Officials’ preservation
efforts questioned
Open space advocate
says council could have done more
When it came to Willowbrook, Tinton Falls officials said they just couldn’t afford to buy the farm. In the minds and hearts of the powers that be, all options were exhausted. Preservationists were heartbroken. Still, they believed officials when they said, "We tried, but we couldn’t do it." Until now.
Throughout this more than two-year trial and tribulation, Mayor Ann McNamara echoed the same heartfelt sentiment, "As much as we’d love to, we just can’t afford to buy the farm."
When McNamara and other officials said that all options to preserve the horse farm, which formerly belonged to Frank Weny, had been exhausted, they felt and knew it to be true. Officials, like preservationists, said they were heartbroken at the prospect of losing the largest remaining contiguous tract of open space in the borough.
Developer Terry Sherman bought the property from the executors of Weny’s will for more than $5 million. In order to get the farm back from Sherman, the borough would have had to condemn and buy the property from Sherman. The price tag for doing that has been placed as high as twice the price the developer paid.
Months ago, McNamara, Borough Administrator Anthony Muscillo and Chief Financial Officer Steve Pfeffer met with N.J. Department of Environmental Protection Green Acres Program officials to pursue possible funding. By their accounts, Green Acres funding was capped at $1 million, which, as far as they were concerned, was just not enough of a subsidy for any Willowbrook Farms purchase. Preservationists had a hard time swallowing that edict, but they did.
Besides Green Acres, borough officials said all along that several other sources were tapped. Prior to resigning, council President Richard Maher reiterated an account of the borough’s exhaustive, heart-wrenching efforts to obtain the Weny farm and preserve it for the benefit of future generations. He even pleaded at a public forum for any ideas to buy the farm that may have been overlooked.
Now, Open Space Committee and Willowbrook Has Our Attention (WHOA) member Kim Barrett is saying whoa herself to the borough’s claims. Barrett said that all sources for buying the farm were not explored. She claimed that though she wanted to give the borough the benefit of the doubt on the issue, she could no longer ignore responses from inquiries she had funneled to a few sources as an Open Space Committee member.
Feeling that the need to help preserve the largest chunk of remaining open space in the borough was imminent, Barrett said she "checked out every way shape and/or form to do it." She said that though she believed the borough’s efforts were in earnest, she just had to do some digging for herself.
According to Barrett, she and other Open Space Committee members had been told countless times that Tinton Falls officials had checked into possible county resources for keeping Willowbrook Farms open space, whether it was through funding or county acquisition.
In an attempt to check into all possibilities, Barrett sent letters to all of the Monmouth County freeholders asking if they had been contacted by Muscillo and/or McNamara regarding options or advice the county could offer for open space preservation of any kind. Barrett also spoke with county officials and mentioned Willowbrook Farms as an immediate preservation concern.
The letter she sent out read: "As a member of the Tinton Falls Open Space Committee, an issue has been brought to my attention. We as a group may not have thoroughly researched all of the funding that is available for any land preservation that the borough would pursue. At this point in time we are creating an inventory of such organizations. I am inquiring specifically in regard to any material that has already been forwarded to Mayor McNamara and administrator Muscillo."
The response to Barrett’s letter came from County Clerk of the Board Richard C. Wenner, who said that the "board of freeholders has not forwarded any information to the mayor of Tinton Falls or the borough administrator regarding land preservation." Wenner’s letter went on to say that Barrett’s letter had been forwarded to the appropriate county affiliation which handles any sort of land preservation and/or acquisition‚ the Parks and Recreation Commission.
With respect to Willowbrook Farms, Wenner said that according to parks and recreation, "Willowbrook Farms was discussed with Ms. Faith Hahn, supervision planner for the Parks Commission, on or about March 29, 1989. At that time, Willowbrook Farms was discussed as a possible acquisition but not by the Parks Commission. The context of that discussion at that time was the county Parks, Recreation and Open Space Plan, and Ms. Hahn visited each municipality in the county to discuss properties that should be included in this plan. During July of 1997, pertinent documents were sent to Tinton Falls. No comments were received from Tinton Falls in regard to preservation of sites in the borough."
The parks commission letter confirmed Barrett’s fear that no inquiry about preservation had been made by the borough to the county. "It has never been determined that Willowbrook Farms was appropriate for park and recreation acquisition purposes," the letter read.
While Barrett made it known that she wasn’t trying to denounce any initiative taken by the borough, she maintained that open space advocates felt sandbagged, particularly by the apparent lack of contact with an agency the borough claimed to have asked for help.
"Maybe I’m knocking my head against a wall," Barrett said, "but I just want a healthier compromise and more open, honest discussion with borough officials. We can help one another, and we need to. This is precious space, all of it. Once it’s gone, you can’t get it back. I understand the mayor and the council’s frustration, but I think this letter, in particular, proved there needs to be more openness of discussion on the topic."
Barrett sent the same letter to the New Jersey Environmental Lobby, the Association of New Jersey Environmental Commissions and the New Jersey Conservation Foundation. The Conservation Foundation and the New Jersey Environmental Lobby said that though they had no funds available, they could offer advice. No mention was made in their responses whether or not Tinton Falls officials had contacted them seeking advice or funding avenue suggestions.
The Association of New Jersey Environmental Commissions said that their appropriate staff "did not believe that (she) had ever spoken to Mayor McNamara or administrator Muscillo." Information was enclosed with that letter dated Oct. 9. Barrett forwarded the literature to the Borough Council.
Though Barrett conceded that not everyone could offer the type of help Tinton Falls needed to save the farm, she felt that "any and all information to educate officials and residents on the subject of development and preservation are critical."
"Given recent history, there is a concern that this borough may not be as conscientious as it should be with respect to overdevelopment," Barrett said. "We all have a lot to learn, I and other open space advocates just feel we should learn it together for the good of our borough."
Neither McNamara nor Muscillo could be reached for comment as of press time.

