NEW PALTZ � Bit by bit, step by step, the Open Space Institute (OSI) is helping to preserve some of the best places New York State has to offer. To that end, the group, in partnership with the Town of New Paltz, last week finalized its acquisition of a conservation easement on a 52-acre parcel owned by the Palmateer family. The parcel, which is near the intersection of Mountain Rest and Butterville Roads, was chosen by the group primarily because of its designation as wetlands.

In a press release sent out last week announcing the acquisition, Town Supervisor Toni Hokanson said that she was particularly happy about the new easement.

"I am thrilled that the Open Space Institute has partnered with the Town of New Paltz on this project," Hokanson was quoted as saying.

Bob Anderberg, the general counsel for OSI, said that this is the first project undertaken by the Town of New Paltz's Open Space Bond Act Committee. This committee was created several years ago as a result of a $2 million bond act passed via local referendum, and now is beginning to bear fruit.

"The proceeds of the bond act are to be used to acquire, or put a conservation easement on, important lands," Anderberg said in an interview this week.

OSI President Joe Martens said in the press release that "The preservation of this property, using open space bond funds for the first time, expands the protection of landscapes that are important to OSI � the Shawangunk Ridge and the Wallkill Valley."

The Palmateers, the family that has owned the parcel since 1972, said that they had hoped to always keep a portion of the property forever wild.

"We think it's a great thing for the town," Vernon Palmateer was quoted as saying. "And all the little critters that live down in the fields here � they might not know it, but they're going to have a place to live."

The bond act, which was passed in 2006, is the first time in which Ulster County residents have approved a measure authorizing the creation of funding for open spaces. As such, the acquisition represents a local milestone for this type of endeavor.

The property itself has more than 1,000 feet of frontage along the Kleinekill Creek, and it falls within what is known as an "Important Animal Habitat Area," a designation by the State of New York that acknowledges the area's importance when it comes to wildlife preservation. It is also situated in close proximity to a recent 300-acre purchase by the Mohonk Preserve.

The Open Space Institute is an organization that protects scenic, natural, and historic landscapes in order to ensure public enjoyment. It has helped to preserve over 1.7 million acres of land in the northeast, including more than 100,000 in New York.