U.F. to fatten its land preservation coffers
Landowners have applied to preserve 1,048 more acres
BY JANE MEGGITT
Staff Writer

UPPER FREEHOLD - The township plans to spend a total of $5 million more in the near future on the acquisition and development of farmland and open space.

At its Nov. 28 meeting, the Township Committee unanimously approved a $4.75 million bond ordinance for financing part of the appropriation.

The governing body also approved a letter asking the State Agricultural Development Committee (SADC), which administers the Farmland Preservation Program, to expedite the township's applications for preservation.

Township landowners have applied to preserve a total of 1,048 acres, which the bonds would help finance, according to Township Administrator Barbara Bascom. She said that the number of acres actually preserved would not be definite until there are closings on the properties, as some landowners who have applied could still opt out of preservation.

Some of the money the committee set aside would go to fund open space acquisitions, in partnership with other governmental and nonprofit agencies, according to Bascom. She is currently working on six open space projects for the township.

Bascom referred to the funds as a "safety net" and noted that in some open space acquisitions the township puts the money up first but later gets reimbursed by state agencies.

Not all residents spoke in favor of the bond ordinance during the public hearing.

Former Mayor Robert Abrams said the township already has $16 million in outstanding farmland preservation and open space bonds. He said some of the bonds date back to the early 1990s, which is when he served in office.

Abrams asked why the township needs more open space money when residents already pay a 4-cent open space tax.

Resident Al Trenton disagreed with Abrams, saying the township should bond for more open space and farmland preservation. Noting that the township has a $39 million school bond referendum in place, he said he would like to see that much money bonded for preservation.

"With the school, we continue to pay," Trenton said. "[But] horses don't go to school."

Trenton noted that the schools create 75 percent of the tax burden, which he said "never goes away."

"This [preservation bond] goes away," he added.

Dr. S. Perrine Dey said preserving land with Green Acres open space money eliminates that land from agricultural production.

"If you're trying to keep agriculture in Upper Freehold, you want to spend [money] for farmland preservation," he said.

Deputy Mayor William Miscoski, who attended the meeting via speakerphone, said the town would be in trouble if it couldn't spend the bond money on farmland preservation. He added that the town needs to spend as much money as it can to preserve land.

"I agree the bond is not big enough," he said.

As for the letter to the SADC, Bascom said there are a lot of applications for farmland preservation in the pipeline. The SADC has been taking a long time to process applications, she said, and the letter, sent in conjunction with other municipalities using Planning Incentive Grants (PIG) for preservation, is trying to get the applications pushed forward.