HAUPPAUGE - Suffolk County has acquired two parcels of open space for preservation.

County Executive Steve Levy announced the approval of  legislation to preserve the 57-acre Harriman Estates Nursery Property in the town of Riverhead.

Located on Main Road in Aquebogue between Edgar Avenue and Union Avenue, the 56.94-acre property is primarily used to cultivate nursery stock.

To ensure its continued agricultural use, Levy introduced legislation to acquire the development rights to the farm, which was passed today by the County Legislature.

Financed through the new Suffolk County Drinking Water Protection Plan, the farmland development rights will be purchased at an agreed priced of $170,000 per acre, for a total cost to the county of $9.67 million. As an added bonus, the Harriman farm lies contiguous to 26 acres of farmland whose development rights were also recently purchased by the county, and across the street from 50 acres of county-protected farmland.

“By committing to keeping their property as farmland, the owners of this property are preserving open space from development and preserving the high quality of our agricultural industry,” Levy said.

Also announced was the joint acquisition of nearly 60 acres of open space in Wading River with the town of Brookhaven.

Levy said the county legislature passed his resolution to authorize the purchase of property owned by Spring Meadow Enterprises on Route 25A.

The $6,825,500 purchase will be funded 75 percent by Suffolk County ($5,118,937.50) and 25 percent by Brookhaven ($1,706,312.50).

“This one of the last remaining undeveloped properties in this region and will add to the extensive swath of land preserved by state, county and town efforts,” said Levy. “This acquisition will protect this Pine Barrens habitat and groundwater quality for generations to come,”