Jackson County

Smoky Mountain News: Below the Pinnacle: Project seeks to protect 250 acres below Pinnacle Rock

January 21, 2021

By Holly Kays, January 20, 2021

The 3.5-mile hike to the top of Pinnacle Rock is a heart-pumping one, the old logging roads that now serve as hiking trails climbing 2,200 feet before leaving the hiker breathless before a sweeping aerial view of the Town of Sylva, cradled on all sides by forested mountain slopes.

The view is the flagship offering of Pinnacle Park, whose core area of 1,088 acres once served as Sylva’s watershed and now offers a worthy hiking challenge within minutes of town. But few people are aware that only half of the rocky outcropping known as Pinnacle Rock is actually part of town property, or that the pristine acreage below that rock is private land that could be developed at any moment.

Scramble for protection

Now, thanks to Mainspring Conservation Trust, it won’t be.

Read entire article.

Mainspring Opens Sylva Office

May 23, 2019

May 21, 2019 – Mainspring Conservation Trust has expanded its physical presence by opening a satellite office in downtown Sylva.

The new office is located at 643 West Main Street in downtown Sylva.

Headquartered in Franklin, North Carolina, and formerly known as the Land Trust for the Little Tennessee, Mainspring’s service area includes the six western-most counties in North Carolina and northern Rabun County, Georgia. In 2016, Mainspring opened an office in Murphy and saw an increase in conservation projects in that area. “After analyzing our effectiveness of having an additional office outside of Franklin, our board of directors recognized the potential of a Sylva office and how we can better serve the people of Jackson County,” says Executive Director Sharon Taylor. “We’re excited to be here.”

Mainspring works with landowners on a strictly voluntary basis. The non-profit also offers hands-on education opportunities for local schools and other groups.

Connie Haire, chair of Mainspring’s board of directors, says it’s important to have local people working in conservation. “Part of Mainspring’s impressive 22-year history of conserving land and culture around the Little Tennessee River was from having a strong connection with the citizens of that area,” she says. “With an office in Jackson County, Mainspring can have a positive impact in this community I call home. I’m looking forward to seeing wonderful projects that will help the protect the land, water and cultural heritage here.”

Mainspring’s Sylva location is 642 West Main Street. For more information, visit www.mainspringconserves.org.

Couple Plays Role in Protecting Parkway View

February 12, 2019

When George Rector and Joan Byrd bought their most recent property in Jackson County, the couple already had a plan. “We purchased the 50 acres for the specific purpose of protecting it with a conservation easement,” George says. “The added tract forms a contiguous block with conserved land we already own, so this tract enhances the conservation value of the entire acreage.”

The forested land is visible from Richland Balsam and other overlooks on the Blue Ridge Parkway and from neighboring Nantahala National Forest Lands. Protecting this property also conserves water quality and aquatic habitat, as its intermittent and perennial streams feed into Bryson Branch and eventually into the Tuckasegee River.

This is the third conservation easement George and Joan have donated to Mainspring in the last five years. “Our two prior experiences with Mainspring were very positive,” Joan says. “We appreciate the fact that they recognize that each tract of land and its owners are unique. Mainspring tailors each easement to fit the land’s conservation values and the owners’ desire to retain specified development rights.”

George and Joan are motivated to do what they can to conserve important areas in Jackson County. “The fact that North Carolina has a rapidly growing population is putting increasing pressure on the remaining natural areas of the state,” George says. “We believe that future generations deserve the same access to clean air, clean water and healthy forests that we enjoy in western North Carolina today.”