A stretch of gorge land along Kashong Creek will stay wild instead of turning into development.
The Finger Lakes Land Trust announced it purchased 74 acres, including the heart of Kashong Glen, a classic Finger Lakes gorge located in the towns of Geneva in Ontario County and Benton in Yates County.
The Town of Geneva agreed to partner with the land trust and will own and steward the property as an addition to its nearby Kashong Conservation Area.
The land features more than 5,500 feet of frontage along Kashong Creek. Leaders say the property plays an important role in protecting water quality in nearby Seneca Lake. The parcel also includes several scenic waterfalls and wildlife habitat.
“When I learned this property was for sale, I immediately contacted the Land Trust with a plea: ‘We have to obtain this property and save it from development,'” said Geneva Town Supervisor Mark Venuti. “True to form, the Land Trust came through.”
The land trust and the town worked together in 2008 to create the 84-acre Kashong Conservation Area with land donated by Polly Spedding. The town owns that land and maintains hiking trails, while the land trust holds and monitors a deed restriction that prevents development.
New York State covered 85% of the funding for the new purchase through a Water Quality Improvement Project grant. The Finger Lakes Land Trust set a $75,000 fundraising goal to cover part of the remaining costs, and the Town of Geneva will match those funds.
The organization has protected more than 35,000 acres across the region. It owns and manages more than 45 nature preserves open to the public and holds conservation easements on 200 privately owned properties.
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