Editor: David Mills
AUGUSTA, ME - The acquisition today by the State of Maine of more than 5,700 acres south of Millinocket in Piscataquis County, including 2 miles of Seboeis Lake shoreland, is expected to enhance outdoor recreation, tourism, public access and economic development throughout the region, according to state and conservation officials.
The $2.7-million Lakeville Plantation land acquisition finalized Monday expands the Seboeis Lands Unit managed by the Maine Bureau of Parks and Lands (BPL), under the Maine Department of Conservation (MDOC), to more than 21,000 acres, according to MDOC and The Trust for Public Land. The total parcel amounts to 5,741 acres.
The parcel acquisition is funded through federal and state monies and purchased from the Bigelow Timber Corp. of Madison. As a result, the purchase brings into state ownership a key linkage in a regional system of snowmobile and ATV trails between Milo and Millinocket and includes important shoreland and associated wetlands. Designated as "Public Reserved Lands" by the BPL, it will continue to be managed for timber production, recreation and wildlife, officials said.
"Acquiring the south end of Seboeis Lake not only completes shoreline conservation and water access around the lake at the geographic center of Maine, but it also provides the critical inter-connection point of major snowmobile and ATV trail networks between the central Maine and Millinocket regions of the state," said Conservation Commissioner Bill Beardsley. "This is what public access for Maine people to Maine's natural environment is all about. This also is working forest that will produce revenue that supports management of the public reserved lands system."
"Bigelow Timber Corp. is pleased that the property will continue to be a working forestland and an outdoor-recreation opportunity," according to a statement issued by company officials.
"We are really pleased to be adding this piece of property to our Seboeis Unit that will provide increased public access through snowmobile and ATV trails, as well as public access to virtually all of the shoreline on this beautiful lake," said Will Harris, BPL director. "These public benefits will be assured while still maintaining this as working forestland."
"We are grateful to the State of Maine for its steadfast commitment to protecting access to Seboeis Lake, preserving recreational trails, and supporting the local timber economy," said Wolfe Tone, The Trust for Public Land's Maine state director. "This is a big victory for Maine and for recreation and jobs tied to our best natural assets. We are thankful for the support from the federal congressional delegation and many Millinocket and Maine partners."
Seboeis Lake is popular for boating, water access, and its views of Mount Katahdin and the Barren-Chairback Range. Maintaining large intact sections of productive forestland will complement and enhance the region's forest-based economy. Key regional ATV and snowmobile trail linkages on the property will facilitate future trail investments and support outdoor recreation and tourism development.
The State of Maine and The Trust for Public Land, a national conservation organization, has worked for several years to purchase this strategic property. Most of the $2.7 million purchase price was secured with $2,187,941 through the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Forest Legacy Program (FLP). Additional funding included $483,136 from the state's Land for Maine's Future program and $14,461.50 each from both the federal Department of Transportation's Recreational Trails Program and the state Department of Conservation's Bureau of Parks and Lands. In addition, The Trust for Public Lands contributed $37,000 for appraisal and survey costs.
Maine's congressional delegation was instrumental in getting the funding for the acquisition.
"As a long-time supporter of the Forest Legacy Program and a member of the Senate Interior Appropriations Subcommittee, I am pleased to see the addition of the Seboeis Lake shoreland, part of the Katahdin Forest Expansion project, finalized," said U.S. Sen. Susan Collins. "This acquisition will allow for all Mainers to enjoy our state's priceless assets. Public recreation is vital to Maine's tourism and is a great service to local residents. In the heart of Maine's North woods, this acquisition will connect existing recreation and conservation lands and will preserve the working forest while maintaining public access and protecting the natural beauty of our state."
U.S. Sen. Olympia Snowe noted: "The Katahdin region is the jewel of Maine's preeminent outdoor economy, and this conservation project will help to not only preserve, but in fact, bolster the fishing and hiking opportunities the area affords, while also maintaining key ATV access. I am proud to have supported this vital project in 2009 and am grateful to the Town of Millinocket, the State of Maine, and The Trust for Public Land, as well as the many other organizations and countless individuals who have played an integral role in the completion of this project.
"It's great to see the State of Maine continue its strong commitment to land conservation through collaboration with local interests," U.S. Rep. Michael Michaud commented. "State, local, and private partnership is the Maine way of maintaining working landscapes and recreational activities. This Seboeis Lake acquisition will continue to enhance outdoor recreation, promote economic development, and improve public access throughout the Katahdin region.
Conservation of the property creates one of the only remaining linkages for ATV travel along the 50-mile-long, multi-use trail running between Millinocket and the southern and western parts of the state. Nearly 12 miles of the proposed trail travels through the Seboeis Land Unit and now links north and south legs of the trail, which both terminated at the property's borders. The public now can access approximately 5 miles of ITS 111, which links southwest to the Brownville area and north to the Jo-Mary region and directly north through Millinocket.
The addition of the southern Seboeis Lake property also will serve as an anchor to Maine's largest contiguous block of conservation land -- more than 500,000 acres. From this property, visitors can travel across entirely protected land in all directions, north along either side of the lake, through the Katahdin Forest to the Nahmakanta Reserve and on to the Canadian border, or through the 100 Mile Wilderness to Baxter State Park and the Allagash Wilderness Waterway.
Paul Sannicandro, secretary of the Northern Timber Cruisers ATV and Snowmobile Club, a Millinocket recreation group instrumental in supporting the funding of the Seboeis acquisition, pointed out the five-year collaborative effort made by the club, the Katahdin Area Chamber of Commerce, the communities of Millinocket, East Millinocket and Medway, Katahdin Forest Management LLC, The Trust for Public Land and MDOC in acquiring the unique property. He also stressed the possible impact of the acquisition on the area as it relates to the newly developed Katahdin Region Multi-Use Trail.
"This purchase is what this region has been relying on to encourage trail connectivity to the ATV system to the south," Sannicandro said. "It is going to expand our recreational and economic opportunities.
"The Katahdin region already is known as the gateway to the Northern Maine Woods, but now we have the opportunity to enhance the potential of what ATVs can do for our outdoor recreation and tourism development," he said. "It's been proven to help economic development in other parts of the state, and now it can happen here."
The Maine Bureau of Parks and Lands, within the Maine Department of Conservation, manages 48 state parks and historic sites, 600,000 acres of public reserved land and 3 million acres of submerged land and provides conservation oversight monitoring of 3 million acres of conservation easements on private lands. Its multiple-use guidelines provide an extraordinary array of working forests, wildland preserves, outdoor recreation, and more than 20,000 miles of ATV, snowmobile, waterway and coastal trails.
The Trust for Public Land, established in 1972, specializes in conservation real estate, applying its expertise in negotiations, public finance, and law to protect land for people to enjoy as parks, gardens, and natural areas. TPL depends on the support of individuals, foundations, and corporations. In Maine, TPL has protected more than 130,000 acres, including Katahdin Lake, the western shoreline of Seboeis Lake, and Millinocket Forest.
For more information about the Maine Department of Conservation, go to: http://www.maine.gov/doc
For more information about the Maine Bureau of Parks and Lands, go to: http://www.parksandlands.com
For more information about The Trust for Public Lands, go to: tpl.org/Maine
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