To Add Two Lots to Donation

By Joanne Pilgrim

Graceful for a recent record donation to the Peconic Land Trust, 239 acres in the Stony Hill area of Amagansett, the East Hampton Town Board moved last Thursday to itself buy two adjacent parcels totaling 7.6 acres for $800,000, but declined to acquire a third, to the dismay of neighbors.

The three lots, owned by Brigitte Jossem, are between Stony Hill and Red Dirt Roads in Amagansett, a wooded area important for water recharge into the Stony Hill aquifer.

Jeanne Nielsen, a town assessor who lives on Red Dirt Road, had brought them to the town board's attention after noticing a realtor's for-sale sign.

The two parcels to be purchased adjoin the Silver Beech Preserve, 189 acres of the donated land. One of them contains the Baker kettlehole, a geological feature that has long been on the town's preservation list. The third, however, which measures 2.5 acres, is surrounded by house lots.

"I never dreamed that you would only consider buying two of these parcels," Ms. Nielsen wrote in a letter to the board. She and others, including the East Hampton Trails Preservation Society, have claimed that buying the third lot would ensure the linkage of trails in the area and could allow relocation of the Paumanok Path, which is relegated to a narrow corridor along fenced property lines in that area.

Ms. Nielsen's letter prompted the board to discuss acquiring the parcel. The reaction was "lukewarm to opposed," Councilman Job Potter, who specializes in land acquisition for the board, said. The Community Preservation Fund committee, which recommends lands for purchase with that fund, was "not enthused," he added.

"I would look for lots that enlarge the existing protected land," Mr. Potter said. He added that he thought the board would agree to contribute one-third to one-half the cost of the parcel, which is listed at $499,000, if neighbors could chip in the rest.

"For that level, to help get a development right off the table, to help improve the trail. . . it would be worth that amount," Mr. Potter said.

Scott Wilson of the Land Trust has been contacting those who live in the area, soliciting pledges. Of the few who have responded, most are "willing, happily, to contribute," he said, but things are "not going as well as I hoped."

Ms. Nielsen, who herself has pledged $10,000 ("all the money I have saved," she said), said pledges tallied $62,000 on Tuesday.

The fact that Ms. Nielsen, whose property abuts the disputed parcel, is an elected official, complicates matters, according to Mr. Potter. To avoid the appearance of impropriety, he said, he is being careful to treat Ms. Nielsen's campaign and weigh the issue in the same manner as he would any citizen's request.

Ms. Nielsen questioned the board's unwillingness to pay for the entire parcel using Community Preservation Funds. A 2-percent tax on most real-estate transfers will remain in effect through 2020 to replenish the fund.

"Are we the first neighborhood that has had to subsidize the C.P.F.?" she asked. "Are they worried about the appearance of collusion? My neighborhood should not be penalized because they have a noncriminal elected official."

"Buy this to protect the aquifer, and buy it to protect our wonderful trails system," she said. "With 17 years left to collect for the fund and 10 years or less left to build-out there could be money left in the fund with no land left to buy."

Letters supporting acquisition of the third parcel have been sent to the board from several neighbors, including Elizabeth de Cuevas, whose daughter, Deborah Carmichael, and niece, Maggie de Cuevas, made the large gift of land to the trust.

"It is important to maintain the integrity of the area, as the Paumanok Path runs through it," wrote Ed Porco, the president of the Trails Preservation Society. "A house built on that particular site would destroy the aesthetics of the trail site."

A private buyer reportedly made an offer on the 2.5-acre lot this week, according to Ms. Nielsen, though that could not be confirmed.

In other land news, the town is looking into purchasing two Springs properties, some of the hamlet's only remaining open land, and is working with Kay LeRoy on acquiring, or protecting, parts of her Amagansett estate.

The LeRoy estate, approximately 45 acres off Southwood Court, also in the Stony Hill area, has been on the market for $25 million. Although large portions of it are cleared and developed, the town is considering partial acquisition of land or development rights. The Peconic Land Trust, on behalf of the town, is talking with the owners.

A 15-acre lot adjacent to the 42-acre former Springs Nursery, which will become a park, is flat and could accommodate some playing fields without disturbing neighbors, according to Howard Lebwith, the co-chair of the Springs Citizens Advisory Committee, which is advocating the purchase.

Even if it were not used for recreation, the property, which is at the end of Manor Lane, should be land-banked, Mr. Lebwith said.

The town had the land appraised in late 2000 but, finding a discrepancy between the asking price and the appraised value, which was $756,000, did not pursue a deal. It was purchased in February by Laura and Richard Toussie and Laura Scherr, for $1.4 million.

The other candidate for land-banking is the Goodman property, 28 acres stretching back from Fireplace Road, directly across from Parsons Close in Springs.