Presentation on open space proposal Tuesday in East Lyme

East Lyme — A presentation on the “Niantic River Headwaters Preserve,” a 166-acre land parcel proposed for open space, will be held from 7 to 8:30 p.m. on Tuesday at East Lyme Middle School.

Whitney Beals, the director of land protection for the New England Forestry Foundation, and Arthur Carlson, the chairman of the Commission on Natural Resources, will speak at the informational meeting, according to a notice about the event.

Carlson is also a board member for the Samuel Smith House and the East Lyme Land Conservation Trust.

Under the proposal, the New England Forestry Foundation, a Massachusetts nonprofit organization, wouldownthe land at the intersection of Goldfinch Terrace and Cedarbrook Lane. The state and the town would jointly hold a conservation easement on the property.

The conservation easement would include a trail easement and public access, according to the notice.

A town meeting to vote on contributing $ 350,000 from the town’s open space account for the proposal will be held at 7 p.m. onWednesday, Aug. 5, at Town Hall.

A $500,000 matching grant from the state Department of Energy and Environmental Protection, as well as fundraising, would cover the remainder of the acquisition price under the proposal.

The town meeting agenda states that the $500,000 state grant and $375,000 from private or public fundraising by the New England Forestry Foundation must be in place at the time of closing.

KSK Associates, a limited liability company, currently owns the land.

The selectmen and Board of Finance previously voted to send the proposal to a town meeting. Steve Harney, the town’s Board of Finance chairman and managing member of KSK Associates, recused himself from the vote.