"Board votes to approve farm preservation"

By Bill Devlin, Intelligencer, August 18, 2010:

One of Bucks County's most popular pumpkin picking patches will continue as a working farm thanks to a decision Tuesday night in Plumstead.

The township supervisors agreed to pay more than $600,000 for the preservation rights for Hellerick's Family Farm on Route 611 and Haring Road.
The agreement ensures that the land - approximately 25 acres - will not be used for purposes other than farming.

A Newtown Realtor had appraised the property at $25,000 an acre. The appraisal had been received by township solicitor Jonathan Reiss just prior to Tuesday night's meeting.

Chairman Frank Froio was enthusiastic over the board's decision to preserve the farm.

"It's a biggie," said Froio, who has been involved the negotiations with the family for some time.

Supervisor Stacey Mulholland said she and Froio "worked very hard" to get the deal done.

"It is a community landmark," Mulholland said. However board member Daniel Hilferty said the township was paying too much per acre for the property.

"It's an extraordinary amount," said Hilferty. "In my mind we're preserving a business. It's a bad decision.

Supervisor Tom Alvare said he was dissatisfied with the tenor of the negotiations between the township and the Hellerick family, noting that Plumstead was making concessions to the Hellericks that didn't square with the spirit of farm preservation.

He noted that the family will be allowed to build a store on the property and have discussed plans to have a Christmas light display that people could drive through.

Alvare said it was "distasteful" to vote for a conservation plan that allows changes to the land that is being preserved.

"However, a less than perfect plan is better than the alternative," Alvare said, defending the board's decision to keep the farm out of the hands of developers.