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Brookhaven Town to acquire land Near Swan River Preserve in E. Patchogue

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Brookhaven Town has taken another step toward the conservation of a piece of land next to Swan River Preserve in East Patchogue.

A Town Board resolution was approved Thursday to acquire a 4-acre property just east of the existing preserve, allocating the $715,000 sale price plus additional money for closing costs and property taxes.

Town Supervisor Ed Romaine told GreaterPatchogue the property would be a tremendous asset to East Patchogue.

“We can’t wait to get this done,” he said.

If all goes well, Romaine expects the town to close on the sale of the property this spring.

Funds for the purchase will come from a $4.1 million capital bond that enables the town to acquire open space and environmentally sensitive land.

The plot is located south of Main Street and west of South Country Road. The border of the wooded parcel abuts Chapel Avenue to the east and ends at the Long Island Rail Road tracks.

(Scroll down for Google Map and street view.)

Swan River flows past the property to the west, emptying into Patchogue Bay along the Swan River Preserve.

A portion of the parking lot at 550 East Main Street, long home to a used car dealership, will be included in the sale, leaving the remainder of that lot buffered on both sides by the preserve.

Suffolk County is said to be interested in purchasing the rest of the used car property for preservation as well. That would then create a contiguous stretch of open space where Main Street meets South Country and leads to Bellport.

That would all help open a vista along Swan Lake, according to town officials, and is the continuation of a preservation project that began almost 20 years ago.

North of East Main Street sits the 30-acre Swan Lake Park boasting a variety of native wildlife and a lake containing Largemouth Bass, Yellow Perch, and stocked with Trout.

The Swan River Preserve was built as a continuation of an overall plan to remediate and protect the river water. (See our story about this preserve.)

Once the sale is complete, the town would then need to find money to continue to build on the vision of the preservation of Swan Lake and Swan River.

Right now, the property is undeveloped except for the used car dealership and parking lot. Romaine hopes that soon it will be used for something more.

He said the town would consider a number of options coming from meetings with civic associations and by soliciting public input, including the possibility of a village green.

“It will become the focal point for the community,” he said.

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