The 130-acre Black Point area near Lake Wesserunsett in East Madison includes wooded area, wetlands and more than 3,800 feet of shoreline, some of which can be seen from above. Somerset Woods Trustees, a land trust, is in the process of acquiring the land. Photo courtesy of Somerset Woods Trustees

MADISON — An area long used for recreation and crucial for water quality in Lake Wesserunsett could soon be conserved through a partnership between two local groups.

Somerset Woods Trustees, a land trust headquartered in Skowhegan and Solon that owns several preserves in Somerset County, is under contract to buy 130 acres in the Black Point area of the East Madison lake, according to an announcement this week.

The land trust is working with the Lake Wesserunsett Association to raise the funds for the purchase, the announcement said. Per the purchase contract, the Somerset Woods Trustees plan to complete the purchase in 2025 and no later than November 2026.

The purchase price is $300,000, which is lower than the appraised value of the parcel, according to Jennifer Brockway, executive director of Somerset Woods Trustees.

The two groups are aiming to raise $350,000 to cover other costs like surveys and appraisals and to start a stewardship fund for future care of the property, Brockway said in an email. Somerset Woods Trustees will take the lead on securing grant funding, while the lake association expects to launch a capital campaign early next year, Brockway said. Initial efforts have raised $55,000 for the acquisition.

“Continuing to work with the lake association towards our shared goal of protecting the Lake Wesserunsett ecosystem is a priority for Somerset Woods,” Brockway said in a statement. “Land conservation within the lake watershed is an important tool in protecting water quality, and we’re pleased to contribute our expertise to the partnership.”

The Black Point parcel is the largest remaining undeveloped area on the approximately 1,400-acre lake, the announcement said, and it was deemed a conservation priority in a watershed conservation plan for the lake.

The area, between Lakewood and Sandy Beach, has more than 3,800 feet of undeveloped shore as well as wetlands that filter stormwater runoff before it enters the lake, the announcement said.

The 130-acre Black Point area near Lake Wesserunsett in East Madison includes wooded area, wetlands and more than 3,800 feet of shoreline, some of which is seen from above in this aerial photo. Somerset Woods Trustees, a land trust, is in the process of acquiring the land. Photo courtesy of Somerset Woods Trustees

“Black Point has been a place of refuge and recreation for generations,” Brockway said.

If the purchase is successful, Somerset Woods Trustees would be the owner and long-term steward of the preserve, managing it for wildlife habitat, water quality protection, nonmotorized recreation trails and hunting and fishing access.

“This conservation aids the long-term health of the lake, the watershed, and wildlife for the people of Madison and other lake users,” said Mark Doty, president of Lake Wesserunsett Association, in a statement.

Sandi Heimsath, and her husband Ben Heimsath, are the current owners who are selling the land, which is the majority of a larger parcel, according to Brockway.

The Heimsaths inherited the property from Sandi Heimsath’s parents, Leonardo and Carolina Gutierrez, who left it as forest land for over 40 years.

Leonardo Gutierrez was a civil engineer who worked on water quality projects in developing countries, the Heimsaths said in a statement. They continued that their family is “thrilled to be working with the Trustees to preserve and protect this land and in doing so, protect and preserve the water quality of Lake Wesserunsett.”

The planned acquisition adds to another area on the lake’s shore that was recently preserved.

Somerset Woods Trustees and the Lake Wesserunsett Association, in collaboration with the Skowhegan School of Painting and Sculpture, worked together in 2023 to purchase and conserve another 50-acre parcel, the Reid-Lahti Wetlands on the north side of the lake. That purchase was also spurred by concerns about water quality and wildlife habitat, the organizations said then.

Founded in 1927, Somerset Woods Trustees has conserved more than 3,000 acres of land in Somerset County, according to its website.

This year, the land trust was gifted the 650-acre Parkman Hill Farm in Solon. The organization has also been working recently on several trail projects and other improvements at its other properties.