The Finger Lakes Land Trust is seeking community support to protect 22 acres of woodland on Keuka Lake's Bluff Point. The organization has a contract to buy the West Bluff Drive property for $330,000 after it was listed for sale and faced potential development.
The land trust has set a $400,000 fundraising goal to complete the purchase, cover transaction costs and support long-term stewardship.
The property includes 1,500 feet of road frontage in a prominent Bluff Point location. The land trust said protecting the wooded site would help stabilize erodible slopes, reduce runoff into Keuka Lake and preserve scenic views.
If the acquisition is completed, the organization plans to prepare a natural resource inventory and long-term management plan for the land.
The project would be the land trust's fourth land protection effort at Bluff Point. The organization acquired two woodland parcels on the east side of the bluff in 2024 and holds a permanent conservation easement protecting the tip of Bluff Point from development.
One of the 2024 acquisitions became Waldershare Acres Preserve on East Bluff Drive. The 30-acre preserve opened to the public last year and includes a half-mile loop trail used by hikers, bird watchers and dog walkers.
The land trust said it has also protected more than 1,000 acres of fields and forest on private property in the Keuka Lake watershed through permanent conservation easements.
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