I write to encourage the Falmouth Town Council to approve the spending of at least $300,000 to help purchase land on Clapboard Island. I have already made a financial contribution to this effort and hope the council (and many others) will share my excitement and enthusiasm for this special project.

Clapboard Island sits in a unique location, an easy kayak or motorboat ride from Town Landing, Handy Boat and the Falmouth Yacht Club. It’s far enough from the mainland to gain distance and perspective, yet open to Hussey Sound, which beckons to the ocean beyond. The island itself has treasures to be discovered and explored: oaks and hemlocks, eagles and osprey, beaches and trails. It is a real gem.

I am blessed to share a family legacy of a deep love for the treasures of the natural world, a passion for islands and the waters surrounding them, a legacy largely developed on islands, boats and beaches in Casco Bay. Preserving islands for the public benefit, as development pressure increases, will assure that others share that legacy.

Having land on Clapboard Island available for public use, rest and recreation, renewal and refreshment, with Maine Coast Heritage Trust as stewards, would be a true gift to Falmouth for generations to come. The council has a unique, once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to help secure this property. Island land is rare and, ultimately, priceless; $300,000 seems a bargain for such a rare gem.

Larney Otis
Falmouth

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