The Mianus River Gorge office is located across the road from the entrance to the 961-acre Mianus River Gorge Preserve here in Bedford. In 1979, MRG built a residence for the then caretaker Jim Gibb. At that time Mr. Gibb was the only employee with a volunteer Board of Trustees. After the hire of the first Executive Director in 1987, an addition to the house was added as an office for two full-time and one part-time staff.
Since that beginning, MRG has added extensive education and research programs for students, public programs for the community, and informed land management activities to improve the trails and the ecological health of the old-growth forest. With the addition of new staff over the years, that same one-room office built in 1987 houses five full-time and three part-time staff along with seasonal interns and high school and graduate students.
To put it simply – we have simply run out of space.
MRG is gearing up to undertake the construction of a new Research and Education wing added to our existing building to provide desperately needed office, classroom, storage and meeting spaces, absent from the present building. Imagine a space large enough to work effectively with students, and host community talks, workshops, presentations, and meetings.
The building will house new classroom space that can be used for on-site public events or to work with groups of students in our award-winning research and education programs. A new, well-equipped lab will allow students and staff to conduct applied ecological research that is shared with other land trusts, preserves, and institutions throughout the region.
As part of the project, we will renovate the existing office space, which has not been updated since 1987, and construct new office space for new and future staff.
MRG’s board of trustees has enthusiastically approved the building project. The architect has drafted final plans. MRG has obtained final cost estimates and is working through the permitting process with the Town of North Castle. Start of construction is anticipated soon.
We are currently raising funds to realize the building. We hope you will help us further advance MRG’s environmental impact with the space to provide quality programs and initiatives that benefit each of us.
Please give generously at https://mianus.org/ways-to-give/