Land Trust of Virginia

The Land Trust of Virginia (LTV) is an accredited private land trust founded in 1992 with a mission to preserve open spaces through conservation easement. LTV has a strategic focus on scenic open space, agricultural lands, forests, and cultural and historic land for the benefit of the general public. In the last 25 years, LTV has accepted the donation of 151 easements on 16,400 acres across 10 Virginia counties. Our easements protect land in historic villages, along rivers and streams, prime farmland, forests, cultural and historical resources including battlefields. LTV works with landowners and communities large and small, researching and identifying conservation values to improve the benefits of easements and then implement them. Through our Rural Villages and Blue Ridge Study programs, LTV has identified thousands of acres that would benefit from conservation. LTV meets the holder requirements in the Virginia Conservation Easement Act, Va. Code §10.1-1009 to §10.1-1017. LTV is a fully accredited land trust.

LTV has found a niche in working with landowners that may not match the profiles sought by other land trusts or public agencies that hold easements. By working closely with landowners, LTV is able to develop easements that meet conservation standards while allowing for landowners to continue to work their land and keep it open for all to benefit. Examples of this type of cooperation between landowners and LTV include the Gum Brothers Farm in Lucketts, Virginia and Weatherlea Farm in Lovettsville. Both properties are working farms where the easement enabled landowners to preserve, protect and enhance the land while planning for their personal futures. In other locations, LTV has worked with landowners to preserve properties within historic battlefield locations including Upperville, Unison and presently in the City of Fredericksburg.