The Open Space Institute closed a $1.3 million deal on a 4‑acre parcel that sits between the current entrance of Buttermilk Falls State Park and Route 13 in Tompkins County, New York.
The site once housed a Federal‑style brick house built around 1825, later converted into the Buttermilk Falls Bed and Breakfast by Margaret M. Rumsey in 1983; the family says she would welcome seeing the homestead returned to public use.
By adding the parcel, the state will be able to reconfigure the park’s gateway, expand parking, improve traffic circulation and wayfinding, and possibly house AmeriCorps staff, all aimed at easing the flow for the park’s roughly 400,000 visitors each year.
The acquisition also positions the park as a node in the Finger Lakes trail corridor, linking it to Taughannock Falls, Allan H. Treman, and Robert H. Treman parks under the Black Diamond Trail expansion; Deputy Commissioner Tom Alworth said the move underscores New York’s commitment to outdoor recreation.