|
The New York - New Jersey Trail Conference is
pleased to announce the purchase of a 90-acres parcel that provides
access to Stony Kill Falls. The Open Space Institute provided
additional funding and logistics for the purchase. The Conference and
its members provided more than half of the funding through a special
appeal orchestrated by the Conservation & Advocacy Committee
chaired by H. Neil Zimmerman, past president. The Trail Conference
extends heartfelt thanks to those contributors.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: CONTACT: Joe Martens (518)
478-0910
January 22, 2001 Tally Blumberg (212) 505-7480
OPEN SPACE INSTITUTE PROTECTS 90 ACRES ON SHAWANGUNK RIDGE
Parcel Provides Access to Scenic 'Stony Kill Falls'
(Wawarsing, NY) Today, the Open Space Institute (OSI) announced the
acquisition of a 90-acre parcel of land adjacent to Minnewaska
State Park Preserve in Ulster County, New York. This property will provide
public access to the 87-foot Stony Kill Falls, one of the four great
waterfalls of the Shawangunks, and to the surrounding region in Minnewaska State
Park Preserve. The 90-acre parcel also protects nearly 3,000 feet of the
Stony Kill as it approaches the falls.
"With OSI doing so much work on the Shawangunk Ridge, it would
have been a regrettable loss if the Stony Kill property was not protected for
public use," said OSI President Joe Martens. "With the help of
the Trail Conference, we've protected this beautiful property and provided
public access to one of the best gems on the ridge."
Financial assistance for the acquisition was provided in part by
the New York-New Jersey Trail Conference, which currently maintains,
through an all-volunteer effort, all of the hiking trails in
Minnewaska. OSI,
the Trail Conference and Minnewaska State Park will also design, blaze
and maintain a trail leading to the base and the top of the falls, as
well as create a modest parking area on a nearby public road.
"The New York-New Jersey Trail Conference's role in the
preservation of this area was possible only through our continuing partnership with OSI.
We will now turn our efforts to creating an environmentally friendly foot
trail that will allow public access to magnificent Stony Kill Falls,"
said Gary Haugland, President of the New York-New Jersey Trail Conference.
"This is a truly wonderful new opportunity for the hiking community."
The OSI parcel, in addition to creating access to Stony Kill Falls,
will also serve as a much-needed gateway to several thousand acres in
the immediate vicinity, which for many years could only be accessed by
walking several miles from Lake Awosting. OSI will eventually convey the
parcel to the Palisades Interstate Park Commission, which owns and maintain
Minnewaska State Park Preserve. The Park Commission will administer the lands
as part of the adjacent 12,000-acre state park, and will pay real property
taxes on the full value of the land.
"The Stony Kill property is an excellent addition to the
growing list of protected landscapes atop the globally important Shawangunk
Ridge," said Carol Ash, Executive Director of the Palisades Interstate Park
Commission.
"OSI and the Trail Conference have been very quick to act in
providing public access to Stony Kill Falls and Minnewaska."
Over the last 15 years OSI has protected over 16,000 acres on the
Shawangunk Ridge and the immediate environs, including the nearly 5,000-acre
Sam's Point Preserve, the 5,400-acre Lundy Estate (acquired along with
the Trust for Public Land), and other conservation holdings on the Shawangunk
Ridge.
# # # #
The Open Space Institute is a non-profit organization dedicated to protecting land in New York State, and supporting the efforts of
citizen activists working to protect environmental quality in their
communities. In less than two decades, OSI has protected more than 70,000 acres for
the benefit of the public, creating and adding to parks and preserves
throughout New York. (END)
Other stories
|
