With Permission
Branford is a step closer to preserving 22 acres of meadows, marshlands and trees after the Board of Selectmen (BOS) unanimously approved the open space acquisition Wednesday.
“It’s a dramatic property… very beautiful,” said Ainsley Highman, chair of the Parks and Open Space Authority.
Highman said keeping the land in its natural state will enable the salt marsh to serve as a buffer against flooding. “Salt marsh areas are kind of disappearing … they’re precious. A lot of them have been destroyed or developed.”
The property owned by Richard J. Kaczynski is located at 8 – 46 Helen Road in the heavily-populated Branford Hills section of town. The land is part of the Farm River estuary, and is located within view from the Shoreline Trolley line and the 69-acre Beacon Hill Preserve.
“It’s an important part of the viewscape,” said local environmentalist Bill Horne. In addition to preserving the land, the acquisition will allow it to become an area for passive recreation. “It’s sort of a destination property…for uses like bird watching. It’s a prime bird-watching area.”
The Board of Finance approved the local share of funding Monday, and the proposal now goes to the Representative Town Meeting for consideration.
Branford received a state grant of $137,000 toward the purchase price of $325,000. The remaining funds will come from the Open Space fund, the Land Trust and about $40,000 from the town’s contingency fund.
Diana Stricker Photo
Horne (pictured) said the town has been interesting in preserving that area since 1972. It was one of nine properties on the wish-list when the Select Committee on Open Space Acquisition was formed in 2002, but Horne said the asking price was too high.
He said Kaczynski approached the Land Trust in 2011 and offered to sell the land at a lower price. At the same time, the state announced the availability of a round of Open Space and Watershed Land Acquisition grants, and Branford’s grant application was subsequently approved.
Click here to read a previous story.
About five acres of the property are agricultural, and are currently being used by a nearby farmer to harvest hay for his horses. Horne and Highman said the town anticipates making an arrangement with the farmer to continue harvesting.
The Kaczynski property is in the vicinity of numerous condominium complexes including Jefferson Woods, Plymouth Colony, and the Greens.
Reaction to New Site Proposed for Public Works
Another piece of property was also discussed at the selectman’s meeting Wednesday.
Third Selectman James Cosgrove said he read a news report of a potential new site for the public works building. Click here to read the Eagle’s exclusive story, which ran on Tuesday.
“Where do we stand?” Cosgrove asked at the meeting.
First Selectman Anthony “Unk” DaRos said the site was previously not for sale, but recently became available. “The owner is willing to sell this to the town,” he said, but added that specifics can’t be made public while negotiations are ongoing.
(The Eagle is withholding the address pending negotiations.)
DaRos said more information could be forthcoming within a month. However, he cautioned that if this site doesn’t work out, plans may revert to the Tabor property if another site can’t be found. On Tuesday, DaRos met with Fred Russo, who heads the Stop Tabor movement, to discuss the neighbors’ objections to the Tabor site. That meeting was closed to the media at Russo’s request.
DaRos said he believes the new site would be an agreeable solution. He said he already discussed the new site with a group of department heads. “They are saying this definitely could work,” he said.
DaRos said members of the Public Works Building Committee will review the property to see if it meets the necessary requirements. He said individual members of the committee have already looked at the property. Committee chair Mario Ricozzi said the committee hasn’t met for several weeks, but may hold a meeting later this month.
Cosgrove, who voted against using the Tabor site in November, said Wednesday that the process to build a new public works project has taken too long and needs to move forward.
Second Selectman Andy Campbell asked Cosgrove when he will report on the status of his attempts to negotiate a deal with another potential location at Cherry Hill Glass on Elm Street. Cosgrove offered to negotiate a deal in February with the owner of Cherry Hill Glass, claiming that it could be a viable site.
Diana Stricker Photo
Cosgrove (pictured far right) didn’t answer Campbell’s question about when he would give his report, but added he is looking at the viability of other properties considered by the committee.
Campbell said while waiting information on the new site, selectmen should consider all the options. “I’d like to keep any viable alternatives active,” Campbell said. He again asked Cosgrove when he will give his report.
Cosgrove didn’t answer.
In other business, DaRos announced he is considering forming a Coastal Resilience Committee to deal with issues of rising tides, storm surges and flooded roads. He said several shoreline towns are looking at these issues.
“Branford has its own unique problems,” he said. He asked the other two selectmen to think about the possibility of a committee. “We have to figure out what direction to go,” DaRos said.
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