Open Space Protected

Farmland and open space may be blooming in Branford if two conservation projects succeed.

The first project is a unique $1.3 million proposal that would preserve 34 acres of farmland along Queach Road and also provide ownership of three wooded acres that connect two large land preserves.

The second project involves purchasing 24 acres of property along Laurel Hill Road for use as open space.

In regard to the first project, the Board of Selectmen took a preliminary step Wednesday by unanimously approving the acquisition. The proposal must be approved by the Representative Town Meeting after all parties come to terms.

If approved by the RTM, the town would purchase the agricultural development rights of 33.65 acres at 134 and 143 Queach Rd., in conjunction with the Connecticut Farmland Trust. The property known as the Johnson Farm is currently owned by William ​“Bucky” Johnson and his sister, Stephanie Paige. The family would retain ownership of the land, but the town and the state would hold the agricultural easement rights.

“This is an attempt to keep the farmland a farm for perpetuity,” said First Selectman Anthony ​“Unk” DaRos, as he discussed the project at last week’s meeting. He said negotiations regarding the agricultural easement have been ongoing for about a year.

If the deal succeeds, it would be the town’s first collaboration with the Connecticut Farmland Trust. The CFT estimates that Connecticut is losing 8,000 acres of farmland a year when land is converted to residential and commercial uses. According to the Website, the state has lost 21 percent of its farmland in less than 20 years.

Branford would also make an outright purchase of 3.42 acres at the northern end of the Johnson property that connects the Pisgah Brook Preserve and Supply Ponds Park. The two open space preserves contain popular hiking trails, and the wooded area would provide a connection for hikers and horseback riders to access both areas.

“This is a win-win situation,” said Ainsley Highman, who chairs the Parks and Open Space Authority, and is a member of the Select Committee on Open Space Acquisition.

Highman said the project is important because it preserves agricultural land, and because it enables the town to acquire the 3‑acre wooded area which connects the land preserves. ​“The viewscape is fantastic. You’ll think you’re in Vermont,” Highman said.

The price tag for the entire package is $1,333,000, including $170,000 for the purchase of the 3‑acre wooded lot. Part of the funding would come from a $508,000 grant that has already been approved by the Natural Resource Conservation Service, which is part of the federal Department of Agriculture.

DaRos said the town’s portion of the bill would be $625,000, and the Board of Finance has already included the funding request in the budget. The remaining $200,000 would come from Branford’s Open Space Acquisition Fund.

Third Selectman John Opie asked if the deal requires the family to continue farming.

“Currently it is a working farm,” Highman said. ​“They are haying the fields and there are agricultural animals up there.”

Highman explained that the purpose of purchasing the agricultural easement rights is to prevent the farmland from being sold for residential or industrial purposes. But he said the family may continue farming at their discretion, or they may sell the property to another farmer. ​“It doesn’t mandate particular uses, it excludes certain uses,” he said.

One of the co-owners, Stephanie Paige, operates the Maple Tree Farm dairy farm in North Branford and uses hay cut on the Johnson Farm for the dairy cows. The family declined comment on the project until after the closing. Two small lots would be subdivided from the larger Johnson tract for use by the family.

In an interview after the meeting, Highman explained that the Open Space fund already has $200,000 available for the project. He said the fund has received revenue over the years from several sources, including the quarry.

In a separate project, the Branford Land Trust is seeking a $175,000 matching grant for the purchase of 24 acres of open space, also near the Pisgah Brook-Supply Pond area. 

Local environmentalist Bill Horne, who has been working with the Branford Land Trust in regard to the Johnson Farm project, said the town has reached an agreement with the Pieper family to purchase their property at 99 Laurel Hill Road for use as open space. The acquisition would allow a new trailhead and trail into the Supply Pond Preserve.

The Land Trust would have to raise the matching funds toward the total purchase price of $350,000 for the Pieper property. Some funds would also be raised to assist with the Johnson Farm project.

The town and the Land Trust have been working for 40 years to protect the Pisgah Brook-Supply Pond watershed. The efforts began in 1969 when the town purchased the Supply Pond property from the New Haven Water company. The Selectmen’s action last week on land that links the Preserve to the Supply Ponds Park in an effort to join the two open spaces properties.

Over the course of 40 years a number of developers had sought to put housing on the site. The 165-acre Queach Park near the Johnson farm is now protected open space but it wasn’t always so.

Developer Alex Vigliotti and the Queach Corporation made a number of attempts to develop the Queach property. There were plans for a golf course. There were plans for scores of houses. However a grass roots effort to preserve the sensitive Queach landscape took hold. It took years and involved major court cases, including one that went to the Connecticut Supreme Court that ruled for the town. When Cheryl Morris became first selectwoman in November, 2005, she and then town attorney, Ed Marcus consulted with Vigliotti about yet another plan to develop the property. 

Morris called those who wanted to protect the Queach a ​“small vocal minority,” but she changed her mind after more than 500 residents attended a meeting at Branford High School to protest her action. Eighty people spoke out against the Vigliotti and Morris plan that night. Morris stepped back, announcing instead she would go along with the Representative Town Meeting’s decision to seize the parcel by eminent domain.

In the end, with the help of the Branford Land Trust and an anonymous donor, the town was able to avoid the eminent domain route and instead purchase the Queach property for $3.75 million. The 2006 settlement ended forever the idea of a major development at the Queach and preserved the land as open space.

Marcia Chambers contributed reporting.

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