BANGOR DAILY NEWS • March 18, 2021
Frenchman Bay Conservancy closed on the purchase of 1,400 acres in Hancock on March 1 as part of its Frenchman Bay Community Forest Project. The land trust is now in the planning phase for developing trails and community gathering spaces on the property, which is located just 5 miles from downtown Ellsworth. The protection of the 1,400-acre parcel is part of a larger 4,500-acre conservation project. The remaining acreage of the new community forest — 3,100 acres — was conserved by the New England Forestry Foundation in 2020. Northeast Wilderness Trust contributed $100,000 to the fundraising campaign in exchange for a forever-wild easement on the land.