ExxonMobil donates waterfront property to Peconic Land Trust

The ExxonMobil Company has donated two acres of waterfront property in Greenport to the Peconic Land Trust, and given Southold Town and Greenport Village a conservation easement ensuring that the land will remain undeveloped forever.

The property, on the southeast corner of Fourth and Clark streets, was used to store petroleum products between 1924 and the mid-1980s, when the facility was closed. The State Department of Environmental Conservation later ordered a cleanup of polluted soil, which was completed in 2003.

In April, ExxonMobil removed metal sheeting on the beach that had become exposed in storms last winter. The property has 600 feet of shorefront on Shelter Island Sound.

The Peconic Land Trust said the property will be developed over five years as a passive recreation site, with walking trails and similar low-impact uses. The group also plans to remove invasive species that have grown there over the years, replacing them with beach grass and other native plants.