We ask Greenport Rotary and Village of Greenport to relocate the mini-railroad and its 6’ chain-link perimeter-fence to the dump area just north of the Nature Trail and not south off the trail adjacent to the wetlands within Moores Woods. We protest forcing walkers to the edge of the main Nature Trail for 350’ next to this 6’ fence.

Moores Woods consists of 180 acres of large oak, tulip and maple trees, many hundreds of years old; vernal ponds, fern and tree lined ditch/streams, and a large reservoir/lake technically within the 21 acres set-aside for the water treatment utility. Its unique habitat hosts endangered fauna and this year for the first time Louisiana Waterthrush have been breeding, the first June sighting in Suffolk County and the Scarlet Tanager has returned after a multi-year absence to breed again. The pathways were laid down when surf clams and oysters were opened in such abundance, they were used to stabilize the soft clay soil of the woods for walking paths.

In 1971 Greenport School’s Ecology Class created a Nature Trail in Moores Woods. The interpretive nature trail network was so successful they had over 4,000 visitors and employed three high school students to work as guides that summer. Greenport High School won a Presidential Commendation for their efforts. It was a good year that also saw the formation of the North Fork Audubon Society.

Moores Woods has been a magnet for naturalists from Roy Latham to Paul Stoutenburgh and recently esteemed botanist Mary Laura Lamont, naturalists Larry Penny and Jon Potente. They appreciate the uniqueness and fragility of Moore’s Woods, the rare plants, vernal wetlands and old growth trees that populate this forest and support a wide variety of birds, insects and amphibians, the only one of its kind on Long Island, that was deeded to the Moore family in 1640 by King James.  It is famous for its orchid flora, including the cranefly orchid which is found nowhere else in New York State. 

In the early 1900s, ditches and culverts were dug so that Silver Lake would drain west and then south under #25 through a salt marsh and out into Pipes Cove of Peconic Bay — thus the name Moore’s Drain.  Soon the project was called Moore’s Folly, when Silver Lake was found to be spring-fed.  In more recent years, little-by-little pieces of the woods have been carved out; first for a water treatment plant, then in 2003 for an electric generator “peaker” plant. An option to lease has been given to Hawkeye, the power plant operator, to expand towards a reservoir/lake with batteries if they win a LIPA RFP. And instead of using public funds to protect adjacent lands, 50 new housing units jut into its northern edge. Recently the area north of the Nature Trail behind the water tower has been a temporary dump for rubbish en route to the Town Landfill—and this would be a perfect area for the mini-railroad.  

When the mini-train was first proposed to be relocated to Moore’s Woods in 2017, it sounded to villagers, most of whom have no idea about the uniqueness and fragility of the woods, like a lovely concept — one imagines children riding through the forest, connected to nature, enveloped by this lovely woods.  But the reality is much different.  Children would instead be treated to views of a chain link fence, completely disconnected from the woods.  The path of the tracks requires the cutting down of old trees, mother trees whose roots are in fact connected to neighboring trees and could endanger the health of the entire area to be enclosed.  Rare plants, many located exactly on the site of the 1,000’ of proposed tracks, would be trampled or excavated with little chance for survival. And DEC restrictions limit the route to a simple loop, with none of the surprising switchbacks of Frank Fields original backyard track.

Yes, the Village has neglected the woods and its trails. Chains were left open so that trucks and off-road vehicles have cut through the wetlands and rutted the paths. Trees have fallen across paths. However many of us still come to find solace in the forest and marvel in its magnificence. The woods enhance the beauty of Greenport, keeps the “Green” in Greenport and deserve to be protected. We invite you to join us in calling upon the Rotary and Greenport Village Board Members to change course—make a bad dump area better and preserve our green treasure.