A Question of Character – Save  Open Space at Lee’s Farm

 Earth Day 2011

What is the LEES Group?

The LEES Group is a group of Wayland citizens working to preserve the old Lee Farm property on Route 20 across from Prime Bar restaurant in Wayland. LEES stands for Let’s Encourage Environmental Sustainability. The LEES Group is affiliated with the Pine Brook Association.

 What is the Pine Brook Association?

The Pine Brook Association, one of several neighborhood associations in Wayland, is concerned with land use in the Pine Brook area and how parcels all over Wayland are developed, with an eye to informed, thoughtful, balanced conservation and development,

 What vision does the LEES Group/Pine Brook Association have for the Lee property?

The vision is to maintain the semi-rural character of Wayland on a very visible entry road, and to help guide development of the property.

What else could be built on the land?

The owners have considered 1) an assisted living complex and 2) a retail complex.  At this point, there are negotiations to build a memory care facility in rear of the property. LEES group continues to work to influence the direction of development.

 What about the old existing farm stand structure?

The Bongiornio family is currently working on a plan to restore and enlarge the current structure and resume operation of a farm stand that brings in local produce for sale.

 Who will operate the Farm stand?

Do you know anyone with expertise in this area?  Please put them in contact with us.

 How large is the Lee farm property?

It’s about 9.5 acres.  The  part of the property where the memory care facility is planned is toward the rear.  The remaining land includes wetlands and 1.1 acres of field plus 0 .56 acre where the old existing farm stand is located.

 Who owns the Lee Farm property?

The property is owned by the Bongiorno Family, the same family that operated the farm and farm stand for many years.

 Who plans to develop on the site?

 The Northbridge Companies, a developer of elder care facilities, is working on plans to build a memory care facility.  They have facilities in Needham and Plymouth Dartmouth, MA and they have a web site if you’re interested in learning more about them.

www.northbridgecos.com

 Can’t all of the land be farmed or developed?

Some of the land is adjacent to Hayward Brook and will be preserved according to State conservation statutes. Some of the land will be developed. Preserving some land and developing some land has been used by conservation organizations such as Sudbury Valley Trustees as a means to guide land preservation.

 How much do the Bongiornos want for their land?

That is still in negotiation.

 How is the LEES group proceeding at this point?

The LEES group is continuing to dialogue with the owners and would ideally like to maintain the open fields as they currently exist. We are continuing to explore possibilities for the land, including bringing parties together to help  run a farm stand that sells local produce.

 Who would pay for this land?  

The vision is that the developer would contribute to the cost of the land by setting a price comparable to similar acreage in neighboring towns and that Community Preservation Act (CPA) funds would be used to purchase the land for the town.

What is the Community Preservation Act?

With every sale of real estate in Wayland a small portion is placed in the CPA fund. Local CPA funds are matched by the State. In some years the match as been dollar for dollar, but lately it is much less.

 What are CPA funds for?

CPA funds must be used for 1) land preservation 2) affordable housing 3) historic preservation, and to a lesser extent for recreational use. CPA contributions toward the purchase of Lee Farm property fit the land, historic preservation, and recreational use concerns.

 Why do you want my name?

We know that the developers and the owners will need to appear before various town boards to request permits and we know that being able to call out a show of support for limiting development will be important.

 Also, The CPA has asked the LEES Group to show town support for this project. In addition, there are various projects seeking CPA funds, and we need to be sure this project has clear town support.

Click to view slideshow.http://www.wickedlocal.com/wayland/topstories/x905157701/Examining-proposal-for-Lee-Farm-in-Wayland

Examining proposal for Lee Farm in Wayland

Contributed Photo

A full house attended the Community Preservation Committee meeting last week to learn more about the Lee Farm proposal

GateHouse News Service

Posted Jul 01, 2010 @ 05:27 PM

WAYLAND —

Note: The following was submitted by members of the LEES (Let’s Encourage Environmental Sustainability)/Pine Brook associations.

