FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

                                                 Contact:

                                                 Kathy Melvin, Business Integrated

                                                 Communications   502.609.9813

River Fields Offers Free Public Tour of Edyalmoor

Event Scheduled for Saturday, October 16

Louisville, KY (September 30, 2010)—The public is invited to participate in a free, guided walking tour of Edyalmoor, an historic, Olmsted-designed estate in the River Road corridor at 10:30 a.m. and 1:30 p.m. on Saturday, October 16. River Fields, a 51-year old land and river conservation/preservation organization sponsors the event. 

Dave French, a member of the American Society of Landscape Architects, and Gina Bergner, a biologist with expertise in the plant life on the property, will conduct the tour. The Olmsted firm developed plans for the estate in the early 1900s, and some landscape remnants created through that plan remain today.

Originally estimated at 4,000 acres, Edyalmoor is the last remaining segment of the Bate Plantation, once the largest plantation and land holding in Jefferson County. In November 2006, Kenneth W. and Edythe Moore preserved the property forever when they executed a Historic Preservation, Conservation and Scenic Easement, now held jointly by River Fields, Inc. and the Kentucky Heritage Council/State Historic Preservation Office.

This property is one of 23 preserved forever by partnerships and conservation easements between landowners and River Fields.  In its 51-year history, River Fields has preserved more than 2,200 acres.

Conservation easements are a means of protecting environmentally significant land. Easements provide permanent protection from land use that could damage or destroy scenic, recreational, ecological, and natural resource values.  The donor transfers development rights of the land, generally to a qualified land trust such as River Fields, which takes responsibility for enforcing the development restrictions in perpetuity. The donor retains ownership of the property.

Edyalmoor tour reservations are required and space is limited. The tour is of the grounds only and does not include the house. Contact Melody Raidy at (502) 583-3060, or e-mail her at melodyraidy@riverfields.org to reserve a spot or for additional information. The deadline for reservations is 4:00 p.m., Wednesday, October 13, 2010.

Tour participants will meet Saturday, October 16 at the Lebanese American Country Club, 3020 River Road. Participants will be transported to and from the Edyalmoor estate by bus. The tour will last approximately two hours. Walking shoes are recommended for the tour, and attendees are asked not to take photographs of the property.

Photos from previous tours can be seen on the River Fields website at http://riverfields.org/EdyalmoorTour.htm.

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River Fields is the largest and oldest river conservancy along the 981- mile Ohio River.  For 50 years, River Fields has utilized its resources to effectively protect, preserve and enhance the natural and cultural resources of the land and water around the Ohio River in our region.  Through its programs of land conservation, advocacy, and education, River Fields strives to create harmony between nature, history and the people who live here.  River Fields owns land or holds conservation easements on 34 properties, totaling more than 2,200 acres, most of which is preserved forever. River Fields is one of the nation's few land trusts tackling regional advocacy work and land conservation.