Letter to the Editor:
Shelton residents are being encouraged to "sign up" for a plot at the Klapik Farm Community Garden when the location, details and the very concept have not been formally approved by the appropriate governing body.
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Information is a powerful tool. The City of Shelton website has all agency/body minutes in pdf form. You can google search restrict to the website. Try this search for example. From the results you can glean that there has been much discussion on the concept for much time. Any improvement to property by the City, requires much the same approvals as a private entity. Application to Planning & Zoning, Authorization by Board of Alderman, referrals from agents such as City Engineer, etc.
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In an effort to determine if there is even a need for a community garden, the Board of Aldermen created an Ad Hoc Community Garden Committee. The committee had one meeting in January at which time it performed the usual initial business of electing officers, accepting rules of order and establishing a schedule of meetings for the year. However, if you read the meeting minutes carefully, you'll discover that the committee was told that a preferred location was already identified, that a formal review by the Planning and Zoning Commission had already been initiated for the property use change, that the entrance for the garden would be at the end of a residential cul de sac on Longview Road, and, oh yes, that the committee needed to hurry because apparently somebody wants to start planting this spring.
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Lets have a timeline
- 1993 - Open Space Plan identifies Greenways as emphasis areas for preserving open space.
- 2002 - The Klapik Farm was purchased, totals apx 58acres, and has significant hedgerows visually blocking the fields from adjacent residential properties. This is part of the Long Hill Greenway (includes several other property purchases that became assembled, notably the Tall Farm across the street from Klapik)
- 2003 - A license agreement begins in May between the City and Lyman Wells (a local farmer) to harvest hay from the fields. The property use will not change and remain agricultural.
- 2006 - The Plan of Conservation & Development has as it's #1 agricultural preservation strategy "continue to support programs that preserve farmland" which this does. See page 3-10 of the plan
- 2009Feb - Open Space Plan is updated from 1993, and recomends pursuit of possible Community Gardens. View details of the plan via this link.
- 2009Aug4 - Some early discussion on the subject that I can document from email, originated from citizenry with the Mayor meeting on this date to examine the concept.
- 2009Fall - Conservation Commission and Parks & Rec Commission were both consulted. Review of potential City owned Open Space parcels were done (Tall Farm, Wiacek Farm, 279 Soundview, Klapik, Nells Rock Road, French's Farm) and the consensus was that Klapik was most suited for public community gardens.
- 2010Jan19 - Mayor sends letter requesting 8-24 referral from PZC and advise from City Engineer.
- 2010Jan22 - City Engineer endorses the project
- 2010Jan27 - Planning & Zoning Commission votes favorably on the refferal (p.27 of minutes)
- 2010Jan25, Feb9, Feb23 - Community Garden AdHoc Committee meets to plan for quickly approaching planting season. Minutes are found here.
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Now, I just happen to live on Longview Road and I know for a fact that we never requested this use for the property. While we think a well-planned community garden is a terrific idea, we became worried about how this might affect our neighborhood. So, several of us went to the second meeting of the Community Garden Committee. We asked the committee members flat out if the Longview Road site and entrance was a "done deal." Every one of them robustly assured us that it was not.
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This was in the Plan of Conservation & Development from 2006. It was in the Open Space Plan of 2009. It has been discussed openly on Conservation Commission's meetings. The neighbors were notified as part of the referral review by the Planning & Zoning Commission. No, the residents of Longview Road didn't request this, but the citizens of the City have repeatedly via the planning methods, workshops, and meetings outlined above, over many years. There remain details to work out if this prospective location is to be productive - and in that regard it is not a "done deal".
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So, we neighbors expressed our concerns. We handed them a petition of names of people who are opposed to the Longview Road entrance. We asked the committee to please consider making the entrance in a more appropriate area. We were polite, articulate and even helpful despite the fact that we never requested a community garden, and there was no one present who did.
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The two areas to access the parcel are from Longview Road's cul-de-sac, which is at the highpoint of the drumlin's topography; or from Long Hill Avenue which is a busy road and would require crossing a wetlands area to access the more advantageous agricultural fields. Longview is the better location for access.
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We want peace not war, but we also want our needs to be considered. We don't want another poorly planned, town-sponsored intrusion into a defenseless neighborhood. Let's see what happens.
Randy Ann York
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Working together to solve issues will bring greater satisfaction to all.
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What follows is my letter to the editor submitted to CtPost on Feb21:
Editor:
I was dismayed to read the Letter of Feb18 regarding the Community Garden in Shelton. As Chairman of the Conservation Commission, let me offer some clarification.
Shelton's Open Space acquisition was following the award winning 1993 Open Space Plan when the 58 acres near Long Hill Avenue was acquired in 2002 as part of a Long Hill Greenway vision that has since preserved an abutting assemblage of over 100 acres. Continuously since 2003 there has been a revocable license with a local farmer to harvest hay from the property, thus maintaining it's agricultural usage in the community.
I served on the Committee that updated Shelton's Plan of Conservation & Development in 2006, which recognized Community Gardens as one strategy to preserve farmland (see p.3-10). The Conservation Commission updated Shelton's Open Plan in 2009 and reiterated such pursuits. The concept of a Community Garden is one other municipalities offer, and should not come as a surprise to residents of Shelton who take interest in their City's activities and its planning documents.
Out of citizenry interest and initiative, the Board of Alderman forrmed an ad-hoc Committee to bring the idea together in late 2009, and the Mayor's office requested advice and referrals on the concept from the City Engineer and the Planning & Zoning Commission in 2010. The Conservation Commission and the Parks & Recreation Commission have discussed this concept openly in their meetings. All of this above documentation is readily available on the City's website.
Yes, there is a planting season quickly approaching and the ad-hoc committee is working diligently to meet mother nature's deadlines, but this is not a rushed or hasty endeavor. This is a community sponsored concern being addressed. As of Feb16, 43 people had already signed up for plots. I encourage everyone to voice concerns, and work together in making it a success.
Thomas Harbinson
Conservation Commission - Chairman.
