Bean and Allard Farms Converging Visions for a Village Landscape
Elizabeth Cooper, Mary Praus, Kate Snyder Conway School of Landscape Design March 2010
Table of Contents Project Summary...................................4
Converging Visions...........................41
Criteria...................................................41-42 A Sense of Place ....................................6
Design 1 A, B and C Description...........43
Turning Point | Land-Use Debate..............6-11
Design 1A Section..................................44
What Was Here | Coveted Lands...............12-15
MAP 15 Design 1A
Community Voices | Guiding Principles...16-20
MAP 16 Design 1B
Goals............................................................21
Design 1B Section...................................45
Northampton Agriculture..........................22-23
Northampton Recreation...........................24-27
Design 1C Section...................................46
Northampton Conservation.......................28-29
MAP 17 Design 1C Design 2 Description..............................47
A Broader Look.....................................30
Design 2 Section.....................................48
The Five-Town Region.................................30
MAP 18 Design 2
Farming’s Decline?......................................31
Preferred Description.............................49
Surrounding Fields......................................32
Preferred Design Section........................50
Conservation Priorities...............................33-34
MAP 19 Preferred Design
Mapping the Region....................................35 MAP 1 Regional Agriculture
Afterword......................................... 51
MAP 2 Regional Recreation MAP 3 Regional Conservation Core Habitats
Appendices........................................52
MAP 4 Regional Conservation Priority Habitats
Design Elements.....................................52
MAP 5 Regional Conservation Patterns
Additional Resources..............................53 Image Credits..........................................54
A Closer Focus.......................................37 Site Analysis | Site Conditions...................37-40 MAP 6 Existing Conditions MAP 7 Field Notes MAP 8 Hydrology MAP 9 Topography and Soils MAP 10 Access and Circulation MAP 11 Views MAP 12 Vegetation MAP 13 Wildlife Habitat
MAP 14 Summary Analysis
Acknowledgements.................................55
Project Summary Bean and Allard Farms, two adjacent working farms together known as the Florence Meadows, make up 185 contiguous acres of prime agricultural farmland in Northampton, Massachusetts. The Mill River meanders at its northeast periphery and a small, fertile parcel lies to the east of that swift river. The land, farmed for centuries and once worked by abolitionists who offered a stop on the Underground Railroad, now yields potatoes and hay. Residential development in the village of Florence surrounds the open, flat land—a contrast many Northamptonites treasure. The farms are slated to be sold to a national land trust in the coming months, and the City has set aside funding to acquire a portion of the land for 24 acres of playing fields. Some agricultural and conservation advocates have fought
that move, saying the land should continue to be farmed. The Office of Planning and Development of Northampton asked the Conway School of Landscape Design (CSLD) to create a plan that would provide mixed-use design options to guide a City Councilappointed task force that will recommend to the council an outcome for the land. At this important moment, the city is taking stock of its land-use priorities.
The CSLD design team worked to understand residents’ often-divergent visions for the land. At two citywide forums, the team facilitated breakout groups to hear participants’ views on agriculture, recreation, and conservation and how those uses could best play out at Bean and Allard Farms. Through contact with members of the task force,
A view westward of Bean and Allard Farms
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Bean and Allard Farms: converging visions for a village landscape elizabeth cooper, mary praus, kate snyder • Conway School of landscape design
project summary winter 2010
Northampton’s Director of Planning and Development, other City workers, farmers, sports league leaders, recreation experts, naturalists, and ordinary citizens, a picture emerged of the possibilities for the future of these fields. This document offers five alternatives, three that meet a specific City request for recreation fields to the north of Meadow Street on the Allard Farm—scenarios that, The Mill River flows along the farmland’s northern edge while meeting certain goals, have significant drawbacks. A fourth schematic lays Bean and Allard Farms: Converging Visions for a the playing fields out on the Bean Farm, arguVillage Landscape has a very practical, immediably the best physical place for recreation fields. ate purpose: to guide the City of Northampton A major stumbling block to this design is that as it decides the best use for these historic the placement threatens funding from the state farms. The document also has a more enduring Agricultural Preservation Restriction Program. goal: to interpret the landscape and to couple The preferred design, while not perfect (fewer its character with the vision of the people who fields than requested are included on site), love it to find a balanced way to meet the City’s most completely meets the City’s goals while needs for a place to farm, a place to play, and a staying true to what residents say they want: a place to let nature thrive. By looking closely at place to farm, a place to play, and a place to let the site, and by using a regional lens, this projnature thrive. ect aims to help direct the City as it looks to acquire land in the future.
Bean and Allard Farms: converging visions for a village landscape elizabeth cooper, mary praus, kate snyder • Conway School of landscape design
project summary winter 2010
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A Sense of Place turning point The village of Florence in central Northampton, with its two-story brick buildings, feels like the nineteenth-century mill-powered industrial center it once was. Children still buy candy bars at Bird’s Store on the corner of Maple and Main, and folks still meet at the landmark Miss Florence Diner to eat a plate of eggs at the counter of the former dining car; they may stop on the way home at Florence Hardware for some animal feed. Old factory buildings lie toward the Mill River to the southwest of the village. Only gas stations, a modern medical center, a day spa, and a coffee shop that sells fair-trade coffee and locally sourced food tell the story of a twenty-first-century place.
Something else has stayed the same: the Florence Meadows. The 185 acres of farmland to the north and south of Meadow Street, less than a mile from Florence Center, have been farmed—like much of Northampton used to be—for centuries. Like an insect preserved in amber for millennia, this land could be seen as a relic of the way things used to be: a field, traditionally plowed, weeded, and harvested by farmers. The metaphor is not quite apt, however, as this land is a productive, active place with functioning natural systems.
The Miss Florence Diner—or the Miss Flo—remains a vital part of Florence center. 6
Bean and Allard Farms: converging visions for a village landscape elizabeth cooper, mary praus, kate snyder • Conway School of landscape design
a sense of place winter 2010
The farms’ softly undulating lands has been farmed for centuries.
On most of this particular tract, abolitionists, starting in 1843, grew mulberry trees to feed silkworms in an effort to fund their anti-slavery movement. Today, Chinese mulberry trees line the Northampton Bikeway in parts of Florence. Silkworm moths grace the city seal of Northampton to honor the significance of this group’s contribution to freedom. Other abolitionists grew sugar beets here to offer an alternative to slave-grown sugar.
These historically rich 185 acres, now the Bean and Allard farms owned by two farm families, are for sale. Changes to this landscape will impact residents of Florence and Northampton, as well as the plants and animals that live on the land and in the Mill River, which runs through the farms. It is at this turning point that residents are taking stock of their values as they, and their elected representatives, decide the fate of these old farms.
Bean and Allard Farms: converging visions for a village landscape elizabeth cooper, mary praus, kate snyder • Conway School of landscape design
a sense of place winter 2010
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Land-Use Debate When the Bean Farm went up for sale in 2006, the price was too high for the City. A nationwide recession drove down the land’s value and in 2009, the City struck a deal. In subsequent months, the owner of the Allard Farm signed a purchase and sale agreement with the Trust for Public Land, a national land trust. The City would buy portions of the two properties for forty percent of the purchase price. The sale of Bean and Allard Farms triggered a debate among city residents about the right use for the land. Housing developers expressed interest in the parcels. The City’s Recreation Department, which had been searching for a place to put new playing fields, saw in the flat,
open land near the population center of Florence and the Northampton Bikeway, a potential place to site ballfields. Agriculture and conservation advocates who learned of the possibility of soccer and baseball fields on these prime farmlands soils said the land should be kept in farming. Acquiring land for new recreational fields, adding to conservation holdings, and preserving dwindling swaths of farmland are all listed as city land-use priorities in documents such as the 2005-2010 Northampton Open Space and Recreation Plan and the 2008 Sustainable Northampton Comprehensive Plan, but at Bean and Allard Farms, these goals collided.
The imminent sale of the farms led to a community debate over the best use for the land.
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Bean and Allard Farms: converging visions for a village landscape elizabeth cooper, mary praus, kate snyder • Conway School of landscape design
a sense of place winter 2010
The land’s characteristics make Bean and Allard Farms attractive for agriculure, recreation, and conservation
Creation of a Task Force The City Council created the Bean and Allard Farms Task Force, made up of representatives of the Recreation, Agricultural, and Conservation Commissions, and two landscape architects on the Zoning Revisions Committee, to find a way to have all three uses—recreation, agriculture, and conservation—on the land. Recognizing the need for a new perspective the City’s Office of Planning and Development asked the Conway School of Landscape Design (CSLD) to perform research and analysis, draw up sustainable schematics, and frame the information in a regional context, and inform this public debate. The task force held three public forums to hear from residents. CSLD hosted breakout sessions in two of these to capture participants’ ideas and thoughts.
The deal to acquire the land unfolded: the City would contribute $990,000—forty percent of the purchase price of both parcels—for 24 acres for recreation fields, 10 acres for community gardens and the approximately 35-acre riparian forest hugging the Mill River. However, at the time of this writing, the planning office has said that the City has allocated funds for 24 acres for recreational fields to be located north of Meadow Street and funding of community gardens is in doubt. This information guided the CSLD team as it worked to find the best use of the Bean and Allard farms for the residents of the city, past, present, and future; for the wildlife that lives there; and for the land itself.
Bean and Allard Farms: converging visions for a village landscape elizabeth cooper, mary praus, kate snyder • Conway School of landscape design
a sense of place winter 2010
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The Farms on the Map So where are these farms that suddenly were in the center of controversy? Bean and Allard lie, coincidentally, near the geographic center of Northampton, a small city of 30,000 in Hampshire County in the Connecticut River Valley of Massachusetts. Downtown Northampton is three and a half miles southeast from Bean and Allard. The farms straddle the Mill River, which empties into the Connecticut River at the eastern end of Northampton. Interstate 91 loosely follows the Connecticut River, providing north-south access to the region.
Surrounding Northampton are Hatfield to the northeast, Williamsburg to the northwest, Westhampton to the southwest, Easthampton to the southeast and the Connecticut River to the east . This project examines the towns of Hatfield, Williamsburg, Westhampton, and Easthampton as its broader region. The Office of Planning and Development requested that the report exclude the eastern town of Hadley because the Connecticut River imposes a natural boundary.
The Mill River both encloses and divides the farms.
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Bean and Allard Farms: converging visions for a village landscape elizabeth cooper, mary praus, kate snyder • Conway School of landscape design
a sense of place winter 2010
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Bean and Allard Farms: converging visions for a village landscape elizabeth cooper, mary praus, kate snyder • Conway School of landscape design
a sense of place winter 2010
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what was here Two forks of the Mill River meet 12 miles northwest of Northampton in neighboring Williamsburg. The river’s fast-moving waters— dropping more than 700 feet over 15 miles— flow through the Bean and Allard Farms and meet the Connecticut River at the Oxbow in the southeast corner of the city. The river’s swiftness drew mills that rose on its banks in the 1800s, powering early industry in Northampton. Many dams still mark this river’s history of hydropower. The very force that makes this river viable for power for industry is the force that causes the rushing waters to overflow
Education and Industry was founded to promote social justice and oppose slavery. Abolitionists such as Fredrick Douglas, William Lloyd Garrison, whose magazine The Dial is credited with helping to undo slavery, and Sojourner Truth were associated with this group. Sojourner Truth lived in Florence for several years, and a 2004 statue honoring her stands less than a mile away from the Bean and Allard Farms, indicating her significance to Northampton residents even today. An 1874 flood on the Mill River, known as one of the great man-made disasters of the late 1800s in western Massachusetts, wiped out much of the village of Leeds upstream of the Bean and Allard Farms when a poorly constructed dam broke. The 40-foot-high wall of water destroyed buildings and claimed 139 lives. It was said that the Florence meadows’ absorption capabilities helped diminish damage in downtown Northampton.
