Upper Freehold Township group to hold information meeting on March 8.
By: Ken Weingartner
UPPER FREEHOLD Residents interested in learning more about opportunities to preserve land in the township can attend a meeting March 8 being held by the Open Space, Recreation and Farmland Committee.
Representatives from the state Department of Agriculture, Green Acres, the D&R Greenway and Monmouth County parks and planning agencies will be present to answer questions and outline available programs.
The meeting is scheduled for 7 p.m. March 8 in the municipal building, located at 314 Route 539 in Cream Ridge.
Last November, township voters approved an open space tax that will add up to 3 cents to the municipal tax rate. A volunteer committee of residents has been working to create an open space, recreation and farmland preservation plan.
One of the goals of the upcoming meeting is to determine which landowners have an interest in participating in the various land preservation programs at the state or county levels.
"Upper Freehold Township is at a crossroads, and now we ask for your help," Mayor David Horsnall and committee Chairman John Mele wrote in a letter to residents. "While our town is the New Jersey leader in farmland preservation acres, there still is great development pressure on many of our farms and undeveloped lots.
"Do we want to remain a rural community with limited development, protected forests and quality open space and recreation land, or do we want to have wide roads, bustling traffic, higher taxes and suburban developments which change our way of life? We have to answer that question."
According to officials, approximately 34 percent of the land in Upper Freehold is in some type of preservation program. According to U.S. Census data, the population of Upper Freehold rose 20.4 percent during the 1990s, from 3,283 to 3,953 residents.
In addition, the bureau reported 171 building permits issued in 2000, compared to a total of 132 from 1996 through 1998. There were 103 permits in 1999.
Expected to attend the March 8 meeting are Timothy Brill, agriculture retention program manager for the state Department of Agriculture; Renee Jones, Green Acres; Jessica Purvis, Monmouth County Planning Board; Andrew Coeyman, Monmouth County Park System; and Linda Mead, D&R Greenway.
Members of the open space committee are: Mr. Mele, Mayor Horsnall, Sue Kozel, Bill Metterhouse, Richard Bentz, Brenda Helt, Richard Stern, Calvin Malsbury, JoAnn Bicknese, William Search, Kathleen Freiberger, Jean Sorrells, Audrey Weadolowski and Township Committeeman Charles Faber.
For more information about the meeting, call the municipal building at 758-7738.