 ”You’ll never plow a field by turning it over in your mind,” quoted Paul Bongiorno, who, with his siblings, is an owner of the Lee Farm property on Route 20. He and his brother Tony recounted an oral history of the farm to 100 Wayland residents who turned out for the June 22 meeting of the Community Preservation Committee (CPC) to hear the LEES/Pine Book presentation to save Lee’s Farm.

Tony Bongiorno, Paul’s older brother, told the group their father was born in 1909 in Salina, Italy, a small island off the coast of Sicily, and immigrated to America when he was 7 years old. He learned English quickly and became a produce man for a local supermarket chain and rented farm stands, including the one in Wayland which belonged to Mr. Lee of Lee’s Farms.

Eventually in the 1950s, he purchased the stand and the surrounding fields and for many happy years grew vegetables, chatted with customers, and raised his family of four children, putting all through college with proceeds from the farm.

Tony was an engineering student at Tufts University when he designed the farm stand as you see it today, the first California-style farm stand in New England.

In recognition of Wayland’s farming heritage on the historic Boston Post Road, the LEES/Pine Brook associations, together with the Bongiorno family, have assembled a team dedicated to preserving one of the few remaining open fields on Route 20 with a Community Supported Agriculture farm (CSA), a farm stand and a farm education program.

The CSA is an alternative to a dense development on the already traffic-choked road.

“Our goal is rows of crops, not strips of malls,” said Joan Blair, chair of the LEES Group, in a slide presentation to the audience.

Bill Sterling, an architect and member of the team, displayed an initial site plan. Fruit trees would line the front of the property on Route 20 and high bush blueberries and raspberries the rear. There would be a greenhouse for starting seedlings in cool weather, and to extend the growing season.

The existing farm stand would be renovated and next to it would be a children’s learning garden. The layout is based upon a similarly sized successful community farm in Newton.

In order to realize their goal, the team reluctantly came to the conclusion that the rear part of the property be sold and developed for non-farm use. Proceeds would be used, in addition to proposed funding from the Community Preservation Committee, to buy the land from the Bongiorno family. Development in the rear also would generate new taxes for the town, a benefit to the town budget.

Low-impact use is sought for this portion of land, and the team is considering an elder care facility. Oxbow Partners, the developers who worked with the town to build homes on the former Nike missile site, has signed on to guide an integrated physical plan to present a seamless rural look from the road.

One difficult decision the team and the CPC is facing is how to value the land. At least two appraisals will be considered to arrive at a value, and some compromise will be required.

A first request to the CPC asks for approximately $1.5 million for the land, renovation of the farm stand, technical assistance to complete the purchase, and funds to design and create the farm.

The Bongiorno family has indicated they would like to sell this property within the calendar year, and that a pricing incentive would be considered to accomplish their timetable.

Speaking for the family, Tony Bongiorno said, “We are all stewards of our heritage, and we would love to see this come together for future generations and for the citizens of Wayland.”

Coincidentally, the Lee’s proposal was brought to the CPC the same evening as a proposal to fund valuation of 250 acres of Mainstone Farm, another historic Wayland property. That valuation would be a step in a long-term plan to seek permanent preservation using funds from many different sources.

The LEES/Pine Brook team noted that crops grown on a preserved Mainstone Farm possibly could be sold at the more centrally located Lee farm stand, attracting more customers and averting traffic on residential Rice Road and Old Connecticut Path.

At the end of the LEES/Pine Brook presentation, Jerry Heller, chairman of the CPC, indicated the committee is supportive of the concept but anticipates much work ahead with multiple town boards. It was suggested that private donations spearhead the project.

LEES/Pine Brook recognizes the challenge, but the overwhelming support of the audience, indicated by applause, and the more than 350 signatures collected to date from all over Wayland, demonstrate this project is ripe for realization.

To add your name in support of the farm contact Joan Blair at “blair.joan@gmail.com”. To pledge a donation for the operating budget contact Malcolm Astley at “malcolmastley@verizon.net”. For more information visit “www.waylandcommfarm.wordpress.com”

Copyright 2010 Wicked Local Wayland. Some rights reserved

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This is a wonderful idea for this property. Great location. My parents belong to a CSA in Milford, and get the best produce, which they share with us. All organic. My parents shopped at Lee’s for years. I was sad when it closed, because there are few places to buy truly fresh, affordable organic produce right around Wayland.

