By Marcia Parnell
On May 4 Mass Audubon became the new owner of the Palmer Brook/Berkshire Fishing Club property with its $5 million purchase from the Strassler family of the 858-acre site, including a 125-acre lake.
Sale closure follows an option-to-purchase agreement signed in August 2025, which allowed Mass Audubon time to raise the $5 million sale price. Working with a coalition of conservation-oriented organizations, Mass Audubon received a commitment from the Commonwealth of Massachusetts’ Landscape Partnership Grant Program for $1.25 million and another $1.25 million from the Massachusetts Department of Conservation and Recreation. Additional funding has been contributed by the local Becket Land Trust, regional Berkshire National Resources Council, and individual gifts and grants, with the remaining balance supplied by Mass Audubon’s 30×30 Catalyst Fund.
Mass Audubon officials advise that the property—now formally named the Palmer Brook Wildlife Sanctuary—has long been a priority due to its size and location in a “conservation corridor,” anchored by the 16,500-acre October Mountain State Forest. Nearly all of the land is forested, which provides habitat for forest-dependent birds along with moose, bear, deer, and other wildlife. The large tract of forest also acts as a natural climate solution by storing carbon and preventing it from entering the atmosphere.
The sale has closed, but fundraising efforts are not over, explains Janet Curtis, Mass Audubon Associate Director of Philanthropy – Conservation. The new owners are continuing to raise funds with an expectation that bringing the site to its envisioned potential as a sanctuary property will likely cost about $2.5 million more and take at least two years.
Becky Cushing Gop, Mass Audubon Regional Director, who is also responsible for the Pleasant Valley Wildlife Sanctuary in Lenox, advises a project of this magnitude requires a cross-functional team of Mass Audubon staff working together over the next six to twelve months to assess the site and develop priorities. For example, what is required to maintain or improve the existing lodge and dam? Where might an additional parking area make sense? What about hiking trails and access to the lake? Importantly, says Cushing Gop, at the same time the team will also engage a host of potential stakeholders from the local community and Berkshire County to determine potential demand, interests, needs, and concerns across that broad audience so that the sanctuary takes all viewpoints into consideration.
Another expectation, according to Cushing Gop, is that the Mass Audubon team will look for a few quick options to make some portions of the sanctuary available to the public sooner rather than later, perhaps an area to sit with a broad view of the lake and even a community day to share progress and show off the property. Said Cushing Gop, “This is an amazing property, and we’re overjoyed to be its next steward.”
Now-former owner Alan Strassler acknowledged some emotion about the sale, but ultimately, “it’s been a pleasure to share this space with so many people over the past 26 years the [Fishing] Club was open. And in the end, it’s not really saying goodbye, knowing it will be preserved for future generations with Audubon managing the space in a controlled way. I am looking forward to visiting the property in the future to keep my memories fresh. It will always be a very special place to our family.”
For readers who would like to stay updated and engaged as the sanctuary transformation takes shape, go to massaudubon.org/palmerbrook, where there is also an option to sign up for their newsletter and to donate.
