Land Bank buys moors property for $5 million
Five years in the works, 47 acres are protected
By Laura Raskin
Independent Writer

The property along Almanack Pond Road is bordered by existing Land Bank holdings and Conservation Foundation property

The Nantucket Island’s Land Bank purchased nearly 50 continuous acres of land in the middle moors on Friday, a $5 million deal that has been in the works since 2000.

“For this stage of the island’s build-out, this is a very significant purchase,” said Eric Savetsky, director of the Land Bank. “Fifty acres is a large parcel of land these days,”

Two parcels – 44 and 48 Almanack Pond Road – make up the 47.26 acres. A 10-acre parcel was purchased from Sheddon Sanguinetti. The remainder was part of a family trust owned by Sanguinetti and Lee Holmes, said Savetsky.

“It’s wooded hilly property overlooking Stump Pond and Windswept cranberry bogs,” he said. Considering the caliber of the property, the $5 million price tag was a very good deal, said Savetsky.

It is the largest parcel the Land Bank has bought since acquiring 49 acres in 1997 for $3.6 million, and 53 acres in 1998 for $3.65 million, he said.

Large, continuous parcels of conservation land are few and far between, said Savetsky.

“There aren’t many left that size,” he said.

Other Land Bank and Nantucket Conservation Foundation land surrounds the property.

“This is a very open area, very well-preserved. It’s an important piece of property,” said Savetsky.

Cormac Collier, executive director of the nonprofit Nantucket Land Council, agreed.

“It was one of the three puzzle pieces that had to be protected in maintaining the scrub oak and wetlands out there,” he said.

The area has three-acre residential zoning. If it was not protected, a dwelling could be built there with significant impact to the ecosystem from a septic system and the introduction of non-native species from landscaping, said Collier.

The Land Bank has already started to plan trails that will connect the 50 acres to other trails in the middle moors for walkers and horseback riders, he said.

A public organization, the Land Bank is funded by a two percent transfer tax on all real estate transactions on the island. It acquires and manages land for conservation and recreation purposes.

Last calendar year, the Land Bank brought in $20 million in revenue and with this purchase, owns about 2,450 acres scattered all over the island. Savetsky estimates that they make 10 purchases a year of varied types of property. Some parcels have houses that the Land Bank removes. Others are small waterfront properties that are purchased to preserve public views and access.