New York Ave., Framingham MA 01701

LEES Group Presentation to CPC 6_22_2010

At the Community Preservation Committee (CPC) meeting on Tuesday, June 22 at about 7:30, the Pine Brook and LEES Group associations will be supporting a proposal for the use of CPC funds to purchase the former Lee farm land so that 2-3 acres of the approximately 5 developable acres at the Lee site can be devoted to a community supported farm and 2-3 acres as a senior care center to serve as an economic bridge for the project, as well as a source of tax revenue for the town, estimated at about 80,000 dollars per year. If you can’t make the meeting sign up to support the farm. Send your name to Joan Blair blair.joan@gmail.com or Malcolm Astley malcolmastley@verizon.net

You Are What You Eat–Grow and Eat Local–In Wayland!

Where did the vegetables on your dinner table last night come from?   How far did they travel to your table?  When were they picked? These questions and others related to the food we eat are on the minds of many of us.  Concern about pesticide use, contamination in handling practices, and the price and freshness of what we buy in supermarkets  prompts  a popular  growing response: join a CSA, or Community Supported Agriculture farm by buying a seasonal share in the farm.  There are many CSA farms in the Metrowest area, more are in the works, and all are oversubscribed with long waiting lists.

A Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) farm is NOT a “Community Garden” where residents get their own small plot to plant and maintain (like those on Old Sudbury Road); instead, it is a professionally managed and very desirable asset that will offer good food at good prices and opportunities for social interaction, education, and family fun.  The farmer is hired by a board or town who owns the land; this farmer figures out what will be planted, the production costs, the share price and number of shares before each growing season.  During the five-six months of the season, shareholders come to the farm each week to collect their shares.  In the most common model, sharers contribute 4-12 hours of labor over the growing season, planting, weeding, harvesting — or they opt to pay more for their share.  Through their financial pledge, usually paid in full by June, shareholders make a commitment to support the farm throughout the season, assuming the risks, costs, and bounty of the harvest.  Most CSA farmers use no synthetic pesticides, herbicides or fertilizers to produce naturally grown, healthy vegetables at prices lower than supermarket organics.  Natural, sustainable growing methods (e.g. crop rotation, composting and cover cropping) increase soil fertility, keep plants healthy and reduce crop failure. Local CSAs include Land’s Sake in Weston, The Food Project in Lincoln, Newton Community Farm and the Stearns Farm in Framingham.  Mainstone Farm in Wayland, operated by the Henderson family, is also a CSA which includes meat and maple syrup.

A number of Wayland residents are shareholders in local CSAs, which sell out their limited number of shares in late winter..  Not only does he like the vegetables and exposing his children to a farm, Jim Van Sciver likes “the people, even doing some of the work, and it is another excuse to hang out with my wife who joins me for the Thursday pickups for both weekly flower bouquets and chit-chat.”  Cathy Briasco’s four children enjoy strawberry and blueberry picking and the farm festivals at the Stearns Farm CSA in north Framingham. Cathy was motivated to join a CSA to learn more about organic gardening. Molly Faulkner, another Stearns Farm shareholder, particularly enjoys her 12 hours of sharer work – planting seeds, thinning, transplanting, weeding –  and the “Stone Soup” lunch that the workers enjoy together under the apple trees at Stearns.   Helen Riess and her husband, Norm Nishioka, joined the Food Project CSA because they wanted to support locally grown food and are  interested in trying new foods not available at local markets.

Kids particularly enjoy a CSA.  They find a sense of wonder that this great tasting food is right here, in local ground!  They develop a different, more personal, relationship to food. Finally, the “Community” part of a CSA extends far beyond the town and the sharer membership.   While most of the food grown benefits the sharers and farmstand customers, as much as 45,000 pounds from one local CSA and over $10,000 worth from another were donated to charity, food banks and local pantries last year.

