Preserving and Protecting Rockland

In 1950, hundreds of farms sprawled across more than 17,000 acres in Rockland. Today we only have a handful left on 400 acres, and only 4% of land remaining to be developed or protected. This is why my administration is doing what it can to preserve more land, irreplaceable resources, and the wildlife calling it home.

I am proud to announce my administration’s Open Space Acquisition Program is in the process of purchasing 132 acres known as the Eagle Valley Assemblage for preservation.

The Open Space Institute acquired the property to protect crucial water resources and strengthen a vital corridor of undeveloped land between Sterling Forest and Harriman State Parks.

The Open Space Institute intends to convey the land to Rockland County. We are exploring opportunities including creating a new county park on the land and creating linkages between the train station and other protected areas nearby.

The County’s Open Space program was first launched in 1999 by former County Executive C. Scott Vanderhoef with the goal of acquiring areas of scenic beauty, environmentally sensitive lands, farms, and Hudson River waterfront areas.

Until Rockland County’s fiscal difficulties during the national recession caused the program to be suspended in 2010, 31 individual properties were acquired preserving 1,204 acres of land. After the program’s revival in 2019, the County saved about 40 acres of land. Our Division of Environmental Resources reopened applications for the program in the Fall which is what led to the current Eagle Valley property.

I’d like to remind everyone that what makes this program so special is the collaboration involved to reach this point.

The public first nominates the properties that are then vetted by our Open Space Advisory Committee made up of representatives from the Division of Environmental Resources, Department of Planning, Department of Health, Office of Fire and Emergency Services, and Drainage Agency.

Field inspections are then done, and each property is scored using a point system based on their attributes which include:

Connecting open spaces, preserving environmentally sensitive resources, including the Hudson River, historic and cultural places, protecting farms and watersheds, and promoting opportunities for recreation.

Once scored, the top-rated properties are then presented to my executive team to review and ultimately decided which parcels to purchase.

The County is excited to partner with the Open Space Institute on preserving these two beautiful properties in the Village of Sloatsburg as parkland. It is rare these days to find undeveloped parcels of this size in Rockland, and I am proud to be able to protect them for the benefit of future generations.