Carol Comegno

@CarolComegno

MANTUA - Tall pines, some choked by vines, tower over the entrance to a long-defunct golf course where meadows and wildlife are returning as nature reclaims the land.

Paths that once carried golf carts still wind through the property and over two Mantua Creek foot bridges to make its recesses accessible.

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Flora, such as milkweed, are in bloom, butterflies are flitting and bald eagles have been spotted on the land.

On the first day of summer Monday, the state Department of Environmental Protection dedicated the former 109-acre Maple Ridge Golf Course as the first state park in Gloucester County and unveiled the entry sign for Tall Pines State Preserve, which straddles Mantua and Deptford.

"I am really excited about today because in my six-and-a-half years with DEP, I have never had the opportunity to open a new park," DEP Commissioner Bob Martin said at a news conference at the site along Woodbury-Glassboro Road (Route 553) and Bark Bridge-Salina Road in Sewell.

"Tall Pines offers meadows, woodlands, wetlands, ponds and streams for bird watching, walking and jogging. It now becomes a sanctuary … (with) more than 70 species of birds identified, including a bald eagle."

The $3.2 million purchase was the result of a partnership between several nonprofit organizations and local, county and state government agencies that began eight years ago with a grassroots effort to save the land from development into more than 100 housing units. Instead, GIBG LLC of Westport, Connecticut, a golf course management company that operated Maple Ridge and closed it in 2006, sold the land to the state.

Partnering with the DEP were the county, Mantua, Deptford, the South Jersey Land and Water Trust and the Friends of Maple Ridge, which has now become the Friends of Tall Pines. The park agreements were announced last fall but some park details and a name were not released at that time.

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"A partnership made this happen and is an example of organizations coming together and making a difference," added Martin, who thanked all the partners.

Gloucester County financed $1.65 million of its open space funds but later was reimbursed half of that from the Green Acres Program, according to county land preservation director Ken Atkinson.

The Green Acres program provided a total of $2 million, including other 50 percent reimbursements of the $250,000 from Mantua and the $350,000 from the South Jersey Land and Water Trust.

Separate donations of $250,000 and $140,000, respectively, came from the Frank Stewart Trust and the Friends of Maple Ridge.

The property, which also borders Wenonah, is rolling terrain that descends to a narrow stretch of Mantua Creek. What were once greens and fairways have been transformed into meadows and woodlands of white pines, maples, oaks and dogwoods.

BACKGROUND: Golf course land is first state park in Glouco

Gloucester County Freeholder-Director Robert Damminger said the economic recession allowed the land to become available because of a drop in the housing market and the land value. However, even after it became available, there were many technicalities to overcome, including multi-agency agreements and maintenance issues.

Tall Pines State Preserve derives its name from the Tall Pines Golf Course, the original name of the course that began operation at the site in the early 1960s.

By the early 1980s former Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Ron Jaworski operated the course as Ron Jaworski’s Eagles Nest.

Tom Keck, DEP southern region parks director, said he hoped people from around South Jersey and statewide would discover and enjoy the park.

Even though it is a state park, it will be maintained by Gloucester County and Mantua, state officials said.

Mantua Mayor Pete Scirrotto praised the Friends group for never giving up. "It's a lot of money for a small group to raise – $140,000. That's a lot of T-shirt sales," he said.

There are no benches or nature signs yet, but those are expected to come later after future meetings on park mapping and enhancements.

"It's unbelievable today. Just unbelievable," said Friends of Maple Ridge Chairman Richard Dilks, who explained the group has changed its name to Friends of Tall Pines in order to continue to support the park with volunteers and input. "I stand here in immense gratification that all of our efforts to do something we felt important have materialized.

He credited 81-year-old Chuck Forsman of Mantua for starting the effort by waging a one-man campaign to preserve the property and never giving up despite being turned down.

Christine Nolan of the Land and Water Trust had the last word at the press conference: "Let's celebrate the power of partnership."

Carol Comegno: (856) 486-2473; ccomegno@gannettnj.com