Early settlers harnessed the Mill River’s power.
their banks at the Bean and Allard Farms. The Prophylactic Brush Company, created in the mid-1800s, specialized in making resin handles of hairbrushes and toothbrushes. ProBrush, as it is known locally, lies immediately downstream of Allard Farm. In 1843 on the northern parcel of the Allard Farm and twentyfive eastern acres of Bean Farm, a utopian community called the Northampton Association of
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Pro-Brush was an economic force for 150 years.
Bean and Allard Farms: converging visions for a village landscape elizabeth cooper, mary praus, kate snyder • Conway School of landscape design
a sense of place winter 2010
A thriving center for commerce and culture (Smith College and the Academy of Music opera house still stand) through the nineteenth century, Northampton’s fortunes fell after World War II and hit bottom in the 1970s. Through investment in downtown during the 1980s, starting with the transformation of the old McCallum’s Department Store into Thorne’s Marketplace, the city reversed that trajectory, becoming a destination for upscale eateries and boutiques.
Riding that economic lift, suburban and rural development edged westward in recent years; houses sprang up on farmland in Florence and along routes that snaked toward the hilltowns west of Northampton. Florence, especially, was on the grow. In 2007 Pro-Brush was transformed into the Arts and Industry Building, home to artist studios and coffee shops and restaurants have opened, putting development pressure on the very tracts of land so coveted by agriculture, recreation and conservation advocates.
Artists now create in the former Pro-Brush building.
Bean and Allard Farms: converging visions for a village landscape elizabeth cooper, mary praus, kate snyder • Conway School of landscape design
a sense of place winter 2010
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coveted lands The people of Northampton and its surrounding communities hold a stake in what happens at the Bean and Allard Farms. Any change of use of the land effects residents. Playing fields draw traffic and require parking lots; players and their spectators make noise. Residents surrounding playing fields may not like this change.
The people of Northampton have a stake in the farms’ outcome.
Playing fields require maintenance: mowing and watering for organic fields, additional applications of pesticides, herbicides, and fertilizer for traditional fields. Those chemicals don’t stay in the ground; they are carried down slopes to waterways by rain, causing harm to aquatic life. Many residents oppose polluting the river. However, playing fields at the Bean and Allard Farms, near densely populated Florence center and close to the Northampton Bikeway, could reduce automobile travel for many residents who wouldn’t have to drive to other fields around Northampton, or could bike there. Playing fields could raise property values for those who live nearby. Ball fields can have positive and negative impacts on neighbors and for the entire city. Similarly, tractors farming here kick up dust, manure spread on soil can smell bad, and chemical fertilizers, pesticides, and herbicides pollute the river. But farming preserves open views, can grow local food, and provides habitat for wildlife. Conserving the land can prevent humans from using it in all but limited ways, but increases surrounding property values and enhances wildlife habitat. 14
So, who has something at stake here? • neighbors of the farms who worry about noise and increased traffic • the farmers who lease the land • the farmers who own the land • youth and adult players and the leagues that organize teams • the Recreation Department that schedules thousands of games per year • those who observe and appreciate wildlife; • localvores • those who enjoy the view of farmland as they drive past The Northampton City government, specifically those who make up the Bean and Allard Farms Task Force, have asked for guidance in determining through a transparent public process the best use of these family farms. The Trust for Public Land also is interested in the outcome. Finally, the Mill River corridor—the fragile ecosystems and wildlife linked by this waterway, upstream and down—must be not only considered, but respected.
Bean and Allard Farms: converging visions for a village landscape elizabeth cooper, mary praus, kate snyder • Conway School of landscape design
a sense of place winter 2010
For Sale: Bean & Allard Farms
Office of Planning & Development
City Council
Trust for Public Land
Task Force
CSLD
Public Input
Recreation Commission Conservation Commission Agricultural Commission Zoning Revisions Committee
Future of Bean & Allard Farms
Bean and Allard Farms: converging visions for a village landscape elizabeth cooper, mary praus, kate snyder • Conway School of landscape design
a sense of place winter 2010
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Community Voices The Conway School of Landscape Design held breakout sessions during two public forums run by the Bean and Allard Farms Task Force to hear what those stakeholders had to say. On February 8, 2010, the forum focused on agricultural activities on the Bean and Allard Farms; the March 1, 2010, forum centered on recreation possibilities there. At each forum, the approximately 30 participants split into two groups and voiced their visions for all three uses for the land: agriculture, recreation, and conservation.
A Way to Farm A number of participants voiced a desire for a well-diversified, organic, four-season community farm, perhaps with livestock, and an education center. The farm could be a beautiful, ecologically sound place that could host community celebrations. It could be connected to local organizations such as the Survival Center (an emergency food pantry), Meals-on-Wheels, and the Veteran’s Administration hospital in Leeds, and could provide jobs for young people.
Small plots for farmers should be affordable. Participants suggested a community kitchen for processing value-added products and a farm stand. Many said agricultural land should stay in farming but that if recreation fields were to go in on site, the two uses should “share the pain” of being in a floodplain, meaning a farmer shouldn’t get the soggy areas just to keep the playing fields dry.
Farmland hugs the Connecticut River. 16
Bean and Allard Farms: converging visions for a village landscape elizabeth cooper, mary praus, kate snyder • Conway School of landscape design
a sense of place winter 2010
Recreation enthusiasts saw the fields as a place for families to gather.
A Way to Play At the first forum, most participants opposed having ballfields on the site, preferring passive recreation activities such as hiking trails, bike paths, fitness loops, play structures, and shaded picnic facilities. These participants were mostly in favor of providing community gardens here, but some objected to supplanting farmland for community gardens. At the second forum, residents asked for recreation fields concentrated together and close to the street to allow easy access for emergency vehicles and for people with disabilities. Among the desired features, residents mentioned an artificial turf field, fields that could be rotated to reduce wear at the goals, 20 feet of sideline space along soccer fields, a lighted field with a downward cast
to reduce light pollution, a connection to Look Memorial Park, walking trails along the river, a playground, picnic tables, and a pavilion with bathrooms. It was suggested that structures, such as a pavilion and fence, look like a barn to evoke the agricultural heritage of the farms. Many participants wanted to preserve the farmland views from Meadow Street, while some said seeing recreation fields would be a good thing. Having playing fields on both sides of Meadow Street was seen as potentially dangerous to those crossing the street. Maintaining the fields without chemicals was also suggested, as was finding land elsewhere in the city that is not on prime farmland soil.
Bean and Allard Farms: converging visions for a village landscape elizabeth cooper, mary praus, kate snyder • Conway School of landscape design
a sense of place winter 2010
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A Way to Let Nature Thrive Attendees requested looking at the land as a whole. Several preferred to farm or have recreation with no pesticides to pollute the river and its buffer. They suggested enhancing the conservation buffer, perhaps planting food-producing trees and shrubs to complement agriculture. A bird-friendly crop such as a grain, mown after grassland birds fledge, would
enhance habitat. Other participants wondered about making habitat connections—would animals prefer corridors by the river or would they use agricultural fields for habitat? Participants reported seeing bear, fox, and waterfowl on the properties. They warned that increased human use (especially if people brought dogs) would compact soil and erode fragile banks.
What animals make their home in the woods along the Mill River?
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Bean and Allard Farms: converging visions for a village landscape elizabeth cooper, mary praus, kate snyder • Conway School of landscape design
a sense of place winter 2010
Converging Ideas Several participants requested parking be combined for community garden and recreation use and that it be near the road to minimize its impact. They acknowledged that this would not look appealing from the road. One resident suggested hosting parking off site to serve both Bean and Allard Farms and the nearby Arts and Industry building. Lines of division emerged as agricultural advocates pushed for community-centered
farming, preserving views, and passive recreation. Recreation proponents, meanwhile, offered specific proposals on how soccer and baseball fields would play out on the land. The groups came together on gathering spaces— participants requested a gathering space many times—and community gardens. These visions have informed the CSLD team’s work and resonate throughout this project and the design alternatives presented later.
Residential properties flank the Bean and Allard Farms.
Bean and Allard Farms: converging visions for a village landscape elizabeth cooper, mary praus, kate snyder • Conway School of landscape design
a sense of place winter 2010
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Guiding Principles Stakeholders and community members had their say about what should go on at the Bean and Allard Farms. At times their visions clashed. Can a look at Northampton’s guiding documents help sort out the city’s priorities? The City’s guiding principles are its 2005-2010 Open Space and Recreation Plan (OSRP) and 2008 Sustainable Northampton Comprehensive Plan (SNCP). The OSRP provides guidance on how Northampton can best use its limited resources to meet open space, conservation, and recreation needs while the SNCP seeks to ensure the City can continue to meet its current and future social, environmental, and economic needs. The OSRP acknowledges the city’s wealth of scenic, cultural, natural, and recreational resources, which contribute tremendously to residents’ high quality of life. It calls out the conflict that the demand for open space and recreation areas is high, but that the demand for suburban housing has pushed up land values and limited opportunities for permanent protection of lands for public use. Written in 2005 before the economic downturn, the OSRP may be referring to a financial climate that has changed. In fact, it was the Bean and Allard’s Farms’ affordability that made the City consider buying them. The OSRP inventories ecologically, culturally, and recreationally important land and provides guidance on how the City can acquire land for
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open space, conservation, and recreation needs. It also spells out where the City has worked with surrounding towns— Williamsburg, Hatfield, Easthampton, and Westhampton—to conserve land, a model that may be useful in siting playing fields, as well. The open space plan also lists smart-growth principles, such as cluster developments, mixed-use campus development, and the addition of affordable housing to foster a socially and economically vibrant community. As it lists priorities, the plan mentions preserving dwindling farmland, building new recreation fields, and conserving open space as pillars of its land acquisition strategy. Here, the OSRP houses the same conflicting vision as the stakeholders and members of the community. The SNCP, meanwhile, links sustainable policies and practices with an emphasis on economic and cultural vitality, social equity, and environmental security. The SNCP says land use should recognize and foster the unique history, character, and function of each area. It embraces a diverse economy, making the city more walkable and bikeable, and operating the city as a democratic enterprise. Clearly, as the City tackled the Bean and Allard Farm acquisition, it’s emphasis on a bottom-up, transparent process illustrates a commitment to the democratic process. It remains to be seen how the City will uphold the remaining ideals and those of the OSRP under pressure of competing landuse priorities at the Bean and Allard Farms.
Bean and Allard Farms: converging visions for a village landscape elizabeth cooper, mary praus, kate snyder • Conway School of landscape design
a sense of place winter 2010
goals Northampton’s land-use priorities have come into clearer focus, even as they contradict one another. On the Bean and Allard Farms, the three uses—agriculture, recreation, and conservation—must be represented. As a result, the project goals are: • Gather information including geographic information systems maps, municipal and regional data, and input from expert sources to understand the site from the perspective of agriculture, recreation, and conservation. • Assess the suitability of the site for the three uses. • Identify optimal areas for the three uses. • Detail criteria for each use. • Provide schematic alternatives based on analysis and criteria and note the probable impacts of each alternative. • Examine the five-town region for existing and potential patterns of agricultural, recreational, and conservation land to help Northampton strategically acquire and manage land in the future.
The bustling city of Northampton is just a few miles from the verdant Bean and Allard Farms.
Bean and Allard Farms: converging visions for a village landscape elizabeth cooper, mary praus, kate snyder • Conway School of landscape design
a sense of place winter 2010
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Northampton Agriculture Despite a decline in local agriculture over the years, farming and farmland are significant to the people of Northampton. Major farm operations at the eastern end of the city on the banks of the Connecticut River—the fertile Northampton Meadows—supply potatoes to national food producers. Family farms and community supported agriculture operations CSAs are peppered throughout the city. Bean and Allard Farms are the largest swaths of contiguous acreage outside the Northampton Meadows and have recently been growing conventional potatoes and hay.
