Peconic Land Trust and Town of East Hampton Acquire 2.7 Acres on Georgica Pond

May 23, 2022

The Trust and the Town will jointly own and manage the property critical to the health of the pond and surrounding natural habitat.

MAY 23, 2022. Southampton, New York. The Peconic Land Trust and the Town will jointly own and manage the property critical to the health of the pond and surrounding natural habitat. The Trust has acquired 2.7 acres of undeveloped land on Jones Creek Lane in East Hampton Village in partnership with the Town of East Hampton. The property was purchased on April 27 for $8.5 million – with the Town and the Trust equally contributing to the acquisition. The Village of East Hampton and the Friends of Georgica Pond Foundation also endorsed this acquisition.

For the acquisition, the Town of East Hampton used funds from its Community Preservation Fund (CPF), the 2 percent real estate transfer tax. Funds for the Peconic Land Trust’s portion of the acquisition were provided by Andrew Davis, Trustee of the Shelby Cullom Davis Charitable Fund.

The Trust is a private, nonprofit charitable organization funded primarily by private donations – it does not collect or distribute Town monies generated by the CPF.

The residentially zoned property is located at 18 Jones Creek Lane in the Village of East Hampton and was acquired from Ana Meier. With frontage on Jones Creek, a tributary to Georgica Pond, the property is also adjacent to preserved land owned by The Nature Conservancy: the 17-acre Fulling Mill Farm Preserve. Kim Quarty, the Trust’s Director of Conservation Planning, and Senior Project Manager Julie Wesnofske managed the acquisition of the property from start to finish. The property will be available for passive recreational use.

“Our sincere thanks go out to Ana Meier for choosing a conservation outcome for this land. Ana has insured that this property will be permanently protected which will, in turn, contribute to the ongoing efforts to improve the water quality of Georgica Pond. We are very grateful to our public and private partners for making this acquisition possible,” said John v.H. Halsey, President, Peconic Land Trust.

“The Town of East Hampton is pleased to be a partner in the preservation of this important pondfront property. The benefits to the native ecosystem, Georgica Pond water quality, and to public enjoyment of this natural setting will accrue for years to come,” said East Hampton Town Supervisor Peter Van Scoyoc.

“Finding solutions to the water quality challenges that are facing many of our East End ponds and bays is of utmost importance to us. We are excited to partner with the Trust in this endeavor,” said Andrew Davis, Trustee of the Shelby Cullom Davis Charitable Fund.

Located where Jones Creek flows into Georgica Pond, the property sits within the 4,000-acre Georgica Pond Watershed.* (Today, approximately 59% of the land within the watershed is developed.*)

Protecting this land will aid in improving the health of the pond and the surrounding natural habitat by eliminating future development and ensuring a natural buffer that will reduce the flow of contaminants into the pond. Nitrogen and phosphorus are major contributors to the harmful algal blooms that have stressed many of our local ponds and bays, including Georgica Pond.

The property is wooded with a mature canopy and a band of riparian vegetation and wetlands along the shoreline. The area is home to a wide-range of birds, reptiles, finfish, and shellfish -- including osprey, snapping turtles, and blue crabs -- and native plants and trees.

At the public hearing in February, the Trust’s Kim Quarty said: “We have been focusing a lot of effort around Georgica Pond in the last few years. Every parcel counts. The pond is in distress right now with high nutrient levels including nitrogen. We need to reduce nitrogen inputs by at least 60 percent to get to a quality that is considered stable.”

Georgica Pond is a locally Significant Coastal Fish and Wildlife Habitat and part of a Scenic Area of Statewide Significance (SASS). The property was recommended for a wetland easement in the 2009 East Hampton Village Open Space Plan.

This is the second acquisition of land for water quality protection on Georgica Pond that the Peconic Land Trust has made in the past several years. The first was the acquisition of the former restaurant property at the corner of Wainscott Stone Road and Montauk Highway in Wainscott in August 2020. The acquisition in Wainscott was made possible by a donation from Katharine Rayner.

“Ms. Rayner’s generosity has spurred other local residents to offer additional financial support for similarly focused preservation efforts, including the matching grant funding from the Shelby Cullom Davis Charitable Fund for the purchase 18 Jones Creek Lane,” added Kim. Today, the new preserve on the former restaurant property in Wainscott features a walking trail, bench and parking area for the public to enjoy the recently restored property.

About the Peconic Land Trust

Founded in 1983, Peconic Land Trust conserves Long Island’s working farms, natural lands, and heritage. Since its inception, the nonprofit Trust has worked conscientiously with landowners, communities, municipalities, partner organizations, and donors, to conserve over 13,000 acres of land on Long Island. The Trust’s professional staff carries out the necessary research and planning to identify and implement alternatives to outright development. While working to conserve the productive farms, watersheds, woodlands, and beachfront of Long Island, the Trust is also protecting the unique rural heritage and natural resources of the region. For more information about the Peconic Land Trust, visit peconiclandtrust.org.

*source: Friends of the Georgica Pond Foundation website