State pays $1.4M to conserve 465 acres in Templeton
Photo | Courtesy | Terry Holland, LandVest
A 465-acre expanse of land in Templeton bought by the state will contribute toward a larger and still-growing swath of protected land.
The Massachusetts state government has purchased a 465-acre site in Templeton to be conserved as part of a new wildlife management area stretching for more than 2,650 acres.
The property off Norcross Hill Road had been on the market for $1.4 million, the same amount the state paid to buy the site from the Walter E. Fernald Corp., with the Gov. Charlie Baker Administration saying in its announcement of the purchase Wednesday the land will improve outdoor recreational opportunities in the area, as well as help fight climate change and protect valuable wildlife habitat.
The newly created Norcross Hill Wildlife Management Area includes existing state land west of the just-acquired property along the Phillipston and Royalston town lines, along with the Templeton State Forest to the south and Otter River State Forest to the north.
Conserved land in the sparsely developed northwestern edge of Worcester County is set to continue, as well.
Two entities, the Mount Grace Land Conservation Trust and the North County Land Trust, expect to acquire a conservation restriction on 17 acres of land north of Royalston Road and the Norcross Hill site and will keep that land from being developed, the state said.
The state Department of Conservation and Recreation will purchase 27 more acres of town land from Templeton to add to the Otter River and Templeton state forests, the state said.
The land is critical to both common and rare wildlife, the state said, with recreational opportunities for birders and new property available to hunters.
The state's purchase of the Norcross Hill site came thanks to $700,000 from the Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs, $395,000 from the state’s open space bond, and $305,000 from the MassWildlife Wildlands Fund, which is funded from a $5 Wildlands Conservation Stamp purchased by sportsmen and women who buy Massachusetts fishing, hunting or trapping licenses.
The sale closed June 24, according to town records. The property's assessed value is $681,000.
The site had been listed for sale by the real estate firm LandVest. The firm's listing highlighted 81 acres of active agricultural fields, 345 acres of forest and 38 acres of wetlands, with frontage along both sides of Norcross Hill Road, which runs off Route 68 to the Phillipston town line.
The Walter E. Fernald Corp., which owned the Norcross Hill land, operates developmental disability centers, including one on the Templeton property and one in Waltham. Proceeds of the sale will benefit its mission.
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