Preserving prime farmland and the right to farm are stated priorities in the City’s OSRP and SNCP (see Page 20). In 2005, Northampton established an Agricultural Commission and passed a Right to Farm ordinance. (See box below.) The law establishes farming and its related industries as priority uses on city agricultural lands and defends farmers from neighbors who might complain about noise, smell, or other impacts, stating those impacts are “more than offset by the benefits of farming to the neighborhood, community, and society in general.”
Northampton is home to two weekly farmers’ markets during the summer; a well attended winter market started in 2008. Throughout the growing season, farmers sell all manner of vegetables, including the region’s beloved asparagus, at roadside stands, often on the honor system. Strawberries and blueberries, maple products, and honey are big local products. Several U-Pick operations open during the summer, including Town Farm, which lets customers forage for beans, peas, and flowers.
Organizations such as Community Involved in Sustaining Agriculture (CISA) and Grow Food Northampton (GFN) further reveal the desire to preserve a locally focused farming tradition. Through its Local Hero initiative, CISA provides marketing support for farmers selling locally. The group also helps farmers connect with restaurants and serves as an online clearinghouse for people looking for local produce.
What is the Right to Farm? In the interest of preserving its agricultural heritage the City of Northampton made the move in December 2005 to adopt a Right to Farm Ordinance. This ordinance establishes farming, agriculture, and agricultural facilities and operations as priority uses on agricultural lands within the City and aims to conserve, protect, and encourage the maintenance and improvement of agricultural land for the production of food and other agricultural products, and also for its natural and ecological value. The right to farm bill was enacted as a protective measure for city farmers against nuisance complaints that can arise when new suburban lots are developed near farms. Property owners or new buyers of property near farms are informed that the site may be impacted by farming activities that may cause noise, dust, and odors associated with agricultural operations including cultivation of crops and raising of livestock. The ordinance says that residents and occupants of property in agricultural areas should “accept inconveniences from normal, usual, and customary agricultural operations, facilities, and practices.”
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Bean and Allard Farms: converging visions for a village landscape elizabeth cooper, mary praus, kate snyder • Conway School of landscape design
a sense of place winter 2010
GFN is a grassroots citizen group dedicated to protecting local food security by advocating for agricultural land preservation, legislation and re-zoning to support micro-farms, expansion of community supported agriculture and community gardens, and broadening venues for local farmers’ markets. GFN is one of several groups who, in 2010, hired a separate CSLD team to establish a food security plan for Northampton.
Members of the City’s Agriculture Commission represent agricultural interests on the Bean and Allard Farms Task Force established by the City Council. Other agriculture advocates including CISA and GFN members have been a strong voice in the Bean and Allard Farms debate, prompting the formation of a farmer advisory committee to advocate for keeping the Bean and Allard farm land in agriculture and to present a proposal to the task force outlining potential ways to do so sustainably.
Many Northampton residents are passionate about farming.
What is the Agricultural Preservation Restriction Program? The Agricultural Preservation Restriction (APR) Program, overseen by the Massachusetts Department of Agricultural Resources, is a voluntary program that offers a non-development alternative to farmland owners faced with a decision regarding the future use and deposition of their farms. The program offers farmers a payment up to the difference between the “fair market value” and the “fair market agricultural value” of their farmland in exchange for a permanent deed restriction, which precludes any use of the property that will have a negative impact on its agricultural viability. The APR Program is designed to help keep local taxes low, strengthen farms as economically viable businesses, and to maintain an inventory of farmland for future generations.
Bean and Allard Farms: converging visions for a village landscape elizabeth cooper, mary praus, kate snyder • Conway School of landscape design
a sense of place winter 2010
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Northampton Recreation Twenty-eight leagues, representing 3,828 players—or thirteen percent of the city’s population—play on city fields. Private nonprofit leagues have taken over the duties that recreation departments, often understaffed, have historically assumed. Participants pay leagues between $30 and $150 per season, $5 of which goes to the City, raising between $15,000 and $18,000 per year for the Recreation Department. The department, with seven staffers, scheduled 3,740 games in 2009.
Commission, a volunteer board that oversees the Recreation Department, had been looking to expand its facilities for decades when the Bean and Allard Farms went on the market.
City and school facilities include two all-season multipurpose fields—rectangles for soccer and lacrosse play—and six fields available for soccer and lacrosse only in the fall (because the fields are used as baseball outfields in spring and summer), four baseball diamonds, eight softball diamonds and two youth softball diamonds. (See table, Page 27.) The Recreation
Maintaining Fields Maintenance, including labor and materials, falls under the purview of the Department of Public Works’ Cemeteries Division. Maintaining current fields cost the City $264,000 in 2009. The City uses traditional field management techniques, which involves the application of pesticide and herbicide in
The Recreation Commission determined it needed four to six unlighted multipurpose grass fields and two diamonds, one baseball, one softball, also unlighted and on grass. This number would allow the city to meet growing demand for fields, and to rest fields periodically.
Nighttime ball game at Maines Field, two miles downstream of the Bean and Allard Farms
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Bean and Allard Farms: converging visions for a village landscape elizabeth cooper, mary praus, kate snyder • Conway School of landscape design
a sense of place winter 2010
spring, and fertilizer three times a year; aeration twice a season; seeding and reseeding throughout the season; mowing two to three times a week in spring and fall, and every two weeks in summer; and irrigation if rainfall doesn’t amount to one inch of water per week. It’s possible to manage fields with organic methods, saving money after the fifth year, but mowing and some irrigation requirements remain. Synthetic turf fields reduce maintenance to about $700 per year, but initial costs, usually more than $1 million per field, can be prohibitive for cities with limited revenue, such as Northampton.
Keeping fields maintained in a floodplain offers its own set of challenges. Maine’s Field, two miles downstream from Bean and Allard Farms on the Mill River, has been damaged in several floods in recent years, requiring thousands of dollars in repairs, according to Recreation Commission Chair Thomas Parent. During one surge, the river carried debris onto the fields and destroyed a light post. The City installed special fences with hinges that allow the fences to be lifted so that flood debris would not be trapped on the playing surface.
Creating an Organically Maintained Recreation Field The Bean and Allard Farms abut the Mill River and sit on a groundwater recharge area. Chemicals applied to the turf will be carried to aquifers and the river by rainfall and snowmelt. Organically maintained ball fields use soil amendments that are safe for ecosystems. Eschewing chemical inputs can also save money after the fifth year of installation. To establish organic ball fields: Step 1: Test the soil and hire a consultant who knows how to set up organically maintained fields (See Resources for a list of consultants in Massachusetts). Step 2: Remove and reserve topsoil. Step 3: Based on soil texture, porosity, drainage, and chemistry, amend the soil. Step 4: Level subsoil layer (adding gravel if necessary) and grade to 2%, or crowned with a 1% grade to each side, so fields drain properly. Step 5: Return 4” to 6” of amended topsoil and, after letting the soil settle, seed with Kentucky bluegrass (or a mix of bluegrass and less than 10% perennial ryegrass). Ideal time for seeding is late summer or early fall. Step 6: Irrigate as turf gets established; keep players off field for one year plus one season. Step 7: Maintain field with organic amendments, aerating twice a year, reseeding at least once a year, mowing to keep grass to 2” to 2.5”, and irrigating when needed. Source: Osborne Organics
Bean and Allard Farms: converging visions for a village landscape elizabeth cooper, mary praus, kate snyder • Conway School of landscape design
a sense of place winter 2010
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Other New Playing Field Options A January 2010 feasibility study by the Office of Planning and Development identified potential areas for new fields. Along with Bean and Allard Farms, which it called “very limited” for playing field development because they are on prime farmland soils, the study named farmland near Sheldon Field by the Northampton Fair-grounds as a place where two multipurpose fields might go. This privately owned land is not currently for sale, and it is also prime farmland, but its proximity to downtown, I-91, existing playing fields and ample parking (a Park and Ride lot is on the premises) make it a promising location. Northampton’s bind is that prime farmland is flat land, making it desirable for recreation fields (See MAP 2; Page 29). The study also cited the City-owned, capped landfill on Glendale Road as a possible future site for playing fields.
The soccer and baseball field at Veteran’s Field has been closed for two years for maintenance. It is being reseeded this year, according to the Recreation Department, and will be open in the spring of 2011. This will reduce pressure on demand for fields. Look Memorial Park, across the river to the north of Bean and Allard Farms, recently requested Community Preservation Act funds to develop a multipurpose field. With its five current baseball diamonds, Look Memorial Park—owned by the City but run by a private board from donations, not tax dollars—and the City may be able to work out an agreement to accommodate league play there. However, the park also sits on prime farmland. This is all to say that there are no easy answers to a complicated question of where to site playing fields. Do Bean and Allard Farms offer the right conditions for the sports complex requested by the City?
Farmland adjacent to Sheldon Field, pictured above, was identified for potential future playing fields
Assessing Recreation Field Needs The Recreation Department is clearly pressed to find fields to schedule games. A department feasibility study identified the need of four to six multipurpose fields and two diamonds. While the National Playing Field Association recommends one soccer field for every ten thousand residents and one baseball diamond for every five thousand residents, these figures don’t take into consideration specific local needs and characteristics. A researcher at the National Recreation and Parks Association developed a matrix for determining community needs based on variables specific to local conditions. A spreadsheet, requires the user to enter the number of fields (lighted and unlighted), days of the week and hours the field is in use (fewer during the shorter days of spring and fall), and number of teams for each sport and field type. While the CSLD team was not able to access the required information to fill in the spreadsheet by the writing of this document, it will send a copy of the tool to the Recreation Department at the delivery of this report. The matrix may help the Recreation Department pinpoint how many fields city players need.
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Bean and Allard Farms: converging visions for a village landscape elizabeth cooper, mary praus, kate snyder • Conway School of landscape design
a sense of place winter 2010
Inventory of Northampton Playing Fields
Bean and Allard Farms: converging visions for a village landscape elizabeth cooper, mary praus, kate snyder • Conway School of landscape design
a sense of place winter 2010
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Northampton Conservation The City of Northampton is blessed with a wealth of beautiful and unique natural resources, many of which have been conserved. The City’s conservation efforts include encouraging private landowners to place land in trusts, purchasing land for conservation outright, and partnering with organizations such as Massachusetts Wildlife and Fisheries to share the cost of purchasing and managing land. Exploring all the conservation areas of the city could be a quite an undertaking! Imagine a hike at the biologically diverse Fitzgerald Lake Conservation Area, binoculars at the ready, walking among yellow birch and hop hornbeam. Or a hotdog and a paddleboat ride at Look Memorial Park. Or a picnic amidst the lowbush blueberries atop a ridge at Roberts Hill Conservation Area. What wonderful diversity all within the city limits! As described in Rediscovering Northampton, The Natural History of City-Owned Conservation Areas, the city contains at least sixteen distinct major habitat types including glacial outwash plains, drumlins, ravines, rocky uplands, floodplain forests, and vernal pools.
The tell-tale sign of a beaver’s activity marks the bank of the Mill River.
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A large snag can be home to a world of birds, small mammals, invertebrates, bacteria, and fungi.
Future land conservation in the city should consider these habitat types, with a priority placed on those which are not currently reflected in the City’s holdings. It should also focus on Conservation Commission goals, as stated in the OSRP, including the following: 1. Protect or link open space parcels to provide large natural habitat areas. 2. Protect critical habitat including wetlands, rare or endangered species habitat, and wildlife and riparian corridors. 3. Protect natural habitat types such as riparian, farmland, and forest habitats and vernal pools. 4. Protect drinking water supply watershed and aquifer lands. The city’s diverse natural resources are perhaps Northampton’s greatest asset.
Bean and Allard Farms: converging visions for a village landscape elizabeth cooper, mary praus, kate snyder • Conway School of landscape design
a sense of place winter 2010
Fitzgerald Lake Conservation Area
Look Park
Not for construction. These drawings are part of a student project and are not based on a legal survey. Not to scale.
