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Special lobbyists for green pastures

“I’d like to believe that it certainly would make sense; people see a barn, they see a farm, and they see a goat. You’d think that most people would then say, ‘Oh, there is some value in keeping this as a farm,’ ’’ Kern said.But seven months after a selectmen-appointed Busa Land Use Proposal Committee recommended using the property for a community farm and a small amount of affordable housing, the Board of Selectmen has not decided what should be done with the land.The board’s chairman, Hank Manz, said the selectmen are reviewing proposals for a recreation field as well as a community farm and affordable housing, and he expects it will take another two to three months before they make a decision.But some neighbors say the delay has made them concerned that selectmen are trying to find a way to get around the recommendation for a community farm on the property, said Fabian Borensztein, who lives next to the farm.Borensztein said he is not affiliated with the coalition, but he and other neighbors have collected more than 1,000 signatures on a petition supporting the committee’s recommendation for a community farm on the property.“We got really concerned that suddenly the Busa Land Use Proposal Committee was not really being taken seriously,’’ Borensztein said. “They decided what they decided, and we should now live with that.’’Manz said the Busa committee ran an excellent process to make its recommendation, but it’s now up to selectmen to make sure the proposals for the land are “sound and viable.’’Instead of repeating the work of the committee, Manz said, selectmen are going deeper into the details of the proposals, including the financial viability of a community farm.The coalition has said it would hire a farmer to raise crops on the land and the group would also educate people about the farming process. The group said the operation would pay for itself by selling approximately 250 shares of the harvest for about $550 each.

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