Wherever you have gardens and people working together, bonds develop.  It is a theme that repeats whenever people speak of their farm experiences.  Open, long-farmed pieces of land like this are rapidly disappearing from our landscape. A Wayland Community Farm on the former Lee’s Farmstand land on Boston Post Road will provide an opportunity for us all to work together on a common goal. 

If you are interested in offering support for this vision and becoming involved, please contact Debbie Tofias at dwtofias@gmail.com

What is the Community Preservation Act?

A small portion of your Wayland property taxes is placed in the CPA fund. Local CPA funds are matched by the State. In some years the match as been dollar for dollar, but lately it is much less.

What are CPA funds for?

CPA funds must be used for 1) land preservation 2) affordable housing 3) historic preservation, and to a lesser extent for recreational use. CPA contributions toward the purchase of Lee Farm property fit the land, historic preservation, and recreational use concerns. If any of the housing is affordable, CPA funds could contribute to that, too.

At each step of the way LEES/Pine Brook considered the land a prime spot for a community farm and farm stand. When this effort began, a survey was conducted of neighbors regarding their preferred use of the land. Generally the most support was for preservation of open space with great interest in keeping the property a farm. The land was studied, and though not visible from the road, was noted to contain a State designated cold river, Haywood Brook, running along the rear border.  The river brings an abundance of wildlife, active enough to be photographed by Sudbury Valley Trustees, and known to travel under a Route 20 culvert to other habitats in Wayland.

Recently, mindful of the Town’s need for tax revenue, a proposal has emerged guided by Oxbow Partners, the developers of the Nike/Oxbow Road homes, to partially fund preservation by combining an elder care facility in the rear of the property with the farm and farm stand in the front.  A care facility would have limited impact on traffic, as most use would be during non-commuting hours.  It would be built to showcase sustainability standards. This approach allows acreage for a community farm, preserves a natural streetscape, funds preservation and brings some needed tax revenue to Wayland.

LEES/Pine Brook has reached out to neighbors, residents, town, state and local agencies, schools, camps and the abutting religious institutions to gauge support with consistent encouragement from all parties. “This plan is inspired by a community vision and grounded in community values. It generates income for the Town while perfectly fulfilling the intent of the Community Preservation Act to preserve land,” says Joan Blair, Chair of the LEES Group

 If you would like to add your name to the list of farm supporters contact Joan Blair, blair.joan@gmail.com or Malcolm Astley, Convener of Pine Brook Association at malcolmastley@verizon.net

 Where There’s a Will, There’s a Wayland: Saving the Former Lee Farm

By Helen Riess and Malcolm Astley*

June 13, 2010

We are at a critical juncture in our small, diverse and uniquely beautiful town of Wayland.  While we must address the pressure on our tax base, we should not do so at the risk of losing the most treasured parts of Wayland that attracted us to this community in the first place. Many of us were drawn to Wayland’s semi-rural and progressive New England heritage. We have one of the first publicly funded libraries in New England and a town center church bell ringing hourly made by Paul Revere. Lee’s Farm on Boston Post Road is a hallmark of New England character that orients us to our time and place in history. It is part of a “Welcome to Wayland” corridor of our town. It is flanked by cornerstones of Wayland’s diverse community: the YMCA Camp Chickami, Temple Shir Tikva, and the Islamic Center of Boston.

This unique, nearly 10 acre parcel of property is up for sale and in danger of becoming commercially developed and lost forever as a symbol of our agricultural past and, in fact, an asset for sustainability for the future, too.  We need development, but in defined, commercial areas and not at the expense of the permanent loss of rare open and farmable space.  We will have our economic engine in the new town center and also through the careful tending of the existing enterprises across from it, as well as the businesses in Cochituate village. While we have agreed to proceed with our town center retail development, we need to seek balance in retaining the town’s unique quality elsewhere as well, or end up like Route 20 to the west.

Our present day challenges to preserve unique American landscapes in the face of growing pressures to trade in scenic beauty for development are mounting, and we need to maintain the resolve and creativity to keep balance in the face of the pressures.  Weston’s Route 20 by-pass and Sudbury’s Wayside Inn road are good examples of foresight in preserving the balance of the needs for highways and revenue on the one hand, and on the other, the need to keep towns organized with carefully set aside green, open, attractive spaces emphasizing sustainable practices.

