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No. 15 Vol. 1
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he Morris County Agriculture Development Board has permanently enrolled the 60-acre Aresty Farm, a working hay farm in Mendham and Chester townships, into the county’s farmland preservation program. The purchase of the development easement on this property for $2.2 million from the estate of David Aresty by the Morris County CADB restricts the land from non-agricultural uses and permanently preserves the farm. It is the 23rd farm preserved in Chester Township
www.themendhamnews.com
January 2017
Aresty Farm Permanently Preserved and the seventh in Mendham Township. The Aresty Farm, which currently is farmed by the owners of the preserved Backer farm in Mendham Township, is located on East Fox Chase Road in Mendham and Chester townships, according to Katherine Coyle, director of the Morris CADB. This is the fourth Morris County farm preservation closing over the past six months. The 74-acre Scheller Farm in Washington Township and the 13acre Tinc Farm in Mt. Olive were both permanently en-
rolled into agricultural use in June, while the 23-acre Konkus Farm in Chester Township joined the preservation roster in September. The easement purchase for the Aresty Farm was made in conjunction with a grant from the State Agriculture Development Committee, which provided 53 percent of the acquisition price, or $1.2 million to preserve the farm. The Morris County Open Space, Farmland, Floodplain Protection and Historic Preservation Trust Fund provided the remaining $1 million, at $36,000 per acre. In contrast to open space preservation, the agricultural landowner retains ownership of, and may even choose to sell, the preserved farmland. But the land retains a deed restriction ensuring that it cannot undergo non-farm development. Agricultural development of the farm is permit-
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ted and the type of farming activity can change in the future. The Aresty Farm is located in the heart of the county’s agricultural region in Chester and Washington townships, which have 94 of the county’s 131 preserved farms within their borders.
Preservation of Aresty Farm brings the total area of preserved farmland in the county to 7,918 acres or the equivalent of 12 square miles. Morris County is in the midst of a flurry of farmland preservation closings, with 12 more farms, total-
ing 559 acres expected to be enrolled in the program in 2017. For detailed information on the county’s agricultural preservation program, visit: http://morriscountynj. gov/planning/divisions/prestrust/farmland/.
Hilltop Elementary To Kick Off New Year With Green Initiative
By Ainsley Layland he Green Initiative Committee at Hilltop Elementary School in Mendham has kicked off the new year with a new recycling program. In an effort to take the school’s recycling policy to the next level, Hilltop
has partnered with Terracycle, an upcycling and recycling company, to offer a location where students can recycle objects such as ink cartridges, packaging air pillows, and cereal liners. According to the Hilltop Elementary website, Terracycle collects diffi-
cult-to-recycle packaging and products and repurposes the material into affordable, innovative products. Items like dry cleaning bags, ice bags, and newspaper sleeves are often thrown in the trash because the average neighborhood recycling doesn’t accept
them. This new green initiative provides a location for Mendham families to bring those difficult-to-recycle items. “The Green Initiative Committee is part of the H.A.S. (Home School Association) that also works continued on page 2