Magnolia Farm, the last piece of active farmland in Plumsted Township, has been preserved.
By: Sarah Winkelman
PLUMSTED The last piece of active farmland in the township has been entered into farmland preservation.
The 30 acres that make up Magnolia Farm are owned by Robert Goff. He sold the development rights for $120,000.
"The farm is the hole in the doughnut," Mayor Ron Dancer said. "It’s the last active farm in the township and it’s surrounded by homes. Saving this farm from residential development has been a priority for a while."
The farm is located off Magnolia Avenue across from the township’s Police Department and the recycling center. The farm also serves as the township’s leaf, branch and mulch recycling center.
Magnolia Farm is a historic landmark. During New Egypt’s heyday in the early 1900s, the homestead was a boarding house. Mr. Goff and the township are discussing plans to use the farm as a "living history farm" similar to the Howell Living Farm in Hopewell.
"The restoration of the Magnolia Farm into a living historical farm would demonstrate to the public the agricultural and rural life of the early American farmer in the late 1800s and early 1900s," Mayor Dancer said. "The focus would be to not only preserve the farmland but to preserve farming practices."
According to Mayor Dancer, Mr. Goff has been a member of the community for many years. He does not farm the land himself but rents it out to tenant farmers. In the past the farm has produced corn and rye, among other things.
Since 1992, when the township began its Farmland Preservation Program, Ocean County has contributed $7.6 million to the program. In addition to those funds, the township has invested $227,000 of its money, which has preserved 3,000 acres of township land to date.
The township is forming a Magnolia History Living Farm Advisory Committee. Anyone interested in serving on the committee can call 758-2241, ext. 101.