Roberts Hill Conservation Area
Sawmill Hills Conservation Area
Maines Field Recreation Area
Conservation Land within one mile of Bean and Allard Farms Name
Acreage
Type of Use
Key Land Features
Fitzgerald Lake Conservation Area
591
Fishing, canoeing, hiking, birding
Forest, open meadow, wetlands, and a 40-acre artificial lake (Fitzgerald Lake)
Look Park
157
Picnicking, tennis, baseball, shuffleboard, train rides, concession stands
Abuts Mill River
Maines Field Recreation Area
14.5
Lighted baseball, volleyball, pavilion, playground
Wooded area, abuts Mill River
Roberts Hill Conservation Area
104
Foot trails, birding, snowmobiles,
Wooded hills, cliffs, upland forest, ponds and stream
Sawmill Hills Conservation Area
382
Hiking, birding
Wooded, vernal pools, volcanic rock formations, swamps, intermittent and permanent streams
Bean and Allard Farms: converging visions for a village landscape elizabeth cooper, mary praus, kate snyder • Conway School of landscape design
a sense of place winter 2010
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A Broader Look The Five-Town Region
Not for construction. These drawings are part of a student project and are not based on a legal survey. Not to scale.
The City of Northampton with the surrounding towns of Hatfield, Williamsburg, Westhampton and Easthampton make up the five-town region for the purposes of this project. These adjacent towns, connected by major state roads, lead to Northampton, the regional node. The Office of Planning and Development requested that Hadley not be included because the Connecticut River separates the two municipalities.
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Whether the City chooses to link conservation habitat, preserve farmland with contiguous acreage, or share playing fields with neighboring towns, developing a regional approach to solving problems may improve Northampton’s chances for meeting its land-use goals.
CT
Ri
ve
r
66 10
Bean and Allard Farms: converging visions for a village landscape elizabeth cooper, mary praus, kate snyder • Conway School of landscape design
a broader look winter 2010
farming’s decline? Agriculture in the region has declined over the long term in the amount of land farmed, that land’s economic output, the number of farms, and the average farm’s size. According to the American Farmland Trust (AFT), these reductions reflect a statewide and nationwide trend of conversion of farmland for roads, housing, and commercial sites and the inflation of the market value of farmland for development. Couple that trend with the intense competition from Midwestern and Western agribuisiness and the New England family farm has a slim chance for survival. Farmland in the five-town region is concentrated on the fertile soils along the Connecticut River; large parcels in other areas of the region have been the fragmented over the years by residential and commercial development (See Map 1).
The 2007 Census of Agriculture profile for Hampshire County shows a decrease in the loss of farmland and an increase in the number of smaller farms from five years prior. This regional shift, says the AFT, can be attributed to an increase in demand for locally grown produce. Meeting this demand will take more
farms, more farmers, and more farmland growing local food. Many of the new small farms in the region are CSA farms established and supported by a community of individuals who share the risks and benefits of food production. This direct sales model has allowed farmers to get working capital in advance, get better prices for their crops, gain some financial security, and to be relieved of much of the burden of marketing. Since 2002 farmers and interested community organizations have been increasingly capitalizing on the capacity to serve local needs. In particular, the region’s agricultural sector has become a center of organic farming, supplying specialty produce and value-added products to farmers’ markets, local stores and restaurants. Efforts to market local produce and boost the sales of local farms are showing promise and may, over time, break the cycle of farming decline. The Bean and Allard Farms may have a role to play in reversing that trend.
The small farming movement is thriving in Northampton. Bean and Allard Farms: converging visions for a village landscape elizabeth cooper, mary praus, kate snyder • Conway School of landscape design
a broader look winter 2010
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Surrounding fields Recreation fields in surrounding towns lie within eight miles, or a twenty-minute drive, to downtown Northampton and Florence center. The recreational facilities of the three smaller towns, Hatfield, Williamsburg, and Westhampton, are at schools, while Easthampton’s, including a fifteen-acre soccer complex, are concentrated at Nonotuck Park. Williamsburg’s Recreation Commission chair has said he welcomes Northampton league play on the town’s fields. Hatfield, Westhampton, and Easthampton acknowledge the tendency of municipal recreation departments to “stay within their own niche” and not work together to coordinate games outside of their own jurisdictions. Map 2 shows recreation fields scattered throughout the five-town region, Northampton schedules thousands of league games each year.
Hatfield, with fewer than 2,00 residents and a large number of school fields, is an easy drive up Route 91 or Route 5. The fields of Williamsburg, a town of 2,500 residents, lie along Route 9. Route 66 connects Westhampton to Northampton. Home to the regional high school, Westhampton also has fewer than 2,000 residents. Nonutuck Park, the home of Easthampton’s recreation center, is in the center of town, off Route 10. The population of Easthampton is roughly 15,000.
Soccer’s popularity in the region has grown in the last fifteen years.
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Bean and Allard Farms: converging visions for a village landscape elizabeth cooper, mary praus, kate snyder • Conway School of landscape design
a broader look winter 2010
Conservation priorities The Office of Planning and Development expressed a particular interest in conservation planning in the region. So, how does the City currently prioritize which lands to conserve? The Northampton Conservation Commission
Red-winged blackbirds prefer edge habitat.
endeavors to protect plant and wildlife habitat and to preserve the natural resources and, thus, the quality of life for citizens of Northampton.
One key document that helps guide its mission is the Massachusetts Wetlands Protection Act, which includes goals such as protection of public and private water supply, flood control, prevention of pollution, and protection of wildlife habitat. The second guiding document is the City’s Wetlands Ordinance, whose purpose is, in part, to protect wetlands and to maintain the quality of surface water and water recharge areas as it provides for the protection and conservation of natural features, resources and amenities. Lastly, the OSRP’s conservation goals include protecting important ecological resources, including surface and groundwater resources, plant communities and wildlife habitat as well as protecting architectural and cultural history and preserving ecological and wildlife linkages. Some important ecological resources and wildlife habitats include, but are not limited to, Natural Heritage Endangered Species Priority Habitats and Core Habitats (see Page 30) as well as vernal pools.
Priority Habitat is defined by the Natural Heritage Endangered Species Program as the known geographical extent of habitat for all state-listed rare species. Habitat alteration within Priority Habitats is subject to review by the Natural Heritage & Endangered Species Program. Priority Habitat maps determine whether a proposed project must be reviewed by the NHESP for Massachusetts Endangered Species Act compliance. Core Habitat is defined as a site critical for the long-term survival of the Commonwealth’s biodiversity—sites critical for terrestrial and wetland biodiversity. Vernal pools, also known as ephemeral pools, typically fill with water due to rising groundwater and melting snow and pool through the spring and into summer, often drying completely during the summer months. When wet, they teem with life and can contain such species as frogs, toads, and salamanders, some of which are threatened or endangered, which use the pools for reproduction. Vernal pools can also offer critical stopping-off points for dragonflies and other wildlife.
Bean and Allard Farms: converging visions for a village landscape elizabeth cooper, mary praus, kate snyder • Conway School of landscape design
a broader look winter 2010
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Wetlands are valuable natural resources, serving such functions as providing wildlife habitat, helping control floods, and purifying drinking water. Wetlands include such natural features as rivers, streams, intermittent streams, ponds, and vernal pools . In Massachusetts, wetlands are protected by the Massachusetts Wetlands Protection Act (WPA), which regulates the excavating, filling, or altering of wetlands, which can impair wetlands’ valuable functions. The WPA identifies several main reasons why people value wetlands, including protecting water supplies, preventing storm damage, and protecting wildlife habitat and fisheries. People who want to do work within 100’ of wetlands must apply to the conservation commission in their municipality for permission to do so. Conservation commissions decide whether to approve any applications that will affect wetlands, and may set certain conditions that the applicant must follow, in order to protect wetlands, or minimize the impact on wetland functions.
How does the City’s approach to conservation fit into the five-town region? As land is prioritized for conservation, a municipal boundary does not mean the end of a natural resource such as a river or a wildlife corridor. The City expressed an interest in understanding the current conservation patterns in the five-town region to help guide future land acquisitions and to make decisions based on its conservation goals. This regional view will complement the Conservation Commission’s Five-Year Land Acquisition Plan, found in the OSRP. Map 5 shows distinct patterns of currently conserved land and, perhaps more importantly, exciting opportunities for linking these conserved lands to create larger contiguous areas of plant and wildlife habitat.
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How can the five towns best cooperate to conserve the most valuable land, when looked at through a regional lens? Northampton already partners with the Trust for Public Land and with the Massachusetts Division of Fisheries and Wildlife to obtain important conservation lands. Partnering with adjacent towns to leverage resources to acquire lands seems a next logical step. The Pioneer Valley Planning Commission may also be an excellent resource for assistance in planning next steps for a fivetown land conservation plan.
Bean and Allard Farms: converging visions for a village landscape elizabeth cooper, mary praus, kate snyder • Conway School of landscape design
a broader look winter 2010
mapping the region Looking at the larger five-town region can help put into perspective the meaning of Bean and Allard Farms. The maps on the following pages will lay out patterns of agricultural land in the five-town region (Map 1), and show where prime farmland soils—a finite natural resource—are located (Map 2). Looking regionally at recreation fields may show where there are opportunities for neighboring communities to share playing fields (Map 3). And as municipalities continue to acquire open space for conserving habitat for future generations, taking a regional approach is vital for protecting corridors for wildlife (Maps 4 and 5) that may not conform to municipal boundaries. Habitat for rare species and species of concern (Map 6) may extend across town lines, requiring a regional approach to conservation. These maps begin to tell the story of how the Bean and Allard Farms fit into a larger pattern of agricultural, recreational, and conservation lands.
Bean and Allard Farms: converging visions for a village landscape elizabeth cooper, mary praus, kate snyder • Conway School of landscape design
a broader look winter 2010
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The Mill River wends its way through the region.
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Bean and Allard Farms: converging visions for a village landscape elizabeth cooper, mary praus, kate snyder • Conway School of landscape design
a broader look winter 2010
MAP 1 REGIONAL AGRICULTURE
Though the five-town region in the Pioneer Valley has been a center of agriculture dating back to colonial times, agricultural land over the last twenty years has been disappearing. The decline in both the amount of land farmed and the corresponding drop in the average farm size parallels an accelerated rate statewide conversion of farmland for roads, housing, and commercial sites. Inventory • Farmland is concentrated along the Connecticut River. • Large parcels outside Connecticut River Valley are generally fragmented by residential and commercial development. Not for construction. These drawing are part of a student project and are not based on a legal survey. Not to scale.
• The Bean and Allard Farms parcel is more than 50% larger than the region’s average 74-acre farm and is one of the largest contiguous farmland parcels in region west of I-91. Implications • Keeping the Bean and Allard Farms as farmland would preserve one of the largest contiguous pieces of farmland in the five-town region, except the parcels along Connecticut River. • As demand for locally-produced food rises, demand for nearby parcels of farmland will rise.
Bean and Allard Farms: converging visions for a village landscape elizabeth cooper, mary praus, kate snyder • Conway School of landscape design
winter 2010
MAP 2
Five-Town Playing Field Inventory
REGIONAL RECREATION Northampton has established strong recreation environment with offerings as unconventional in New England as bocce courts and sand volleyball courts along with the standard swimming pool and bikeways. These amenities engage Northampton residents and draw visitors from neighboring towns. As the City looks to meet demand for more fields, a look at its immediate surroundings may show where opportunities exist outside its boundaries. Look Park
Assessment • Neighboring towns have 29 fields; Williamsburg may possibly be willing to share its 2 fields.
Sheldon Field
• Rehabilitated soccer/baseball field at Veteran’s Field, purchased land to expand Sheldon Field and future soccer fields at Look Memorial Park may augment league play fields.
