About 84 acres of land will be set aside for conservation purposes near Pulpit Rock.

The developer, *** Anagnost, and his company, The Preserve at West Bedford LLC, must set aside at least 43 acres of open space land, according to the Planning Board requirements, as well as 10 acres for wetlands mitigation. The total donation will end up being more than the minimum 53 acres.

The development entails the construction of about 60 singlefamily homes on more than 180 acres of land near Pulpit Road. Out of the 84 acres, 73 are in Bedford and 11 in Amherst. Bedford will hold the deed to all of the land.

The 84 acres is near the Pulpit Rock Conservation Area and similar protected land in Amherst, which, in turn, borders the Joppa Hill Farm in Bedford. Together, the four properties will create a corridor of undeveloped land in the area.

Mervyn Taub, chairman of the Bedford Conservation Commission, praised the donation and said it is one of the most significant town acquisitions of land in 20 years.

The Town Council accepted the land at its Feb. 13 meeting.

Safety grant
The Town Council has also accepted a $98,000 grant from the Federal Emergency Management Agency.

The grant will be used to purchase a Plymovent System, which clears exhaust from vehicles that have their engines running while they are inside the town safety complex.

The town will have to chip in about $5,000 to make up the full cost of purchasing the system, which was recommended in a report from Municipal Resources Inc., a consultant.

Fire Chief Scott Wiggin said it is the sixth FEMA grant the town has received in the past four years.