ALT ANNOUNCES CAMPAIGN TO CONSERVE TWO PORTSMOUTH PROPERTIES

Middletown, RI. – July 22, 2021 – Aquidneck Land Trust (“ALT”) announces a land campaign to conserve two properties in Portsmouth. The properties total 27.4 acres and have important conservation values, including farmland, forestland, wildlife habitat, and scenic vistas. ALT has raised a significant portion of the $1.44 million needed to conserve the properties but must raise the final $150,000 by December, 2021, to permanently protect them from development.

The first property, known as Rego Farmland, is a 12-acre active hayfield with 100% prime soil. It is approximately .5 miles north of Glen Road and is one of several farmland parcels that provide scenic views along East Main Road. It is within the ALT Sakonnet Greenway habitat corridor, an area that includes 40 properties already protected by ALT. The corridor covers 1,365 acres of land on the east side of Aquidneck Island. ALT plans to purchase the land outright and continue to lease it for farming.

The second property, known as Jones Preserve, is a 15.38-acre site situated within a 92-acre tract of forestland. It is approximately .5 north of Bramans Lane and is contiguous to other ALT-conserved land. Like the Rego property, it is also located within the Sakonnet Greenway habitat corridor. The property serves as habitat for resident and migratory birds, raptors, and small mammals. Aside from one new home site that will be allowed to be built on site in a half-acre outzone, the land will be managed as a combination of wildlife habitat and farmland protected under a conservation easement.

“This is a tremendous opportunity to conserve two very important properties on Aquidneck Island,” said Chuck Allott, ALT Executive Director. “We are grateful to the property owners for agreeing to conserve their land, and we are thrilled to extend the acreage in the Sakonnet Greenway habitat corridor. The contiguous wildlife habitat, prime farmland, and scenic viewscapes are irreplaceable.”

More information on the properties is available on the ALT website, www.ailt.org.