Our Community Network Grant Project

This post was originally published by WFCLT on 17 April 2025 and has been reposted by the Office of Equity and Anti-Racism for consolidation of content from two separate features into one.

Hey everyone,

The Weymouth Falls Community Land Trust received a Community Network Grant for the 2023/24 year, and we are pleased to tell you about the final result! This project allowed us to create a strategic work plan around cultural preservation of three sites the community has said are the most important to them. The three sites are the Sam Langford Community Centre, the Mount Beulah Baptist Church, and a 19-acre parcel of land called ‘the Dam’. This project required us to trace how these parcels were transferred over time. In that process, we learned that the Sam Langford Community Centre does not have a good root of title, meaning the ownership of that site is not clear. We then worked with a legal team to create a cultural preservation and acquisition strategy based on the current legal status of the land. This has had a significant impact on the community who, for years, did not understand how these important properties were being sold and bought without their knowledge, and it also explains why the Community Centre is condemned and not able to access funding for its repair. We learned that the first thing we need to do is ensure all of the land titles are clear so that our organization can start moving to acquire them. Having a clear direction on next steps has put the community at ease, giving them the peace of mind of knowing that we now have a strategy to see these sites returned to community hands.

Another win that happened thanks in-part to research we were able to do with this grant, is that we acquired the Mount Beulah Baptist Church! This was our first acquisition and we pursued it because the community gave us direction to do so. Although this grant didn't fund the purchase price, it did help us realize how important it was to make sure this property stayed in community. Now, we are working closely with partners to pilot a building rehabilitation project that considers both heritage preservation and climate resiliency. This next phase will likely have a really important impact on rural Nova Scotia!