By David Madden

PHILADELPHIA (CBS) – Gloucester County officials marked a milestone this week on the open space front.

Freeholder chair Bob Damminger has been on the board for 15 years and there was a move to protect against too much development even before that.

So the additional 300 acres acquired recently for open space preservation makes him particularly proud.

“Over the last several weeks we closed on 4 separate farms in 4 separate municipalities and it took us over the 18,000 acre mark,” says Damminger.

That puts the county near the top statewide. So how much more needs to be done before they can say “mission accomplished?”

Damminger’s not quite sure. He says there needs to be a balance between allowing for growth and keeping the “Garden” in this part of the Garden State.