About one hundred people attended a public hearing at the Milford Town Hall Tuesday night, to hear a proposal to turn 70 acres of farm land in that community into a golf course. The proposal is receiving statewide attention, because the farm land in question is protected by a conservation easement. NHPR�s Doug MacPherson reports.
THE CURRENT OWNER OF THE FARM LAND IS HITCHINER MANUFACTURING COMPANY. TIM SULLIVAN, HITCHINER�S DIRECTOR OF ADMINISTRATION, MADE THE CASE FOR A GOLF COURSE.
TAPE 1, TIM SULLIVAN 486 the town of milford currently doesn�t have a golf course as one of its recreational facilities. You have to go to neighboring towns for that. it will attract visitors to milford, improves the tax base/// 493 it will create jobs/// and it�s environmentally safe. :13
THE PROBLEM IS, THE 68-ACRES OF FARM LAND ARE PROTECTED BY A CONSERVATION EASEMENT. ALTHOUGH HITCHINER OWNS THE LAND, THE STATE OWNS THE EASEMENT. THE STATE BOUGHT IT FOR 468-THOUSAND DOLLARS IN 1996, JUST PRIOR TO HITCHNER�S PURCHASE OF THE LAND. THE EASEMENT STATES THAT THE LAND WILL ALWAYS BE KEPT IN FARMING. MOST EASEMENTS HAVE NO PROVISION TO �UNDO� THEM, SHORT OF GOVERNMENT TAKING THE LAND BY EMINENT DOMAIN. BUT IN NEW HAMPSHIRE, OWNERS OF LAND WITH �AGRICULTURAL PRESERVATION RESTRICTIONS� AS THEY�RE CALLED, HAVE TWO MEANS OF ESCAPE: THE OWNERS CAN ARGUE THAT THE LAND IS NO LONER SUITABLE FOR FARMING. OR THEY CAN ARGUE THAT REMOVING THE RESTRICTION WOULD BE IN THE PUBLIC INTEREST. BOTH ARGUMENTS MUST BE BROUGHT BEFORE THE AGRICULTURAL LAND PRESERVATION COMMITTEE WHICH WAS PRESENT AT THE HEARING. HITCHINER ARGUES THAT A GOLF COURSE WOULD SERVE THE PUBLIC GOOD.
APPARENTLY NO ONE AT THE MEETING AGREED WITH THAT ARGUMENT. STEVE TROMBLY WAS ONE OF A HANDFUL OF FARMERS WHO SQUEEZED TOGETHER IN THE THIRD ROW OF SEATS. TROMBLY SAID IF THE EASEMENT IN QUESTION ISN�T HONORED � THE INTEGRITY OF EVERY OTHER EASEMENT WILL BE COMPROMISED.
TAPE 2, STEVE TROMBLY 411 and my strongest fear is that other land in the area, it may not even be Milford, that if these development rights aren�t honored, than the people putting up the money for this type of easement purchase are going to say, look, those aren�t our intentions, they�ve been revoked before, we aren�t going to do this in the future. And I feel very strongly that we should honor these past commitments in hopes that the money and the funding will be there in the future for future purposes. :31
HITCHINER MANUFACTURING BOUGHT THE LAND KNOWING FULL WELL ABOUT THE AGRICULTURAL EASEMENT. HITCHINER MAKES CASTINGS. IT EMPLOYS 25-HUNDRED PEOPLE WORLD WIDE, 800 OF THEM IN MILFORD, WHERE THE COMPANY HAS MAINTAINED HEADQUARTERS FOR 50-YEARS. GARY FRYE IS THE FARMER WHO SOLD HITCHINER THE LAND. HE�S BEEN LEASING IT BACK FROM THE COMPANY, FOR A FEE THAT HITCHINER SAYS BARELY COVERS THE PROPERTY TAXES. FRYE SAYS IF HE STOPPED FARMING THE LAND TOMORROW, OTHER FARMERS WOULD LINE UP TO TAKE HIS PLACE.
TAPE 2, GARY FRYE 275 I just feel that it was bought by the state for agricultural and to preserve it, to have the land /// 277 there can be a lot of problems, and you might need locally grown food at some time, and this is some of the best land. The rest of my land is on top of a hill with rocks � that would make a better golf course. B/c you can�t grow vegetables [LAUGHTER AND APPLAUSE] : 26
THERE WAS PLENTY OF SUPPORT FOR FARMING AT THE HEARING � A FEW DISPARAGING WORDS ABOUT THE NEED FOR GOLF COURSES -- BUT FOR THE MOST PART, ONLY POLITE REFERENCES TO HITCHINER MANUFACTURING. JOHN H. MORISON THE THIRD IS THE SON OF HITCHINER�S CO-FOUNDER, AND THE CURRENT COMPANY PRESIDENT. WHEN AT THE END OF THE EVENING MORISON ROSE TO SPEAK, THE AUDIENCE PAID CLOSE ATTENTION.
TAPE 3, JOHN H. MORISON III 054 I�ve looked at this from both sides, and while I know every one of the farmers in the third row, I grew up with all of them, and I spent a lot of time watching them, and I�m sometimes envious of their ability to do what they do. I know the reality is, unless something dramatic changes in this economy, with its now global economy, the chances of their survival over a period of at least the next generation are not very good. :27
MORISON SAID HIS OWN APPLE FARM IN MILFORD IS LOSING MONEY, AND HE TOLD THE CROWD THAT EVENTUALLY, THERE WILL BE NO FARMS LEFT IN MILFORD. IN THE TOWN�S LONG RUN ECONOMIC INTERESTS, HE SAID, A GOLF COURSE WOULD BE THE BEST USE OF THE LAND.
TAPE 3, JOHN H. MORISON III I know it doesn�t sound good, I know nobody wants to hear that, but if there are not farms here, what really is going to happen to it? :08
STATE AGRICULTURAL COMMISSIONER STEVE TAYLOR DIDN�T SPEAK PUBLICLY AT THE HEARING, BUT HE PUBLICLY OPPOSES ANY REVERSAL OF THE AGRICULTURAL EASEMENT. MINUTES AFTER THE MEETING, TAYLOR BRISTLED AT WHAT HE CALLED MORISON�S OVERLY GLOOMY PICTURE OF THE FUTURE OF FARMING.
TAPE 4, STEVE TAYLOR 192 It�s not dead, we look at the statistics for nh, we have 10% more farms now than we had 10 years ago, our receipts are up at a time when the commodity values are virtually static.
TAYLOR CALLED IT A BIG MISTAKE TO WRITE OFF FARMING, AND A BAD PRECEDENT TO BREAK THE EASEMENT. THE AGRICULTURAL LAND PRESERVATION COMMITTEE WILL CONTINUE TO ACCEPT WRITTEN COMMENTS THROUGH THIS WEEK. THEY�RE EXPECTED TO ANNOUNCE THEIR DECISION ON THE FUTURE OF HITCHINER�S FARM LAND BY THE END OF NEXT WEEK. FOR N-H-P-R NEWS, I�M DOUG MACPHERSON.