Not for construction. These drawings are part of a student project and are not based on a legal survey. Not to scale.
Veterans Field
• A 2010 City feasibility study for playing fields cites Bean and Allard Farms with a rating of “very limited” for developing recreational fields due to its prime farmland soils. Implications • The City has requested 4 to 6 multipurpose and 2 baseball fields, but they may not all need to be at Bean and Allard Farms.
ion Rec Field / Prime Farmland Overlap Bean and Allard Farms: converging visions for a village landscape elizabeth cooper, mary praus, kate snyder • Conway School of landscape design
winter 2010
• Lands with prime farmland soils should be avoided when choosing recreational field sites, according to the City’s criteria
MAP 3 REGIONAL CONSERVATION CORE HABITAT
Brook Snaketail
Northampton has worked to conserve land for the benefit of its citizens and to protect plant and wildlife habitats. As the city prioritizes its next land acquisition, an understanding of the location of Natural Heritage Endangered Species Program’s Core Habitats could help guide their decisions. NHESP BioMap Core Habitats are areas most in need of protection to preserve the native biodiversity of the Commonwealth. Using the BioMap to identify and target Core Habitats could help the City protect land most vital to biodiversity. Assessment
Not for construction. These drawings are part of a student project and are not based on a legal survey. Not to scale.
Jefferson Salamander
• Core habitat lands lie within one half mile to the west of Bean and Allard Farms and about a mile to the east, some of which is Fitzgerald Lake Conservation Area. • Roads and houses fragment core habitat and conserved areas. • Species of concern within the five-town area include dragonflies, beetles and salamanders. Implications
Elderberry Long-Horned Beetle
• Conservation of Bean and Allard Farms could improve wildlife’s survival by broadening their habitat, especially along riparian corridor. • Conserving and connecting core habitats in the five-town region could create contiguous protected areas and protect ecological resources.
Bean and Allard Farms: converging visions for a village landscape elizabeth cooper, mary praus, kate snyder • Conway School of landscape design
winter 2010
MAP 4 REGIONAL CONSERVATION PRIORITY HABITAT
Early spring vernal pool
Habitats for wildlife and plant life do not conform to property boundaries nor city limits. As the city considers strategies for acquiring more land for conservation, looking at Priority Habitat patterns and patterns of vernal pools separate from property lines can reveal patterns throughout the region. Assessment • The riparian forest and adjacent river on the Bean and Allard Farms contain Priority Habitat of a Rare Species. Similar habitats lie within one-half mile of Bean and Allard Farms as well as throughout the five-town region.
Not for construction. These drawings are part of a student project and are not based on a legal survey. Not to scale.
Eggs masses in vernal pool
• Bean and Allard Farms are located less than a half mile from certified and potential vernal pools, which are also dispersed throughout the five-town region. • Northampton has been active in identifying vernal pools throughout the city Implications
Ocellated Darner
• Any plan for alteration to land containing Priority Habitat must be reviewed by NHESP. • The Bean and Allard Farms should be evaluated for vernal pools, based on the close proximity of similar land containing certified vernal pools and upon observation of potential vernal pools in riparian woods.
Bean and Allard Farms: converging visions for a village landscape elizabeth cooper, mary praus, kate snyder • Conway School of landscape design
winter 2010
MAP 5 REGIONAL CONSERVATION PATTERNS
American Bittern
3
Fitzgerald Lake Conservation Area
2 3
Assessment:
1
2 Sawmill Hills Conservation Area
1
2
Upland Sandpiper
3
Not for construction. These drawings are part of a student project and are not based on a legal survey. Not to scale.
The opportunity exists to make conservation connections to create or maintain wildlife corridors in the fivetown region and beyond. Northampton is committed to conserving land for just this purpose. Some examples of conservation in the City include Fitzgerald Lake Conservation Area and Sawmill Hills Conservation Area, both within about a mile of Bean and Allard Farms.
The Mill River, abutting the property, forms a natural wildlife corridor.
2
Conserved land, some within a mile from Bean and Allard Farms could be linked to form a potential corridor.
3
Core and priority habitats, key areas to conserve, point the way to yet another potential corridor.
Implications: • Bean and Allard Farms’ location between and near conserved, core and priorty habitats makes it a prime candidate for conservation. Bald Eagle Bald Eagle
Bean and Allard Farms: converging visions for a village landscape elizabeth cooper, mary praus, kate snyder • Conway School of landscape design
winter 2010
• Conserving the property would add to the already-conserved land along the Mill River, thus strengthening that fragile river ecosystem.
A Closer Focus site analysis The regional analyses showed the importance of the Bean and Allard Farms in the wider region. This large area of contiguous farmland is clearly an agricultural asset for Northampton and it is an area of great significance ecologically. It also holds promise for developing playing fields. As we take a closer look at the site level (Map 7), we see a tract of land greatly affected by the river that runs through it (Map 8), a river that
floods the farms, enriching the soils and carry ing water down slopes (Map 9). As we investigate how humans have taken advantage of those soils, we’ll analyze how people reach the farms (by car, on foot, or by bike), how they navigate it (May 9), and what they see when they move past it (Map 10). Finally, we’ll show how vegetation (Map 11) provides forage, cover, and breeding ground for wildlife (Map 12). A summary analysis (Map 13) follows.
The Bean Farm pig barn is one of three structures on the farm.
Bean and Allard Farms: converging visions for a village landscape elizabeth cooper, mary praus, kate snyder • Conway School of landscape design
a closer focus winter 2010
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site Conditions The Bean and Allard Farms, adjacent parcels of working farms, sit in a primarily residential neighborhood in the village of Florence across the Mill River from Look Memorial Park (see Map 6). The parcels are bordered by the Mill River on the north and east sides. A section of the Allard Farm lies east of the river. The north end of Bean Farm and most of the Allard land, amounting to 108 acres, are situated in the FEMA-designated Mill River 100-year floodplain. A City-designated 10-year floodplain overlays much of the eastern portion of the Allard property—about 70 acres. A 35-acre riparian forest hugs the Mill River. The property is open and flat except for a wooded slope on the western edge. Bean Farm has vehicle access from Spring Street on the south. Meadow Street cuts through the southeast end of the Allard Farm and a short, narrow
lane through woods and across an intermittent stream connects the eastern parcel to Meadow Street. Farmers and neighbors report seeing turkey, deer, coyote, fox, black bear, hawk, moose, Canada geese, and a variety of songbirds on the land. White pine is the dominant tree species along the low ridge overlooking the west side of the property. Riparian woods along the Mill River include hickory, oak, locust, sycamore, and red maple. A mix of hardwoods; maple, oak, hickory, and white ash, grow along fence lines and field edges and are interspersed with sumac, buckthorn, Asian bittersweet, Japanese knotweed, and bush honeysuckle. Asian bittersweet drapes the trees and Japanese knotweed grows thick along the edge of the Mill River.
Water continues to shape the Bean and Allard Farms. 38
Bean and Allard Farms: converging visions for a village landscape elizabeth cooper, mary praus, kate snyder • Conway School of landscape design
a closer focus winter 2010
Bean Farm The 45-acre Bean property has been farmed by the Bean family for multiple generations and over the years has produced many crops including apples, peaches, hay, and potatoes. The property is now owned by six members of the Bean family, and for the past several years has been leased to a potato farmer. Members of the Bean family made the decision to put the property on the market three years ago. Larry Bean has been haying and overseeing the lease of the land for the last few years. There are three old barns of unknown conditions on the property, one near the Spring Street access, another, “the old pig barn,� in the open field and a third small hay barn near a farm pond on the west side of the parcel.
Allard Farm The 145-acre Allard Farm has been cultivated for centuries. As part of the Northampton Association of Education and Industry, the land north of Meadow Street was farmed with traditional crops as well as mulberry trees to host silkworms and sugar beets to offer an alternative to sugar grown on slave plantations. Subsequent farmers grew tobacco for many years and most recently raised potatoes and cut grass for hay. On the eastern parcel, growers raised strawberries and sold them at a popular neighborhood farm stand until the 1990s. There are no structures on the property. This flat, open expanse of land situated in the geographic center of Northampton is an asset to the community for its proximity to a large and growing part of town, its nearness to the river, its history, the views to it from the road, its accessibility by car, its habitat for wildlife and its good growing soil.
Flat and open: two characteristics that make this land desirable for farming, recreation, and development.
Bean and Allard Farms: converging visions for a village landscape elizabeth cooper, mary praus, kate snyder • Conway School of landscape design
a closer focus winter 2010
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The contrast between the old Pro-Brush factories and Bean and Allard Farm fields is one many residents enjoy.
Surrounding the Site The densely settled center of the village of Florence lies less than a mile to the east of the Bean and Allard Farms and houses are scattered at the periphery of the site. Fairway Village condominiums surround a golf course to the northwest of Bean Farm. Residents of this development and of the few houses northwest of the ridgeline may view the farm through dense forest in winter but leaves obstruct the vista in the warmer months. Look Park sits across the Mill River from both parcels to the north. The Arts and Industry Building with its distinctive smokestack rises to the south of the Allard parcel south of Meadow Street. A bridge allows Meadow Street to cross the Mill River just east of the entrance to the eastern Allard parcel.
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Bean and Allard Farms: converging visions for a village landscape elizabeth cooper, mary praus, kate snyder • Conway School of landscape design
a closer focus winter 2010
MAP 6 EXISTING CONDITIONS
Mill R
Assessment: The 185-acre Bean and Allard Farms are bounded on the north and east by the Mill River and its riparian forest. An approximately 25-acre parcel of the property lies to the east of the river. The parcel is located immediately west of Florence center, amid residential properties with converted mill buildings just to the south and is within one mile of critical and core wildlife habitats, shown on Maps 3 and 4. Spring Street stretches along the southwest edge and Meadow Street to the south, intersecting the Allard Farm.
iver
Not for construction. These drawings are part of a student project and are not based on a legal survey. Not to scale.
Bean Farm
Allard Farm East Parcel
Allard Farm Main Parcel
Allard Farm South Parcel
Bean and Allard Farms: converging visions for a village landscape elizabeth cooper, mary praus, kate snyder • Conway School of landscape design
winter 2010
The property is slightly undulating and somewhat stony prime agricultural farmland, except for a steep wooded ridge on the west. Natural drainage swales and intermittent streams drain to the Mill River (see Map 7). Farmers have observed predictable flooding in the spring and after heavy rains with fairly quick drainage.
Implications: Land features and location make this property attractive for agriculture, recreation, and conservation and vulnerable to residential development.
MAP 7 Mi
ll R
Farm Dump
FIELD NOTES ive
r
A year’s harvest of stones
Highly Stony Soil
Not for construction. These drawings are part of a student project and are not based on a legal survey. Not to scale.
Potential Wetland
Intermittent Stream
Swale Residential Abutters Intermittent Stream
Residential Abutters
Residential Abutters
Bean and Allard Farms: converging visions for a village landscape elizabeth cooper, mary praus, kate snyder • Conway School of landscape design
winter 2010
Assessment: Information from a morning spent walking the properties with a certified wetlands scientist complements the MassGIS data-generated analysis of the following pages. Even on a snowy winter morning, details of the land’s character emerged, including: • A potential wetland, a low, wet area about 75 feet east of the farm pond, contains plants that may be indicative of a wetland. Further observation is recommended in the spring. • Areas of highly stony soils exist primarily on the northern end of the land. Some areas are so stony, the current farmer has chosen not to grow in those areas. • A swale, running mostly west to east across the center of the property is at least a couple of feet lower than adjacent land and appears to drain into the river. • On the east parcel, an intermittent stream runs along the perimeter of the field. • On the edge of the east parcel, residential abutters’s overlook the farmland. Directly north and south of the Spring and Meadow intersection several homes abut the farmland. • A former farm dump of unknown history is located in the northwest corner of property.
