The Checkerboard Partnership Planning Committee (CPPC) is a diverse and inclusive team, united to engage Kittitas community members in discussions around permanently protecting 27,000 acres of Kittitas County forestlands. Their mission is to connect these forests to nearby communities, so that sustainable forest management leads to local benefits. The CPPC aspires to create a self-sustaining model for cross-boundary forest management that reflects local needs and values. The outcome of this effort will be an adaptive forest landscape that thrives into the future.
The Greenway Trust helps lead outreach, community engagement, and legislative advocacy efforts for the CPPC. By working together to design a long-term stewardship plan, we will ensure future generations have access to these commonly cherished lands. We aim to balance opportunities for personal enjoyment, while supporting traditional land uses that have persisted since time immemorial.
To date, the Greenway Trust has worked with the CPPC to raise:
- $3 million from the Washington State Recreation and Conservation Office, to begin transferring the Cle Elum Ridge parcels to community forest management
- $5.7 million from the Forest Legacy Program, to transfer the Cabin Creek parcels to DNR management
- $6.5 million from the Land and Water Conservation Fund, to begin transferring the Taneum lands to USFS management