City Purchases South Brother Island
New York, NY —
It's a good day for islands in the New York metropolitan area. The city is buying the last privately owned island in the East River.
REPORTER: The 7 acre South Brother Island, situated between the Bronx and Queens, is covered in dense forest. It's being transferred to the Parks Department through a $2 million deal brokered by the Trust for Public Land. Clark Wallace, of the Trust, says the island is basically untouched.
WALLACE: The only structure on it, as far as I know, was the home of Jacob Rupert, who was the former owner of the Yankees. So it was kind of his summer cottage where he would entertain guests. And other than that, it's just been used by the occasional kayaker who gets onto the island to take a look.
REPORTER: Wallace says the island, like its larger sibling North Brother, will be preserved as a bird sanctuary. And in New Jersey, Senator Frank Lautenberg has announced the state's purchase of the remaining 20 acres of Gunning Island for preservation. It's one of the last open areas in the Raritan Bay watershed.