Implications • The potential wetland could serve as habitat for wildlife. Avoid human activity in this area. • Stony soils are undesirable for farming and recreational fields. • Developing recreational fields on the swale could require fill and grading to ensure proper drainage • Trails, roads and general human use should be avoided within 100-foot buffer on intermittent stream. • Abutters could be disturbed by ballgame activity • Farm dump area should be tested for contaminants prior to any use of that area
Floodplain Function
Not for construction. These drawings are part of a student project and are not based on a legal survey. Not to scale.
Floodplains and the waters that rush near them combine to form a complex, dynamic physical and biological system that benefits humans and the environment. The farm fields and riparian forest at the banks of the Mill River act as a sponge to absorb excess water when the river runs high. Healthy floodplains also absorb rain and snow runoff and filter non-point pollutiion, thus maintaining water quality. They recharge aquifers, providing drinking water for people. They moderate temperatures. Floodplains can also provide excellent habitat for fish and wildlife by serving as breeding and feeding grounds.
HYDROLOGY Assessment • The river is subject to a 200-foot Wetlands Protection Act riverfront buffer, existing agricultural land excluded and the farm pond is subject to a 100-foot buffer. • 70 acres of land are within the 10year floodplain with some flash floods reported. • 108 acres are within the 100-year floodplain. • The entire property lies above a medium yield aquifer. • 10-year floodplains offer unique and critical habitats for wildlife. • Floodplains serve important stormwater detention and flood absorption functions. Implications • While any change of land use would require adherence to the 200-foot buffer, it is highly recommended that the buffer remain undisturbed by human use except on designated trails • Any proposed alterations within the buffer are subject to Conservation Commission Review. Flooding could limit access to fields, cause erosion, and impact soil quality. • Runoff from farm or recreational use could pollute Mill River. • The land should not be altered in any way that hinders stormwater detention
Bean and Allard Farms: converging visions for a village landscape elizabeth cooper, mary praus, kate snyder • Conway School of landscape design
MAP 8
winter 2010
MAP 9
Arsenic Aware Inorganic compounds made with the heavy metal arsenic were used as pesticides until the 1940s when health risks caused it to be banned in the US. Arsenic exposure is dangerous to human hearlth. Soil with elevated arsenic levels, such as the former orchard on the Bean Farm, should not be dug, unless soil tests indicate the levels are below the top few inches of soil. In that case the area could be planted with a dense groundcover (ferns—especially the Chinese brake fern— accumulate arsenic). Children should not be exposed to arsenic-contaminated soil.
TOPOGRAPHY & SOILS Assessment • 95% of land has slopes of 3% or less. The western ridgeline has a 30% slope. • Soils on all lands except the ridgeline are classified as prime farmland. • Fine sandy loam and silt loam are floodplain soils formed on alluvial material, are moderately well-drained, are often farmed and can pose wetness and flooding issues for recreational fields, particularly for baseball fields, based on NRCS Soil Survey.
Not for construction. These drawings are part of a student project and are not based on a legal survey. Not to scale.
• An environmental assessment of the 45 western-most acres revealed elevated arsenic levels as noted. Implications
.
• Slope of land is favorable for farming and for recreational fields. • Prime agricultural soils are a finite resource to be conserved for farming. • The wetness and flooding issues of the two primary soils make siting recreational fields a challenge. • Further environmental testing is needed for remaining acreage. Arsenic remediation required if public activities are proposed for this area. (See box.)
Bean & Allard Farms Mill River Silt Loam Loamy Sand Fine Sandy Loam 10-Ft Contour Line Elevated Arsenic Level
Bean and Allard Farms: converging visions for a village landscape elizabeth cooper, mary praus, kate snyder • Conway School of landscape design
winter 2010
MAP 10 ACCESS & CIRCULATION Assessment • Meadow Street offers 1,500’ of frontage on the south parcel and 950’ on the north parcel. There are four smaller potential access points off Spring Street. • The northernmost access point on Spring Street requires a quarter mile drive to farm fields. • An existing gravel road leads into the east parcel over an intermittent stream. • The Northampton Bikeway lies less than 1 mile away but connecting streets lack bike lanes. • Sidewalk access is available on Spring Street but not on Meadow Street.
Not for construction. These drawings are part of a student project and are not based on a legal survey. Not to scale.
•
Intermittent Stream
Implications • Options for curb cuts and roads into the property are plentiful based on slope less than 10% from street onto property. • Access into the northwest portion of the property would require the longest road and be the most costly to construct. • Encouraging access via bike or foot would require the addition of bike lanes and a sidewalk on Meadow Street. • Heavy use of road into east parcel may compromise intermittent stream. • Existing farm roads could be used by future farmers. Bean and Allard Farms Mill River Existing Vehicle Access Potential Vehicle Access Sidewalk Farm Road Northampton Bikeway
Bean and Allard Farms: converging visions for a village landscape elizabeth cooper, mary praus, kate snyder • Conway School of landscape design
Farm roads circle the properties.
winter 2010
MAP 11
2
1
VIEWS
3
Assessment • View 1 into west parcel past wooded ridgeline includes a barn in the foreground and riparian forest in the rear. The fields themselves are not visible from Spring Street. • Views 2 and 3 from Meadow Street into farmland are ones Florence residents have identified as attractive and worthy of preserving
Treeline
4
Not for construction. These drawings are part of a student project and are not based on a legal survey. Not to scale.
Hedgerow
• View 4 from Meadow Street across south parcel includes farm fields and residential properties. • Farmland vistas present a contrast of flat, open land rimmed by a vertical treeline along riparian woods and cut by a brambley hedgerow.
1
Implications • Playing fields placed north of Meadow Street could disrupt valued views of farmland though some residents could value views of recreational fields.
3
2
• Preserving farming would be ideal to preserve views. • Changes to the use of Bean Farm would have less impact on views than changes to the Allard Farm.
4
Bean & Allard Farms Mill River Bean and Allard Farms: converging visions for a village landscape elizabeth cooper, mary praus, kate snyder • Conway School of landscape design
winter 2010
MAP 12 VEGETATION
Multiflora rose
Japanese knotweed Sycamore
Buckthorn Red maple
Not for construction. These drawings are part of a student project and are not based on a legal survey. Not to scale.
Farm Pond
Hedgerow
Riparian Woods
Ridgeline Black locust
Implications • Limited disturbance should occur in the riparian woods due to nearby NHESP designation. • A diversity of plant species offer habitat for a diverse wildlife population. • Hedgerows and edges are key foraging and escape areas for habitat. While also providing forage and escape, exotic plants in the hedgerow choke out other native vegetation and create monocultures, limiting variety of food available for wildlife. • See Page 53 for information on best management practices for farm fields and wildlife habitat.
Shagbark hickory
Red oak White pine
Bean and Allard Farms: converging visions for a village landscape elizabeth cooper, mary praus, kate snyder • Conway School of landscape design
Assessment • Woody exotic plants such as buckthorn, Asian bittersweet, Japanese knotweed, Japanese barberry, and multiflora rose are particularly prominent in the hedgerow and along the river in disturbed areas. • The riparian woods include black locust, red maple, and sycamore. The northwestern riparian woods have been identified by the Natural Heritage Endangered Species Program as priority habitat for a rare dragonfly. • Red oak, shagbark hickory, white pine, and white ash grow along fence lines, field edges, and the western ridgeline. • The farm pond with adjacent wetlands contain various wetland perennials, including goldenrod and sedges. • Farm fields have most recently been planted primarily with potatoes and hay. • The east parcel served as a productive strawberry field for many years, potentially indicating fertile soils.
winter 2010
MAP 13 WILDLIFE HABITAT Assessment: Public forum attendees, farmers, and neighbors report seeing several wildlife species, including red-tailed hawk, Eastern coyote, Eastern wild turkey, red fox, white-tailed deer, and black bear. The site is identified as a NHESP Core Habitat (See Map 3 for several dragonflies, the Jefferson salamander, and the elderberry long-horned beetle.) Red-tailed hawks preferred habitat is mixed forest and field, with high bluffs used as perch sites. The carnivorous red-tailed hawk hunts mostly by swooping down from a perch to seize prey, including rodents, fish, and birds. Eastern coyotes are opportunistic feeders and scavengers. Their primary foods include fruit, berries, small rodents, rabbits, birds, snakes, frogs, and insects. Because coyotes utilize so many different food sources, they have adapted to a variety of habitats, including urban areas. Eastern wild turkeys typical habitat include oak-hickory forests, or mixed hardwoods with red oak and black cherry and open farmland. Black bears enjoy habitats including wetlands with vegetation, berry crops, and hardwood areas with nuts. Oak, beech, or hickory stands are favored in fall. Female home ranges average 9 to 10 square miles while adult males may have ranges exceeding 120 square miles.
Red fox
Not for construction. These drawings are part of a student project and are not based on a legal survey. Not to scale.
Red-tailed hawk
Black bear
Eastern wild turkey
Assessment: Bean and Allard’s habitat edges and steep bordering woodlands could provide crucial habitat for wildlife, particularly the black bear. Implications: The conversion of farm fields —to a wildlife habitat— to recreational fields, which could include hardscapes, lights, and buildings; could negatively impact wildlife with both the loss of vegetation, and the increase of human activity.
Eastern coyote
Bean and Allard Farms: converging visions for a village landscape elizabeth cooper, mary praus, kate snyder • Conway School of landscape design
winter 2010
MAP 14 SUMMARY ANALYSIS Site Assets • Prime farmland soils cover 95% of the parcel. • Site is comprised of primarily flat, contiguous farmland. • Property is easily accessed by vehicle and is a half-mile walk from Florence center. • Diverse edges feed and shelter wildlife. • Cherished scenic views contrast with urban neighborhoods. • Floodplains provide stormwater detention and flood absorption functions. • River is protected by a mature wooded buffer. Not for construction. These drawings are part of a student project and are not based on a legal survey. Not to scale.
Constraints • 70 acres in 10-year floodplain constrain recreational fields, parking and roads due to potential erosion. • Potential for runoff from farm and recreational fields into river and for infiltration into aquifer. • Limited sidewalk access increases chances people will drive to recreational areas. • Areas of stony soil increase site preparation required to build recreational fields. Bean & Allard Farms Property Line Mill River 200’ Riverfront Buffer 100’ Wetland Buffer 10-Year Floodplain 100-Year Floodplain Street with a Sidewalk Cherished Views Existing/Potential Vehicle Access Elevated Arsenic Level
Bean and Allard Farms: converging visions for a village landscape elizabeth cooper, mary praus, kate snyder • Conway School of landscape design
winter 2010
Converging Visions The regional and site analyses, along with project goals, public input, and criteria (see below), inspired the design program, which aims to identify optimal areas for the three uses of agriculture, recreation, and conservation, and to provide sustainable mixed-use design alternatives for the Bean and Allard Farms. While the Bean and Allard Farms Task Force’s focus has been on solutions at the farms, this process looks to the region, both to meet the growing need for local food and the expanding demand for playing fields, and to link threatened wildlife corridors. criteria Developing criteria helps designers evaluate a site objectively against ideal conditions for each use, agriculture, recreation, and conservation. They provide a way to assess what uses best fit the site and how compatible they are with one another.
mechanical irrigation. It is made up of fertile soil that is well drained with few or no large rocks, not saturated with water for extended periods, and not contaminated with toxins that will affect the quality of crops or forage.
The criteria for the uses suggested for the Bean and Allard Farms evolved from information gathered through research, from public input, and from professional sources. These criteria, reflecting the project goals and coupled with public input and analysis, both regional and site-related, led to the design schematics to follow.
For farming to be economically and environmentally sustainable, production farming requires enough contiguous acreage for economic viability along with appropriate sites for farm infrastructure (farmer living quarters, livestock shelter, equipment storage, processing facility and greenhouses). The location of a farm near a population center supports distribution and marketing of produce. A direct market/community supported agriculture farm requires access and visibility from a main street for a potential farm stand and parking area, for customers.
