On Saturday, October 4th, Troy Mayor Harry Tutunjian and Rensselaer County Executive Kathy Jimino joined The Rensselaer Land Trust (RLT) for the organization's first ever Oktoberfest. Brown's Brewing Company in Troy co-hosted the event as a fundraiser for RLT's newly unveiled three-year capital plan to raise $3 million. The event also highlighted organization's recent recognition as a nationally accredited land trust.

On Saturday, September 13, RLT was announced as one of five land trusts in New York State to be awarded national accreditation from the Land Trust Alliance at its national convention in Pittsburgh, PA. Executive Director John Middlebrooks noted that RLT was only the smallest of 38 land trusts to be accredited out of the over 1,800 land trusts nationwide.

Rensselaer County Executive Kathy Jimino presented Middlebrooks with a certificate recognizing the achievement. "Part of the beauty of Rensselaer County is the rolling hills and the preservation open space. The Rensselaer Land Trust is there to protect our natural resources." The Rensselaer County Legislature also recently adopted a resolution recognizing RLT's leadership in preserving the county's watershed areas.

Troy Mayor Harry Tutunjian also congratulated RLT on its accreditation saying "They deserve it! We're really proud to support the Rensselaer Land Trust which seeks to protect our water supply, the Tomhannock Reservoir."