Easton Courier
December 4, 2008
By Laura Modlin
Correspondent
Farming is in Andy Kachele’s blood. But he recently had to sell the land that his family has farmed for generations to settle his mother’s estate.
“It is tough,” said Kachele. “I would have loved to be able to hang on to it.”
He grew up on that farm, and said in his grandfather’s day it was one of the largest in the area.
For now, the new owner is keeping the land as open space and allows Kachele and his wife to use a small portion as a hobby (non-commercial) farm.
The reality is other Easton farms might be changing hands before too long as several of the town’s farmers approach retirement. And the future of their farms — as well as the town’s seemingly indelible bucolic character — might be called into question sooner rather than later.
Kachele, chairman of the town’s finance board, said it makes sense to keep land as farmland.
“Houses mean more services,” he said.
The state agrees, and in 1963 passed Public Act 490, which allows towns in Connecticut to assess farm, forest or open space land for its use value instead of assessing the land for the fair market value.
According to the Connecticut Department of Agriculture’s Web site, studies conducted across the country “have conclusively proven that property tax revenues generated by farm, forest, or open space land, are far greater than the expenditures by the town to service that land.”
In that way, it pays to keep farmland, forests and open space.
Farmland is a part of the town’s character
First Selectman Tom Herrmann feels there are other reasons to keep the farming culture alive and well in town.
“Farmland pays tribute to our agrarian heritage,” he said. “It preserves our rural character inheritance. It increases the amount of undeveloped land… [and] increases the quality of life by having the farms available to residents.”
Herrmann and his wife, Hove, are hobby farmers on their own land.
“We’ve got sheep, chickens and gardens,” he said. “We actively farm our land and very much appreciate being able to work the land.”
Herrmann sees a high level of support in town for keeping the farmland as such.
“I think there’s a general feeling in Easton for it to remain as it is,” he said. “Certainly most people would say they prefer the appearance of a cornfield to that of a high density housing project.”
Through the generations
But while the state and the town encourage farms, Kachele says the federal government makes it hard to leave farmland as a legacy for future generations.
“Everyone is having trouble passing land on from one generation to the next,” he said.
Kachele points to federal estate taxes as the main stumbling block.
“Even if you find a way around it or to minimize it it’s going to cost a lot in legal fees,” he said.
“It ends up with it being nearly impossible for families to keep [large] properties for generations now unless they have other sources of wealth.”
Kachele works as a vice president for a mining company in New Canaan. He never wanted be a full time farmer.
He lives with his wife on a few acres that they still own that was “carved” from the original 85 acres of family farmland.
Paul Carpenter, who presently owns the rest, allows the Kacheles to farm about half an acre of sweet corn and about a fifth of an acre of other vegetables on the property.
“I can probably replace everything I grow cheaper at Stop N Shop, but there’s absolutely no comparison,” Kachele said. “I can pick corn and have it in a pot five minutes later.”
Kachele and his wife grow more than they eat though and donate about 1,000 pounds of assorted vegetables to the Bridgeport Rescue Mission throughout the year.
And there’s a satisfaction they get from working the land.
“There’s a sense of well-being seeing things grow, overcoming obstacles. For those who do it you can’t conceive of doing anything else. It gets into your blood.”
Silverman’s Farm up for sale?
Over on Sport Hill Road, Silverman’s Farm has been in Irv Silverman’s family since the early 1920s, but its future is uncertain.
Silverman is thinking of retiring in the next five to 10 years and has nobody to take over the family farm.
His three daughters are not interested and Silverman feels his options lack a viable and satisfying resolution as he looks towards the future.
“I’ve thought a little about it obviously,” he said. “I don’t know what I’m going to do yet.”
One of the options he has mulled is to sell the development rights. But for him the price he could get is not worth what he has put into the land all of his life.
“The incentive isn’t there to sell development rights,” he said.
But at the same time, he doesn’t want to see his heritage destroyed.
“I don’t think I would want to see big homes on the land,” he said.
All of this leaves Silverman left debating what to do with his 50 acres and more than 15,000 fruit trees.
One of the choices he is considering is to lease out the farm. But Silverman fears that there just aren’t many potential new farmers out there.
“Nobody wants to work 12 hours a day,” he said. Besides, he said, “it’s not someone saying, ‘I’m gonna run that orchard. They need a background.’”
McKinney fights for farmland
Up in Hartford, state Sen. John McKinney has been trying to help find solutions to the areas dwindling farmland.
“I’ve been working hard to make sure we can preserve farmland in Connecticut,” he said.
McKinney sees an urgent need to protect Connecticut’s farmland. He would like to see what the state can do to further help preserve the farms and feels that with some effort plans can be put into place.
“Maybe part of a property can be used for solar panels or wind turbines or the like,” he said.
But while he’s unsure if that is actually feasible, McKinney would like for solutions to be sought and for there to be dialogues between Connecticut farmers and the state before it is too late.
“Right now, it’s a dire situation,” he said. “We’re losing thousands of acres of farmland.”
According to the Connecticut Farmland Trust’s Web site, “Connecticut’s farmland is disappearing at the alarming rate of 8,000 acres a year.”
The next generation
In upper Easton, there’s a farm that’s telling an optimistic tale.
At the age of 28, Scott Edwards is one of the youngest farmers in Easton. He presides over more than 200 acres of farm and forest land on the farm that has been in his family since 1700.
This year, the Maple Row Tree farm is bursting with mature Christmas trees. They are ready to be cut to adorn people’s homes for the holidays and by all accounts the farm is far from its final chapter.
Their Christmas tree selling season runs from the day after Thanksgiving until noon on Christmas Eve. People come from as far away as New York City to cut trees on the farm or buy one that is pre-cut.
Edwards works alongside his grandfather, father and two brothers year round taking care of the farm.
And while Edwards says “it’s very enjoyable” to work full time on the farm a lot depends on those few weeks between Thanksgiving and Christmas. And in particular the first two weekends of December when they make “well over 50 percent” of their sales.
Bad weather during those first two weekends could keep people away and seriously dampen sales.
Yet, even with the element of providence, it’s a way of life Edwards’ family has stuck with for generations.
“People look at this,” Edwards said referring to the hundreds of acres of rolling hills and forest, “and say, ‘well, you could build houses here’ - but then what are you going to do?”
Edwards’ inclination is to work the land and his family will continue to do so “as long as it’s profitable and we’re all healthy.”
Copyright Easton Courier 2008. Used with permission. All rights reserved.