Agriculture Good farmland is open for maximum sun exposure, flat or with minimal slope, and adequately irrigated by rainfall or near a water source for
Bean and Allard Farms: converging visions for a village landscape elizabeth cooper, mary praus, kate snyder • Conway School of landscape design
converging visions winter 2010
41
Recreation Playing fields require land with level or minimal slope, with soil that is not stony, that drains well, and is not subject to flooding (land outside of the 10-year floodplain). It is less costly to develop recreation fields on open land. Locating recreation fields close to the main center of population helps to reduce travel distance and time for users. The size should accommodate multiple fields for simultaneous games and tournaments, to lower maintenance, and to aggregate infrastructure costs. Close access to a main street to and from the recreation area is essential in reducing construction and maintenance costs, for parking, and for emergency vehicle access once the recreation area is in place. Sidewalks and a designated bikeway are needed to serve users who walk or cycle to the site. A 50-foot buffer between residential properties and recreation fields minimizes disturbance to neighbors.
42
Conservation Native conservation land is land that is not cultivated or developed and that is essential for the protection of wildlife habitat and wildlife travel corridors, especially those of endangered and threatened species. Conserved land is good habitat when it is adjacent to and containing wetlands, and protects water quality, water habitat, and provides flood control or floodwater absorption. Parcels that link other protected lands should be conserved. Human-related criteria for conservation land include land that is culturally or historically significant, land with scenic views, green space near village centers and green space in underserved areas. Converging Criteria Many agricultural and recreational criteria overlap; both require level, open land. It is this convergence that reflects why Bean and Allard Farms are in the center of controversy: flat, open land is desirable for both those uses and for housing, putting the Florence Meadows under development pressure. What is the best use for this land, and for meeting Northampton’s needs for preserving farmland, developing new recreation fields, and conserving open space?
Bean and Allard Farms: converging visions for a village landscape elizabeth cooper, mary praus, kate snyder • Conway School of landscape design
converging visions winter 2010
Design Alternatives 1A, 1B, 1C These three designs meet a specific City request for locating recreation fields north of Meadow Street on the Allard Farm. Each alternative shows a variation in configuration of organically maintained recreation fields (see Page 25) and permeable-surfaced parking areas and each includes a playground, a public pavilion, a facility for composting toilets, and a storage area.
Design Advantages: This general location for recreation fields creates a consolidated and easily accessed and maintained space and allows for the maximum number of playing fields with room to rotate some fields to reduce wear. The recreation fields are outside the 10-year flood absorption plain and the protected river corridor. Vegetated buffers screen nearby neighbors and retain and filter runoff around the playing fields and parking areas. Community gardens are sited on rich soils on the parcel to the east separated from the rest of the land by the Mill River. The gardens, designed to help meet a present and everincreasing demand for food gardens in the community, are laid out to include an education and demonstration pavilion, composting toilets and tool storage, centrally located gathering and play areas, and raised beds for people with disabilities. A historic marker consistent with markers erected by Historic Northampton describes how the Northampton Association for Education and Industry used the site. A loop trail leads from the central garden area to provide river access for fishing. A permeablesurfaced access and parking loop and additional parking pull-outs near the pavilion and garden plots give enough car and bicycle parking space for educational events and for visitors taking advantage of the riverside walking loop.
Design Constraints: The primary drawback of three these designs is the impact on valuable prime agricultural land. Historically significant farmland is used for recreation, farmland views valued by the community are interrupted, and the contiguous agricultural fields are fragmented. Access and farm frontage on Meadow Street are limited, though there is a possibility of shared parking and access for farm and recreation needs. Recreation fields in this area are in close proximity to residential abutters. Community gardens are sited in an area that is entirely in the 10-year flood plain with an intermittent stream running along the east side and crossing the access drive. A stream crossing with a culvert would be needed at the entry and an access easement may be required.
Bean and Allard Farms: converging visions for a village landscape elizabeth cooper, mary praus, kate snyder • Conway School of landscape design
converging visions winter 2010
43
MAP 15 DESIGN ALTERNATIVE 1A 20 0’
North Meadow Street Recreation Area • 4 multipurpose fields (306’ x 225’) • 1 - 75’ baseball field (350’ outfield) • 1 - 60’ baseball field (225’ outfield) • Play/gathering areas • 30’ x 30’ comfort facility & storage area – composting toilets, solar lighting • Car and bike parking for 120 cars • Bioswales surrounding parking • Vegetated 50’ buffer for residential abutters • Access to area by sidewalks and designated bikeway
Wet land Buffer
10 -Yea loodplain rF Farm Pond
Not for construction. These drawings are part of a student project and are not based on a legal survey. Not to scale.
Community Gardens - Allard East Parcel • 10 acres of garden space – 20’ x 20’ plots; some raised for ADA access • 18’ wide loop drive with parking lane for plot access • Public education pavilion with parking pullouts and bike racks • 30’ x 30’ comfort facility, storage area, composting toilets and day lighting • 2 play/gathering areas within sight of gardens • River access loop walking trail • Historic marker for Northampton Association for Education and Industry Farmland • 80 acres farmland including south of Meadow Street • Limited access to farmland from Meadow St. Conservation • Field edges managed for food and wildlife habitat • 200’ river corridor/wetland buffer managed for native species • 100’ pond/wetland buffer • 10-year floodplain on west side of the river undeveloped
Walking Trail Vegetated Buffer Play/Gathering Space Residence Pavilion
Bean and Allard Farms: converging visions for a village landscape elizabeth cooper, mary praus, kate snyder • Conway School of landscape design
winter 2010
A
Not for construction. These drawings are part of a student project and are not based on a legal survey. Not to scale.
A’
Design alternative 1A section and detail
diagramatic section a - a’
44
Bean and Allard Farms: converging visions for a village landscape elizabeth cooper, mary praus, kate snyder • Conway School of landscape design
converging visions winter 2010
MAP 16 DESIGN ALTERNATIVE 1B 20 0’
Wet land Buffer
North Meadow Street Recreation Area • 4 multipurpose fields (306’ x 225’) • 1 - 75’ baseball field (350’ outfield) • 1 - 60’ baseball field (225’ outfield) • Play/gathering areas • 30’ x 30’ comfort facility & storage area, composting toilets, solar lighting • Car and bike parking for 120 cars • Bio swales surrounding parking • Vegetated 100-ft buffer for residential abutters • Access to area by sidewalks and designated bikeway
10 -Yea loodplain rF Farm Pond
Not for construction. These drawings are part of a student project and are not based on a legal survey. Not to scale.
Community Gardens - Allard East Parcel • 10 acres of garden space – 20’ x 20’ plots; some raised for ADA access • 18’ wide loop drive with parking lane for plot access • Public education pavilion with parking pullouts and bike racks • 30’ x 30’ comfort facility, storage area, composting toilets and day lighting • 2 play/gathering areas within sight of gardens • River access loop walking trail • Historic marker for Northampton Association for Education and Industry Farmland • 80 acres of farmland • Limited access to farmland from Meadow St. Conservation • Field edges managed for wildlife habitat • 200’ river corridor/wetland buffer managed for native species • 100’ pond/wetland buffer • 10-year floodplain on west side of river undeveloped
Walking Trail Vegetated Buffer Play/Gathering Space Residence Pavilion
Bean and Allard Farms: converging visions for a village landscape elizabeth cooper, mary praus, kate snyder • Conway School of landscape design
winter 2010
B
Not for construction. These drawings are part of a student project and are not based on a legal survey. Not to scale.
B’
Design alternative 1B section and detail
DIAGRAMATIC section B - B’
Bean and Allard Farms: converging visions for a village landscape elizabeth cooper, mary praus, kate snyder • Conway School of landscape design
converging visions winter 2010
45
MAP 17 DESIGN ALTERNATIVE 1C 20 0’
Wet land Buffer
North Meadow St. Recreation Area • 6 multipurpose fields (306’ x 225’) • 1 - 75’ baseball field (350’ outfield) • 1 - 60’ baseball field (225’ outfield) • Play/gathering areas • 30’ x 30’ comfort facility & storage area, composting toilets, solar lighting • Car and bike parking for 120 cars • Bioswales surrounding parking • Vegetated 100’- buffer for residential abutters • Access to area by sidewalks and designated bikeway
10 -Yea loodplain rF Farm Pond
Not for construction. These drawings are part of a student project and are not based on a legal survey. Not to scale.
Community Gardens - Allard East Parcel • 10 acres of garden space – 20’ x 20’ plots; some raised for ADA access • 18’ wide loop drive with parking lane for plot access • Public education pavilion with parking pullouts and bike racks • 30’x30’ comfort facility, storage area, composting toilets and day lighting • 2 play/gathering areas within sight of gardens • River access loop walking trail • Historic marker for Northampton Association for Education and Industry Farmland • 80 acres of farmland • Limited access to farmland from Meadow St. Conservation • Field edges managed for wildlife habitat • 200’ river corridor/wetland buffer managed for native species • 100’ pond/wetland buffer • 10-year floodplain on west side of the river undeveloped
Walking Trail Vegetated Buffer Play/Gathering Space Residence Pavilion
Bean and Allard Farms: converging visions for a village landscape elizabeth cooper, mary praus, kate snyder • Conway School of landscape design
winter 2010
C
Not for construction. These drawings are part of a student project and are not based on a legal survey. Not to scale.
C’
Design alternative 1C section and detail
DIAGRAMATIC section C - C’
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Bean and Allard Farms: converging visions for a village landscape elizabeth cooper, mary praus, kate snyder • Conway School of landscape design
converging visions winter 2010
Design Alternative 2 In this design, organically maintained recreation fields are located in a high, dry, but somewhat stony portion of the Bean Farm fields with access via a driveway from Spring Street. The design includes a community garden area as described in design alternatives 1A-C to fill the growing need for local food gardens. Design Advantages: Two baseball diamonds sit below three multipurpose fields that can be rotated to reduce wear. The parking area, located east of the potential wetland (see Map 7), can accommodate up to 100 cars. Amenities include a playground, sizeable community event/gathering spaces, and a facility with composting toilets and storage area. The developed area is outside the 100foot protective buffer surrounding the pond, the 200-foot protected river corridor, and the 10-year floodplain. The recreation area and parking are hidden from neighbors on Spring Street and allow for the conservation of about 90 acres of prime farmland including the historically significant site of land farmed by the Northampton Association for Education and Industry. Permeable-surfaced car and bicycle parking areas are surrounded by bio-swales to retain and filter runoff.
Design Constraints: A substantial drawback to this plan is that it would limit funding from the state Agricultural Preservation Restriction Program because it sits outside the 100-year floodplain and thus, is the most valuable land for housing development. Other limitations: incurred costs of remediation of soils in area with elevated arsenic levels; the higher cost of a 1,700-foot long, two-way access road accessible to emergency vehicles from Spring Street and the configuring of an entrance with clear sightlines; limited access for potential farmers to farmland from Spring Street.
Bean and Allard Farms: converging visions for a village landscape elizabeth cooper, mary praus, kate snyder • Conway School of landscape design
converging visions winter 2010
47
MAP 18 DESIGN ALTERNATIVE 2 20 0’
Bean Farm Recreation Area • 3 multipurpose fields (306’ x 225’) • 1 - 75’ baseball field (350’ outfield) • 1 - 60’ baseball field (225’ outfield) • Play /gathering areas • 30’ x 30’ comfort facility & storage area, composting toilets, solar lighting • Car and bike parking – 100 cars • Bioswales surrounding parking • 2-way access road from Spring St. • Vegetated 50’ buffer for residential abutters • Access to area by sidewalks and designated bikeway
Wet land Buffer
10 -Yea loodplain rF Farm Pond
Not for construction. These drawings are part of a student project and are not based on a legal survey. Not to scale.
