WINTER HARBOR — A swath of land totaling 1,700 acres near Maine’s Acadia National Park has been donated to a land trust that plans to conserve and protect it.
The owners, Schoodic Woods LLC, which bought the property 10 years ago, transferred ownership of the north side of Route 186 to Maine Coast Heritage Trust last week. That part of the property was once proposed to be developed into a resort, The Bangor Daily News reported on Tuesday.
Residents, conservation groups and the national park opposed that proposal and Schoodic Woods blocked the development after it acquired 3,200 acres on both sides of Route 186.
More than 1,400 acres of the south side of Route 186 were also donated to the National Park Foundation, then transferred to Acadia, the newspaper said.
According to Maine Coast Heritage Trust’s project manager, Bob Deforrest, the trust plans to keep ownership of the north side of the donated land.
The acres of land are now permanently protected from development because Schoodic Woods transferred ownership to the trust, Deforrest said.
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