Allegheny Land Trust enters final push to secure Sewickley Hills parcel

Allegheny Land Trust is in the final push of a $1 million campaign to purchase a 75-acre property in Sewickley Hills for preservation.

The conservation nonprofit needs to raise $100,000 by April 30 in order to acquire the Buerkle Woodlands at the northwest corner of the Mount Nebo Interchange along Blackburn Road.

The land would help buffer noise, thwart commercial development and provide wildlife habitat, in addition to helping with stormwater overflows.

“These woodlands are a very visible gateway to Sewickley Hills, Sewickley Heights and other Northwest Allegheny County communities,” ALT president and CEO Chris Beichner said.

An original closing date of March 31 was extended.

“We now face a short window to close the funding gap to ensure this land is protected,” Beichner said.

He urged additional support from the surrounding community because, he said, they stand to benefit the most from the land’s conservation.

The strong support from the community has been very encouraging and demonstrates people’s ongoing desire to protect local green space, he said.

ALT protects Pittsburgh-area land from development and now includes 3,500 acres of green space.

If the Sewickley Hills sale is finalized, the land will return to and remain in a natural state, according to Lindsay Dill, marketing communications director.

“We envision promoting the best native growth already occurring on-site and encouraging neighbors to enjoy the scenic beauty of the land,” she said.

The land would be open to the public from dawn to dusk. Immediate concerns and long-term goals would be identified.

There are currently no hiking trails or parking access, Dill said.

The land would add to the growing network of protected green space in northwest Allegheny County and also support the conservation of clean air, clean water, biodiversity and wildlife habitats, Dill said.

Earlier this year, ALT announced its efforts to grow a network of connected green space by 95 acres in three Sewickley Valley communities.

In total, the three spaces cost $1.45 million. ALT was awarded $728,200 through state grants to help purchase land in Sewickley Hills, Ohio Township and Franklin Park. Money was made available through the Department of Conservation and Natural Resources by way of its Community Conservation Partnerships grant program.

ALT already raised the necessary funding to buy 25 acres to expand the Blackburn Woods Conservation Area in Franklin Park, and to buy an eight-acre wooded property in Ohio Township that runs along Red Mud Hollow Road and links to the municipal park. The woods contain trails that buffer the park and create a path from Nicholson Road to Mt. Nebo and Red Mud Hollow roads.

The largest purchase, in Sewickley Hills, eyes land that includes the congested corner of Mt. Nebo Road and the I-79 interchange.

The three parcels are part of a larger Northwest Allegheny Land Conservation Project that has protected more than 800 acres in Bell Acres, Ross, Sewickley, Sewickley Heights and surrounding communities since 1993.