The township’s Agricultural Advisory Committee has passed a newly drafted farmland preservation plan element on to the Planning Board, which will review the draft on Wednesday, June 2.
During the workshop meeting, members of the Agricultural Advisory Committee will be on hand to make a presentation about the draft, and township professionals will be able to answer questions from the Planning Board.
When the draft is complete, it will be presented during a public hearing at the Planning Board in the future, at which time the public will be able to discuss any areas they want to address.
The plan element is intended to continue support for the preservation of agriculture as a viable industry within the township. “This element identifies sites that are to be retained specifically for the continuation of agriculture, providing a greater basis for the retention of these farms and the business of agriculture in West Windsor,” the plan states.
Eight years ago, when West Windsor adopted the first farmland preservation element to its Master Plan, there were plenty of farms that needed to be protected from the grasps of developers. Now, with only about 59 acres targeted for preservation through 2015, officials are shifting their sights toward seeing those already-preserved farms thrive.
The township will be working with the Mercer County agricultural board to preserve an enclave of remaining farmland in both West Windsor and Robbinsville. That enclave of farms runs along Old Trenton and Windsor roads, up through the Mercer County Community College campus, through Mercer County Park, and off Village Road East.
Specifically, the plan identifies the farm enclaves falling within Mercer County’s West Windsor/Robbinsville Agricultural Development Area, which is one of seven regional farm areas in the county.
In West Windsor, the farms are located off South Lane and include the Hall farm, at 126.85 acres; the Procaccini farm, at 17.37 acres; the Conover farm, at about 27.25 acres; and JEM Stables, at about 7.81 acres in the West Windsor portion of the property.
The township is recommended a “transfer of development rights” program for the remaining properties since funding for preservation is scarce.
A transfer of development rights program is a realty transfer system in which development potential in a specified preservation area can be purchased by private investors for use in a targeted growth area. In exchange for a cash payment, landowners in the preservation area place a restrictive easement on the property that will maintain the resource into perpetuity. The land in the designated receiving area can then be developed at a higher density than allowed under the baseline zoning, according to the state Department of Community Affairs.
In addition to preserving 59 acres of farmland between 2010 and 2015, the draft plan states two additional goals: to recognize agriculture as a historically significant economic industry and encourage economic opportunities in this industry, and promote agri-tourism.
The major focus now, however, is promoting agriculture-related businesses, as there are currently none in West Windsor. Included in the farmland preservation element is the recommendation to adopt an economic element to attract businesses to the community.
One of the recommendations suggests that officials make it easier for farmers to set up farm stands and sell farm-related products on their properties that aren’t specifically grown on their properties. Currently, the code dictates that farmers are only able to sell products specifically grown on their properties, township officials said.
Heading into the meeting, Planning Board Chairman Marvin Gardner said there are some areas that need to be vetted thoroughly. “The transfer of development rights needs to be looked at closely, especially with respect to the redevelopment area,” Gardner said. “I’m not certain we want to increase the density in the redevelopment area. I think that’s something that needs to be discussed.”
With respect to the pieces of farmland property identified in the report for preservation, Gardner said discussion needs to happen about the order in which it would be implemented. “This all depends greatly on securing the financing and the programs we wish to adopt in terms of preserving the remaining farms that exist,” said Gardner.
Gardner said he believed some farms should be lower on the priority list. One example is JEM Stables. “That’s an interesting location that can be further developed with a number of amenities that would be responsive to the needs of some of the younger children who live in West Windsor and other areas,” he said. “It’s something we can look at in terms of being one of the areas in the report that alludes to agri-tourism.”
Discussions about recreation and open space designations also needs to be addressed, he said. “There is some suggestion that there should be a separate district, and that needs to be discussed further and clarified,” he said. Gardner said he also wanted to vet the idea of selling products on stands and cars that are other than those grown locally.
