State grant for $1.1 million allows Land Conservancy to acquire 153 acres in Yates

Town sought land by Lake Ontario but purchase was defeated in public referendum in June

This map shows the boundaries of 153 acres in the Town of Yates that will be acquired by the Western New York Land Conservancy with a state grant for $1,120,387.

YATES – A state grant will allow 153 acres in the Town of Yates by Lake Ontario to be protected for future generations.

The state announced on Dec. 26 that it awarded a $1,120,387 grant to the Western New York Land Conservancy to acquire the 153-acre Yates Lakeshore Preserve.

This is the land the town sought to buy, but it was rejected in a public referendum on June 20 by 260-145. Yates officials envisioned walking and nature trails at the site.

The town had negotiated buying the land for $700,000 from NYSEG, with the stipulation the purchase come from grant funds not local tax dollars. Some residents stated they were concerned losing the land’s tax revenue, about $25,000 a year, and also the ongoing maintenance and insurance costs for the town.

The land owned by NYSEG was at one time eyed for a power plant. That project ended up at Somerset.

Town Supervisor Jim Simon saw the 153.3 acres by Lake Ontario as a tremendous opportunity for the town to preserve undisturbed land for generations to come. The site is next to the 6-acre Yates Town Park on Morrison Road.

He is pleased to see the land will be protected from development. When the town was eyeing the property, he said Yates officials received three inquiries about purchasing the land, and then two more requests after the June 20 referendum. The Land Conservancy was one of those entities.

In each case, Simon said he passed along the contact to NYSEG’s real estate manager.

“Needless to say, although we don’t yet know the details of the grant since we were not involved in the WNYLC grant request or the award, the Yates Town Board is very excited that the announced grant award will allow WNYLC to preserve and protect one of the few remaining natural watersheds and flora/fauna habitats in the western Lake Ontario littoral,” Simon said.

The state, in announcing the grant, said the acquisition in the Marsh Creek watershed by the Conservancy will protect drinking water and preserve lakeshore landscapes.

Kyle Semmel, communications manager for the Land Conservancy, said the organization has a mission “to permanently protect land with significant conservation value for the benefit of future generations, and this property is just such a place.”

The state funding comes from a DEC Water Quality Improvement Grant (WQIP). The primary purpose of the WQIP program is to improve water quality in the state, Semmel said.

The Yates land has for two public water intakes 2.5 and 6.5 miles downstream that serve more than 18,000 residents in eight municipalities: the towns of Yates, Albion, Barre, Carlton, Gaines, Murray, Ridgeway, Albion/Orleans Correctional Facilities, and the villages of Lyndonville and Albion, Semmel said.

“For the first few years of our ownership of the property, we will restore the shoreline and streambank areas to prevent erosion,” he said. “We also plan to conduct ecological restoration of the forested portion of the property to reduce invasive species, plant more native species, and enhance wildlife habitat.”

The 153 acres of lakeshore habitat are also of significant ecological value, featuring shrubland, mature native trees, successional forest, and abundant nesting and migratory bird habitat, Semmel said.

“Once conserved, this property will be restored to enhance habitat for rare and protected plants and animals, and to allow increased water retention on site,” he said. “Given its location along the Lake Ontario shoreline, the property is ideal for low-impact public access. The Land Conservancy will bear all stewardship and maintenance costs, including trail maintenance, signage, and other necessary public access amenities.”