Zionsville council allocates $2.00 million toward Carpenter Nature Preserve phase 1 infrastructure

The Zionsville Town Council on Aug. 4, 2025, approved Resolution 2025-09 to allocate $2,000,500 from a $3,000,000 Next Level Conservation Trust (NLCT) reimbursement toward phase 1 infrastructure at the Carpenter Nature Preserve. Jared Logsdon, parks and recreation superintendent, presented the request and said the NLCT reimbursement was for acquisition costs and that the town had coordinated other grants and easements to make the project eligible. John Overlander, the town’s chief legal counsel, explained that many of the NLCT restrictions apply to the Department of Natural Resources rather than to the town, and the town has completed the required conservation easement covering 173 acres for perpetual public use. Logsdon said the park board intends the phase 1 scope to be “bare bones” infrastructure to open the preserve and that the department had trimmed the project from an earlier $3,000,000 scope to $2,500,000 to preserve a $500,000 contingency. He said the budget will focus on reconstructing the access drive and parking, 5,000 linear feet of trail, and essential site work. Public comments included remarks by donors and supporters: Nancy and Jim Carpenter described their donation and bargain sale to the town; Tim Cassidy, president of the Zionsville Parks Foundation, said the foundation had raised substantial private gifts and encouraged the council to approve the appropriation; and Ryan Cambridge, parks board president and a landscape architect, urged the council to invest now to secure the town’s green-space goals. Councilors questioned grant restrictions, maintenance responsibilities, contingency levels (Logsdon said contingencies were “less than 8%”), and whether additional personnel would be required to open the preserve; Logsdon said the town expects to staff the site with a mix of existing full-time employees coaching seasonal staff and estimated roughly $10,000 annual supplies for site upkeep. Councilor McElderry moved to approve Resolution 2025-09; Councilor Stein seconded, and the resolution passed 7-0 after the public hearing closed.