There won’t be a need for those “Save the Gunks” signs anymore.
The Minnewaska State Park Preserve will be expanded with the purchase of over 2,500 acres of new open space. The new land comprises the scenic Awosting Reserve property in the towns of Gardiner, Wawarsing, and Shawangunk.
The property had been slated for development.
“For years, the people of this region have been fighting the overdevelopment of the Ridge and have passionately demonstrated their desire to preserve what brought so many of us here to begin with, including myself,” said Senator John Bonacic. “For sometime there have been bumper stickers in my district that say, 'Save the Ridge'. Today, that message has changed: We are Saving the Ridge.”
“The Shawangunk Ridge is known to be one of the most important sites for bio-diversity conservation and is recognized for having the most complex and environmentally significant ecosystems in the United States, if not the entire planet. The Awosting Preserve will now be protected forever.”
The Awosting Reserve and properties along the Shawangunk ridge are identified as priority projects in the state’s Open Space Plan. The state purchased the parkland from the Trust for Public Land who negotiated the agreement along with the Open Space Institute. The $17 million purchase is being supported through the state’s Environmental Protection Fund.
The Awosting Reserve occupies the southern slopes leading up to both the Minnewaska State Park and Mohonk Preserves.
