BLOOMING GROVE—The Open Space Institute has purchased a 416-acre parcel in the Moodna Creek Watershed for $881,000. The announcement on Oct. 14 was the culmination of ten years to safeguard what the OSI website calls “a scenic natural area from regional development.”
The institute says the “Mountain Lodge” property buffers two hiking trails—the Highlands Trail and the Long Path—that meet in the Hudson Valley. The property is adjacent to a subdivision and near the 87-17 highway interchange.
The sale, which will be transferred to the state park system, is in line with the Moodna Creek Watershed Conservation and Management Plan, the Orange County Open Space Plan, and the Southern Walkill Biodiversity Plan.
A proposed connection between Schunnemunk Mountain and other regional state parks will create a web of protected greenspace in a quickly-developing region
