Document Examples
The Willow Creek Property
In October 2025, GRCL donated a conservation easement on 100 acres along County Road 31, south of Blue Mesa Reservoir. The Woodcock family donated the land to us in 2022. The easement protects habitat resources for Gunnison sage-grouse along Willow Creek. We lease the property to a local rancher for seasonal grazing. A transaction expense grant was provided by the Gunnison Valley Land Preservation Fund. Colorado Open Lands holds the easement. We have applied for a Colorado Conservation Tax Credit that we can sell to generate income for our program.
Usually all of the transaction documents involved in placing a conservation easement are private, viewed only by the landowners, land trust, funders and professional advisors. The exception is the recorded Deed of Conservation Easement, available to the public in the records of the county in which the property is located.
As a public service, we are providing access to the documents created on our behalf during the process of placing the Willow Creek Property conservation easement. These documents are the property of the Gunnison Ranchland Conservation Legacy. Any use of these documents by any other party, for any purpose except simply viewing them, is prohibited.
Deed of Conservation Easement. The terms of the conservation easement are negotiated between the land trust and the landowner over several months. Land trusts begin with a generic deed and then incorporate the specific information that pertains to the landowner's property. The landowner will choose how many building envelopes and their location, how many residential and agricultural improvements they want, and some other negotiable terms in the easement deed.
Some terms are not negotiable, being required by the IRS, the State of Colorado, or funding agencies. For example, because we received a grant from the Gunnison County Land Preservation Fund, our deed incorporates terms required by Gunnison County.
Here is a link to the Willow Creek Property Conservation Easement deed, recorded in the public records of Gunnison County.
Appraisal. The appraisal of a conservation easement compares the value of the property without the conservation restrictions to its value with the restrictions. The difference between the “before” and “after” values is the value of the conservation easement. It is a measure of what is voluntarily given up by placing the conservation easement on the property. Only actual sales of comparable properties in the same or similar geographic area are to be considered by the appraiser in determining the “before” and “after” values. Appraisals must be conducted by qualified appraisers who can attest to their credentials for performing conservation easement appraisals.
Here are links to the Willow Creek appraisal report and to the addenda that substantiate the conclusions in the report.
Baseline Report. A baseline report is required to substantiate the present condition of the property with respect to the conservation values claimed in the Deed of Conservation Easement.
Here is a link to the Willow Creek Present Conditions Report.
Minerals Report. Sometimes the mineral rights of the property have been separated from the landowner's ownership. In these cases, a "minerals remoteness opinion" is required. A professional geologist prepares a report stating that "the likelihood of mineral exploitation is so remote as to be negligible." If mining were to occur over which the landowner has no control, the surface appearance and natural resources of the property could be disturbed, thereby negating some of the conservation values; hence the requirement for aprofessional opinion that such an occurrence is unlikely.
Here is a link to the Willow Creek Minerals Report.
Title Commitment and Insurance Policy. A title commitment is required as proof that title is correctly vested in the landowner, and so that any encumbrances on the property or exceptions to ownership are disclosed. The title commitment is reviewed by the land trust, any funding entities, the appraiser and also the State of Colorado Division of Conservation during review of the tax credit application.
Here is a link to the Willow Creek PropertyTitle Insurance Policy, which contains the commitment and provides links to exception documents.
Disclosure of Perpetuity. Colorado state law requires that any donor of a conservation easement must file a disclosure stating that they are aware that a conservation easement is a perpetual encumbrance on the property.
Here is a link to the Willow Creek Property Disclosure of Perpetuity.
Water Rights Memorandum. Land trusts require that a water rights memorandum be prepared that documents the status of water rights currently used on the property to support the conservation values. Even if no water is used on the property, a report must be prepared that so states. When water rights are to be encumbered by the conservation easement, documentation of the origins, history, diversion records and current status of the water rights must be included in the report.
Here is a link to the Water Rights Report for the Willow Creek Property.
Gunnison Valley Land Preservation Fund, Grant Application. Gunnison County provides a means of funding the transaction costs that landowners incur when placing a conservation easement through the Gunnison Valley Land Preservation Fund. At GRCL we apply to the fund to request transaction cost grants for all of our projects that are eligible (i.e. located in Gunnison County). Without funds from the county, most of our landowners could not afford to proceed with a conservation easement. In the 27 years since the fund began, we have received $4,984,107 to cover landowners' transaction costs.
Here is a link to the GVLPF Grant for the Willow Creek Property conservation easement. It was presented to the GVLPF Board on June 18, 2025 and approved that evening. The Gunnison County Commissioners approved the contract with GRCL to expend the funds at their meeting on July 15, 2025.
