Woodlands are an important natural space in the Village of Warwick that was once part of a family estate.

ALBANY, NY (10/28/2016)(readMedia)-- The New York State Council on the Arts together with the Preservation League of New York State has awarded $9,000 to the Village of Warwick to support a nomination to the preparation of a Cultural Landscape Report for the Madison Lewis Woodlands, an important natural space in the community that was once part of a local family estate.

An earlier landscape report, completed by Heritage Landscapes of Norwalk, CT and Charlotte, VT, led to significant cleanup and restoration activities within the woodlands. It also, however, inspired the surrounding community to recognize a "natural jewel within its midst," leading to an uptick in daily visitors and use by organizations and school groups, and in lectures and articles developed by the Village Historian and the Warwick Historical Society.

The Preserve New York grant will enable the Village to hire Heritage Landscapes once more, to complete a second cultural landscape report of the Woodlands. This report will focus on the entrance of the property, an Italianate formal space known historically as the "sunken garden." The final report will detail recommended treatment for restoration and interpretation of this important space within a larger historic context.

Preserve New York is a signature grant program of the New York State Council on the Arts (NYSCA) and the Preservation League of New York State, and is made possible with the support of Governor Andrew M. Cuomo and the New York State Legislature. "With the announcement of the 2016 awards, the total support provided by Preserve New York since its launch in 1993 is over $2.2 million to 346 projects statewide," said Jay DiLorenzo, President of the Preservation League. "Preserve New York has a strong track record of bolstering local preservation efforts and delivering a strong return on investment."

"The Village is excited to receive this award from the Preservation League of New York State," said, Michael J. Newhard, Mayor of Warwick. "The preservation of historic landscape is important as it protects an often forgotten contextual asset. The Fowler 'Sunken Garden' is a wonderful example of a garden from America's Golden Age of formal gardens. The earlier Cultural Landscape report has proven a significant tool for historic preservation and a guide to restoration and interpretation, and we're eager to see the results of this additional study."

"At its August, 2016 meeting, the Preserve New York panel selected 26 applicants in 18 counties around the state to share $202,000 in funding," said Erin Tobin, the League's Director of Preservation. "As always, the competition for these funds was intense. We are delighted to help advance the preservation efforts of the Village of Warwick with timely funding from Preserve New York."

Organizations and municipalities receiving grants in 2016 are: Albany County: Underground Railroad History Project of the Capital Region, Inc., Albany - $4,000; Bronx County: Woodlawn Conservancy, Bronx - $6,000; Erie County (5): Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus, Buffalo - $7,000; Preservation Buffalo Niagara, Buffalo - $7,000; Roycroft Campus Corporation, East Aurora - $12,000; Village of Hamburg - $5,000; Village of Springville - $7,000; Franklin County (2): Historic Saranac Lake, Saranac Lake - $2,000; Village of Saranac Lake - $8,500; Hamilton County: Adirondack Historical Association/Adirondack Museum, Blue Mountain Lake - $9,000; Madison County (2): Oneida Community Mansion House, Oneida - $8,000; Stone Quarry Hill Art Park, Inc., Cazenovia - $7,000; Monroe County (2): Greece Historical Society, Greece - $13,000; David Hochstein Memorial Music School, Inc., Rochester - $10,000; Montgomery County (2): Village of Fultonville - $4,500; Village of St. Johnsville - $9,000; New York County: CIVITAS Citizens, Inc., Manhattan - $10,000; Ontario County: Ontario County Historical Society, Canandaigua - $9,000; Orange County: Village of Warwick - $9,000; Rensselaer County: Village of Valley Falls - $5,500; Schenectady County: Vale Cemetery Preservation, Inc., Schenectady - $10,000; Suffolk County: Sylvester Manor Educational Farm, Shelter Island - $9,000; Tioga County: Village of Owego - $5,000; Washington County: Hubbard Hall Center for the Arts & Education, Inc., Cambridge - $12,000; Wayne County: Town of Lyons - $9,500; Westchester County: Village of Tarrytown - $4,000.

For more information on the Preserve New York grant program, please call 518-462-5658 x 10 or visit the League's website at www.preservenys.org.