Astorino Proposes to Preserve 59-Acre Gilbert Property

• Editor's Note: The following is a press release from the Westchester County Executive's office.

County Executive Robert P. Astorino announced a plan to preserve 59 acres in New Castle and Yorktown, known as the Gilbert property, as a way to protect the area’s drinking water and to preserve the land for trails and a passive park.

The wooded property, located along Spring Valley Road and Rt. 134, borders the 834-acre Teatown Reservation and is within the Croton Watershed. Under terms of a proposal that Astorino is sending to the Board of Legislators, Teatown would acquire the property from its current owner, Open Space Institute.

Then the county would pay Teatown up to $1.15 million for a conservation easement, thereby preserving it for passive use. The easement would be financed with county bonds.

“I am committed to protecting and expanding the county’s beautiful and sensitive open spaces,” Astorino said. “What makes the Gilbert property so special is that it is not an isolated parcel but a natural extension that connects Teatown to the New York City watershed and county parks.”

Astorino said that the acreage consists of steeply sloped and wooded lands, wetlands and the 13-acre Vernay Lake, which drains into the Croton Reservoir and provides important wildlife protection. Under terms of Astorino’s proposal, Teatown would operate and maintain the trailways and parking areas at the following county-owned parks: the John E. Hand Park near Teatown Reservation, the Briarcliff- Peekskill Trailway (from Rt. 134 north to John E. Hand Park) and the Kitchawan Preserve, Yorktown.

The proposal has already been approved by the county’s Planning Board, which concluded that Teatown was “uniquely qualified to operate and maintain the property” and that preserving it is consistent with the county’s long-term goals that are part of the county’s Westchester 2025 initiative.

Astorino said he has urged the Board of Legislators to act promptly on the legislation.