Communities all across New England, and locally in Lincoln, Lexingon, Framingham, Weston, Natick, Dover, and Sherborn, are realizing the environmental and health benefits of sustainable Community Supported Agriculture.  We have the same opportunity, or find ourselves about to let go forever of farm land that has been preserved by generations of families and, beginning about 1955, providing fresh produce at a charming road-side stand that made many of us delighted and proud to live in semi-rural Wayland. In its old fashioned, corn-out-of-the-bin way, we felt our tradition at the same time that we felt progressive: fresh fruit without plastic stickers, no plastic wrap, pumpkins just picked from the farm, and produce from the local area.

Many dedicated folks in Wayland have been trying to preserve Lee’s Farm for the last three years by showing up at Planning Board meetings, Conservation Commission meetings, and Selectman meetings, and it is time to be sure in the busyness of our lives that we all know what is going on at the site so that we do not wake up and find that the character of Wayland has changed almost overnight from “semi-rural” to “semi-urban”.

We have a unique and narrow sliver of time to stop the unintended consequence of Wayland becoming another ordinary community with the same store fronts as every other city across America. Development and diverse tax bases are necessary for communities, but we would do well to be cautious about trading away the core of of our heritage and what makes us unique in order to save a relatively small number of dollars. If we degrade the town of Wayland by spoiling our open space, no one will be saving money. We will all lose, in declining property values, over crowding and even more congested highways, and the loss of connections with nature, beauty, and the earth. We did not move to Wayland looking for that outcome.  Even as we support thoughtful development, we need to emphasize the important theme of the preservation of fresh food, uniqueness, beauty, and historical connection. 

It is time to wake up and be ahead of the curve in Wayland before we succumb, as so many towns have, to homogenization and blandness.  While our children learn about biodiversity, global warming, greenhouse gases, consumerism, toxic waste, and each person’s responsibility to preserve open space and protect natural habitats, let us be the ones who show them what we care about locally:  food grown here by people we know, education about our connections to the soil and how produce is cultivated, our stewardship of the earth, and sustainable life paths and choices.

At the Community Preservation Committee (CPC) meeting on Tuesday, June 22 at about 7:30, the Pine Brook and LEES Group associations will be supporting a proposal for the use of CPC funds to purchase the former Lee farm land so that 2-3 acres of the approximately 5 developable acres at the Lee site can be devoted to a community supported farm and 2-3 acres as a senior care center to serve as an economic bridge for the project, as well as a source of tax revenue for the town, estimated at about 80,000 dollars per year.  The community supported farm would sell shares of produce, and would include a farm stand for the sale of produce from all local farms.  It would include an education center, similar to Land Sake in Weston, where kids, students and campers can see and learn about an alternative to buying everything plastic-wrapped and shipped from thousands of miles away. The proposal also preserves a rural monument that should be protected as carefully as the rest of our most precious historical landmarks.

Wayland, let’s have the will together to preserve our identity. Let’s be ahead of the curve this time instead of being squashed by it like towns before us.  If you are interested in supporting efforts to preserve the farm, please join us at the meeting and add your name to those supporting the effort sponsored by the Pine Brook and LEES Group.  For more information, please contact Joan Blair blair.joan@gmail.com or Malcolm Astley malcolmastley@verizon.net.

* Malcolm Astley is writing as an individual and not representing the Wayland School Committee

The Pine Brook Association was created to encourage informed, thoughtful conservation and development. The affiliated LEES (Let’s Encourage Environmental Sustainability) Group is particularly focused on preserving the Lee Farm property. A year ago these groups combined efforts to focus on finding a way to preserve Lee Farm. They view this endeavor not only to preserve precious open space, farmed as early as 1830, but to create a visible example of the unique spirit of Wayland – semi-rural, conservation and sustainability aware, with a healthy appreciation for locally grown fresh fruits and vegetables, and the will to teach children the ‘mystery,’ skills and importance of getting healthy food to the table.