Our Natural Legacy – A Plan for Columbia and Boone County

(formerly known as: Natural Open Space Plan)

This plan was completed in 2014 and is a result of a multi-stakeholder partnership focused on creating an innovative open space/green infrastructure plan for the Columbia/Boone County area.  Partners include Columbia Parks and Recreation, MO Dept. of Conservation, Greenbelt Land Trust, and Boone County.

Our Natural Legacyopens PDF file

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The quality of life in Boone County is linked to its history and beauty. Serene forests and subterranean caves interlaced with trails, striking bluff views across the mighty Missouri River, and farmsteads feeding our local economy and the world are all essential to the character of our county, all part of the reason our community finds itself every year on national lists of best places to live. We have an opportunity to take advantage of the nature and beauty of Boone County to build an even better, healthier, community and to plan and invest in a way that its unique character is never lost.

Recognizing this, a private – public partnership has emerged over the last year focused on utilizing our unique natural assets for the betterment of our community now and for future generations. Convened by the Greenbelt Land Trust of Mid-Missouri, a nonprofit organization located in Boone County, this partnership has already helped generate substantial positive results around the theme of “Our Natural Legacy” and through the vision outlined in this plan is poised to accomplish much more.

This plan charts a course for ensuring that our natural legacy continues to enhance the environmental, social, and economic well-being of our county. Purely voluntary in nature, it draws its implementation possibilities from the power of collaboration, an example of how the private sector and government at various levels can get behind an ambitious vision, pool resources around a concept, and achieve things for people and the nature that surrounds us in way that could never be achieved by organizations and individuals acting alone.

See also: Capital Improvement Project: Natural Open Space Plan (“Our Natural Legacy”)