Peter Depew's 1700s Rockland County home saved from development

The DePew House in New City is the latest property to be purchased and preserved through a partnership under Rockland County’s Open Space Acquisition Program.

The Peter DePew house is a 1,485 square-foot historic dwelling built of locally quarried sandstone. It dates to the early to mid-1700s and was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 2008.

The 32.2 acres at 101 Old Route 304, which includes a historic house and barn, was purchased for $2.9 million utilizing a mix of American Rescue Plan Act funs and capital funds.

“This latest acquisition is a major bonus to the 55 acres we’ve secured since last year, and the ongoing purchase of the 235-acre Eagle Valley Assemblage from the Open Space Institute,” stated County Executive Ed Day.

The Town of Clarkstown will be contributing about $1.131 million to purchase a 39% share of the property, similar to the partnership which preserved the historic Cropsey Farm property on South Little Tor Road in New City in 2006.

"Preserving our town's history is an investment in our future," stated Clarkstown Supervisor George Hoehmann. "By saving the DePew House and property, we honor the stories of those who came before us and ensure that future generations can experience the richness of our past."

Kevin McGuinness, coordinator of Rockland's Division of Environmental Resources, said the property received the highest ranking by the county's Open Space Committee out of the 17 properties nominated for potential acquisition.

“The forested wetlands on the DePew farm are not only valuable to Rockland’s primary source of drinking water, Lake DeForest, but they also serve as a sensitive, and disappearing, ecological habitat for woodland animals, birds and amphibians,” McGuinness stated.

Depew House in New City. Photo: County of Rockland

All properties nominated are vetted by an Open Space Advisory Committee made up of representatives from the Division of Environmental Resources, Department of Planning, Department of Health, and the Finance Department’s Tax Enforcement Unit. Field inspections are then performed, and each property is scored using a point system based on their attributes which include:

Connecting open spaces, preserving environmentally sensitive resources, protecting farms, preserving historic and cultural places, protecting the Hudson River, promoting opportunities for recreation, protecting rivers and streams, and protecting the watershed.

The top-rated properties are presented to the county executive’s team to review and decide which parcels to purchase based on the Advisory Committee ratings. Those properties are then sent to the County Legislature for funding approval.

Robert Brum is a freelance journalist who writes about the Hudson Valley. Contact him and read his work at robertbrum.com.