Peconic Land Trust acquires wooded lot in Southold

The Peconic Land Trust has acquired a half-acre woodland parcel on Soundview Avenue in Southold that sits along a woodland corridor connecting three county parks: Goldsmith’s Inlet, Soundview Dunes and Peconic Dunes.

In a release, the Southampton-based Peconic Land Trust said the property was acquired from Edith Cosban-Iserman and the purchase was made possible by contributions from more than 25 residents of the area. 

No sale price was given. The parcel was bought by the Trust on April 27 and will be called Soundview Avenue Preserve.

According to the release, “The woodlands have a variety of plant species, including native wildflowers and jack-in-the-pulpit, as well as grasses, mosses and shrubs that create a healthy habitat. This property also provides important groundwater recharge for our sole source aquifer.”

The release said the acquisition of the parcel connects “maritime freshwater interdunal swales,” which are a rarity on the North Fork.

Conservation biologist Louise Harrison said, “This parcel isn’t large, but it hosts a small freshwater wetland in a critically important forest corridor” that runs through the three county parks.

Isabelle Kanz, a donor and community member, said she watched the “For Sale” sign for several years.

“I knew I couldn’t protect it by myself,” she said. “I was overjoyed when the Peconic Land Trust joined in with advice and much hard work, making this a community effort, and fulfilling my dream of preserving this precious wild environment.”

Peconic Land Trust project manager Holly Sanford said it was a community effort to acquire the property.

“The result [is] a beautiful ecologically sensitive woodland conserved in perpetuity for wildlife habitat and water quality,” she said.

The trust is also involved in a fundraising effort to help preserve a tract of land on Deep Hole Creek in Mattituck where a seven-lot subdivision is planned. In a release, the trust said the property owners are willing to consider a conservation option for the New Suffolk Avenue site. The release said approximately $695,000 needs to be raised to preserve the property, with a fundraising deadline of June 15.