Hundreds of acres of land on three parcels are now being preserved for green space in Orange County as part of efforts to offset a construction and warehouse boom.

The properties are Sugar Loaf Mountain in Chester, the Schunnemunk Rail Trail in Cornwall and Tuxedo Farms in Tuxedo. Altogether, the sites total 499 acres. The Open Space Institute purchased the Schunnemunk Rail Trail and Tuxedo Farms for $1.8 million each. The Orange County Land Trust purchased Sugar Loaf Mountain in January for $2.35 million, and recently sold the property to Orange County for $2.2 million.

“Our approach is to protect the areas that are most worthy to protect,” says Open Space Institute Land Project Manager Matt Decker. “Sometimes there is a direct development threat. More often than not these days there is.”

Tuxedo Farm’s 89 acres were being eyed for a 200,000-square-foot warehouse and office space until the property, near the Sterling Forest State Park, was purchased by the Open Space Institute. Plans are for ownership to transfer to the Palisades Interstate Park Commission for the property to be added to Sterling Forest.

The push to save open spaces comes as Orange County sees a surge in development of multifamily homes, warehouses and storage units. Just last month, News 12 reported on 19 warehouses eyed for Wawayanda and Montgomery and this month, a movie theater in Newburgh announced its closure to make way for a storage facility.

“We always have our eyes out in the community, listening for what are the places that are most important for the community,” says Decker.

A representative for the Orange County Land Trust says they hope to work with all the local towns to preserve important wildlife habitats and farmland.

“Some towns have been more proactive than others in protecting land in their communities, but it’s not too late to begin taking charge, so we encourage municipalities to reach out to us,” says Jim Delaune, with the Orange County Land Trust.

Orange County plans to preserve Sugar Loaf Mountain for park property and Schunnemunk Trail will be used for recreation.

For more information on the Orange County Land Trust, visit https://www.oclt.org/.

For more information on the Open Space Institute, visit https://www.openspaceinstitute.org/