A view of Brunswick-Topsham Land Trust’s new land purchase, which is located directly across the road from BTLT’s Saturday farmers market at Crystal Spring Farm. Courtesy of Brunswick-Topsham Land Trust
The Brunswick-Topsham Land Trust is set to close a deal Friday, April 12, to purchase 25 acres at 262 Pleasant Hill Road, reuniting a missing parcel to a historic Brunswick farm.
The property, which will be purchased for $2 million, features a historic barn and 25 acres on a swath of historic land once known as Dionne Farm. The seller, who remains anonymous, acquired the land this past winter and approached the land trust with the offer to sell. The seller granted the organization a two-year private loan, which the trust will need to pay off by April 2026.
“A friend of [the trust] took it off the market, giving us the time we needed to raise funds,” said Executive Director Steve Walker. “It wasn’t something we ever thought we’d have the opportunity to do.”
Had the property been left on the market, the organization would have competed against other bidders in Brunswick’s competitive real estate market.
The property, which is being sold to the land trust below market rate, is located across the street from Crystal Spring Farm, where the land trust’s Saturday farmers market is located. The land is also home to a clock tower that contains the original Brunswick Town Hall clock, which was relocated before the building was demolished in the 1960s.
A side view of the existing building on the property shows a clock tower on its roof. Courtesy of Brunswick-Topsham Land Trust
The parcel was the remaining piece to reunite what was previously known as Dionne Farm. The land, which has long been an agricultural resource in the region, was purchased by a physician, Maurice Dionne, in 1941.
The Brunswick Record — The Times Record’s predecessor — reported in 1943 that Dionne’s purchase revitalized the dairy production on the land. The 347-acre farm continued to produce dairy throughout the 20th century.
Though no solid plans have been made, BTLT has several ideas for the land, including new community education programs and land conservation efforts. One idea encompassed moving the farmers market onto the new property in 2025 to create more communal spaces and decrease summer traffic near the parking lot.
Regardless of what happens next, Walker said the trust is excited for the possibilities.
“We’re thrilled to have this opportunity — we’re thrilled to make it happen,” Walker said.
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