Community Gardens - Allard East Parcel • 10 acres of garden space – 20’ x 20’ plots; some raised for ADA access • 18’ wide loop drive with parking lane for plot access • Public education pavilion with parking pullouts and bike racks • 30’ x 30’ comfort facility, storage area, composting toilets and day lighting • 2 play/gathering areas within sight of gardens • River access loop walking trail • Historic marker for Northampton Association for Education and Industry Farmland • 90 acres farmland including south of Meadow Street parcel with views open to north • Open access to farmland from Meadow Street Conservation • Field edges managed for wildlife habitat • 200’ river corridor/wetland buffer managed for native species • 100’ pond/wetland buffer • 10-year floodplain on west side of the river undeveloped
Walking Trail Vegetated Buffer Play/Gathering Space Residence Pavilion
Bean and Allard Farms: converging visions for a village landscape elizabeth cooper, mary praus, kate snyder • Conway School of landscape design
winter 2010
D
Not for construction. These drawings are part of a student project and are not based on a legal survey. Not to scale.
D’
Design alternative 2 section and detail
DIAGRAMATIC section D - D’
48 48
Bean and Allard Farms: converging visions for a village landscape elizabeth cooper, mary praus, kate snyder • Conway School of landscape design
converging visions winter 2010
Preferred design alternative: regional approach This design, based on site and regional analyses, places recreation fields on the Bean and Allard Farms; it also identifies areas throughout the city and the five-town region where opportunities exist for either developing new fields or using existing ones. This regional approach fulfills the needs of the Recreation Department while conserving the maximum amount of contiguous prime farmland with frontage on Meadow and Spring Streets—factors especially important in the event that the land is divided into multiple smaller farm parcels. Two multipurpose fields, a practice field, a baseball diamond, and a play area are located south of Meadow Street. As in the other designs, a community garden area is located on the parcel on the east side of the Mill River. Based on Northampton’s Feasibility Study for Playing Fields (2010) the following locations have been identified as part of the preferred alternative: • • • • •
Sheldon Field: two multipurpose fields on adjacent private land Look Memorial Park: five baseball fields and a potential new soccer/baseball field Veteran’s Field: a soccer/baseball field being refurbished Glendale Road: City-owned land at a capped landfill Williamsburg: two baseball/soccer fields
Design Advantages: A maximum amount of contiguous prime farmland acreage is conserved along with the historic Northampton Association for Education and Industry site. Views of the Allard parcel north of Meadow Street are preserved. The recreation area is consolidated and separated from farmland north of Meadow Street. As in previous designs, community gardens are sited on rich soils on the east parcel. The gardens are sited within walking distance to Florence village and meet a present and everincreasing demand for food gardens in the community.
The wetland buffer has been extended to 200 feet and a 100-foot buffer established around the Bean Farm pond to provide protection from runoff and to enhance wildlife habitat. Land in the 10-year floodplain contains only an open pavilion and composting toilets and storage area. Design Constraints: The primary drawback of this design is the limited recreation field space on site. The south parcel accommodates fewer fields than the stated need; those fields are in close proximity to neighbors and partially extend into the 10year floodplain.
Bean and Allard Farms: converging visions for a village landscape elizabeth cooper, mary praus, kate snyder • Conway School of landscape design
converging visions winter 2010
49
Anne T. Dunphy School
MAP 19
Look Park
PREFERRED DESIGN ALTERNATIVE
Bean and Allard Farms
Five additional properties (see Page 49) can potentially supplement Northampton’s recreation field inventory, allowing the Bean and Allard Farms to provide maximum contiguous farm acreage while still offering playing fields on site.
Williamsburg
Not for construction. These drawings are part of a student project and are not based on a legal survey. Not to scale.
Hatfield
Walking Trail Vegetated Buffer Play/Gathering Space Residence
Northampton
Pavilion
Westhampton
Sheldon Field
Easthampton
Glendale Road Capped Landfill
Veterans Field
Community Gardens - Allard East Parcel • 10 acres of garden space, 20’ x 20’ plots; some raised for ADA access • 18’-wide loop drive with parking lane for plot access • Public education pavilion with parking pullouts and bike racks • 30’ x 30’ comfort facility, storage area, composting toilets and day lighting • 2 play/gathering areas within sight of gardens • River access loop walking trail • Historic marker for Northampton Association for Education and Industry Farmland • 100 contiguous acres of farmland • Access from Meadow and Spring Streets Conservation • Field edges managed as wildlife habitat • 200’ river corridor/wetland buffer managed for native species • 100’ pond/wetland buffer • 10-year flood on west side of river undeveloped
Bean and Allard Farms: converging visions for a village landscape elizabeth cooper, mary praus, kate snyder • Conway School of landscape design
Recreation Area South of Meadow Street • 2 multipurpose fields (360’ x 225’) • 1 - 60’ baseball field (225’ outfield) • 1 multipurpose practice field • 30’ x 30’ comfort facility, storage area – composting toilets; solar lighting • Picnic pavilion and playground • Car and bike parking - 40 cars off Spring Street, 20 cars off Meadow Street • Bioswales surrounding parking • Vegetated 50’ buffer for residential abutters • Access to area by sidewalks and bikeway
winter 2010
preferred Design alternative section and detail
F’
E E’
F
DIAGRAMATIC section E - E’
Not for construction. These drawings are part of a student project and are not based on a legal survey. Not to scale.
DIAGRAMATIC section F -F’
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Bean and Allard Farms: converging visions for a village landscape elizabeth cooper, mary praus, kate snyder • Conway School of landscape design
converging visions winter 2010
Afterword The Bean and Allard Farms present Northampton with the opportunity to identify and clarify what it values, and to see its vision put into practice on the land. From this process, a special place that enhances community will emerge. Northampton values agriculture, recreation, and conservation. Those elements may conflict, but they can converge in a balanced way both on the site and throughout the region. Northampton, like many cities, is making decisions now whose impacts will resonate for years (decades? centuries?) to come. As the City readies itself for an uncertain future, its acting to preserve the land and provide outdoor experiencs will surely stand it in good stead.
This report offers Northampton options for developing Bean and Allard Farms that embrace a varying degree of impacts on this wide-open and historically rich land. The members of the Bean and Allard Task Force are ordinary citizens thrust into the position of making weighty decisions that will effect succeeding generations. It is our hope that this work will provide a structure to support those critical choices so that the city’s converging visions will transform a village landscape that will benefit all.
The Bean and Allard Farm: a village landscape to benefit all Northampton
Bean and Allard Farms: converging visions for a village landscape
afterword
elizabeth cooper, mary praus, kate snyder • Conway School of landscape design
winter 2010
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Appendices design elements A bioswale is a landscape element designed to remove silt and pollution from surface runoff water, consisting of a drainage course with gently sloped sides (less than six percent) and filled with vegetation, compost and/or riprap. A common application for a bioswale is around parking lots, where substantial automotive pollution is collected by the paving and then flushed by rain. The bioswale wraps around the parking lot and treats the runoff before releasing it to a stream or storm sewer. A vegetative buffer is an undeveloped area planted with woody plants and perennials. Buffers can be comprised of existing plants on the site and/or new plantings. Buffers also help to absorb and filter runoff by increasing infiltration into soil and improve wildlife habitat by providing food, shelter, and shade. Permeable paving is a range of materials and techniques for paving roads, parking lots and walkways that allow the movement of water and air around the paving material. Whether pervious concrete, porous asphalt, paving stones, or bricks, pervious materials allow precipitation to percolate through areas that would traditionally be impervious and instead infiltrates the stormwater through to the soil below. Comfort facilities include composting toilets. The same structure could include storage space. The facilities could be constructed with a barn profile to evoke Northampton’s agricultural heritage.
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Composting toilets contain and control the composting of excrement, toilet paper, carbon additive, and, optionally, food wastes. Unlike a septic system, a composting toilet system relies on unsaturated conditions (material cannot be fully immersed in water), where aerobic bacteria and fungi break down wastes, just as they do in a yard waste composter. The resulting end product is a stable soil-like material called humus. Handicap accessible gardens are constructed with raised, 18-inch- to 30-inch-high beds that can be tended from a seated position. Garden beds are built with timbers, bricks, or crossties and filled with good topsoil or compost that can easily drain. The widths of garden beds are limited to no more than two feet across or four feet if accessible from two sides. Beds can be any length. Pea gravel or permeable-surfaced paths need to be at least four feet wide. A pavilion is an open, roofed structure built to provide cover for picnic tables and program or event space. Pavilions are constructed with a barn profile.
Play and gathering spaces include organic playground structures for younger children and benches in shady spaces and are centrally located so that they can be seen from surrounding playing fields or garden areas.
Bean and Allard Farms: converging visions for a village landscape
appendices
elizabeth cooper, mary praus, kate snyder • Conway School of landscape design
winter 2010
Additional resources Northampton Average Daily Traffic Volumes, Northampton, Massachusetts. www.northamptonma.gov/opd/uploads/listWidget/2552/ ADT_Map.pdf Notre Dame School of Architecture, Graduate Urban Design Studio. “Envisioning Sustainable Northampton.” September to December 2008. northamptondesignforum.org/downloads/ EnvisioningSustainableNorthampton.pdf Open Space and Recreation Plan http://www.northamptonma. gov/opd/uploads/listWidget/2550/2005-2010%20Open%20 Space%20and%20Recreation%20Plan.pdf Sustainable Northampton Comprehensive Plan www. northamptonma.gov/opd/uploads/listWidget/5909/ SustainableNorthamptonPlan.pdf Agriculture American Farmland Trust. www.farmland.org. Bevis, Ashley, Hendrickson, John, Lass, Daniel, Ruhf, Kathy, Stevenson, G.W. “Community Supported Agriculture Entering the 21st Century: Results from the 2001 National Survey.” October 2003. Community Involved in Sustaining Agriculture. www.buylocalfood.org. Delta Farmland and Wildlife Trust. “Farmland Trees and Shrubs.” January 2009. www.deltafarmland.ca Intervale Center. “Intervale Center & Intervale Community Farm, Burlington VT: Research and Interview Notes.” February 1, 2010. Massachusetts Department of Agricultural Resources. www. mass.gov/agr Massachusetts Farm Bureau Federation. www.mfbf.net. Massachusetts Right to Farm. www.mass.gov/agr/docs/farmbylaw.pdf. New England Small Farm Institute. www.smallfarm.org/main/ our_farm/ Pioneer Valley Planning Commission. “Agriculture in the Pioneer Valley Region.” Data Digest: A Statistical Profile of the Pioneer Valley Region. November 2006.
Fields in Trust. www.fieldsintrust.org. Hardebeck, Glenn, Reicher, Zac, and Throssel Clark Throssell. Purdue Turfgrass Science Program. “Building and Maintaining Soccer Fields in Indiana” May 8, 1999. www.agry.purdue.edu/ turf/pubs/ay31.htm#Area. Massachusetts Outdoors 2006: Statewide Comprehensive Outdoor Recreation Plan. Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs. National Recreation and Parks Association. www.nrpa.org. Northampton Recreation Department, Office of Planning and Development. “Feasibility Study for Playing Fields.” January 2010. Osborne Organics. www.osborneorganics.com Conservation Hall, Troy, Erin Seekamp and David Cole. 2010. Do recreation motivations and wilderness involvement relate to support for wilderness management? A segmentation analysis. Leisure Sciences 32: 109-124. Massachusetts Environmental Policy Act. www.env.state.ma. us/mepa Massachusetts Natural Heritage Endangered Species Program. Guiding Land Conservation for Biodiversity in Massachusetts: Core Habitats of Northampton, Hatfield, Williamsburg, Westhampton, Easthampton. www.mass.gov/dfwele/dfw/ nhesp/nhesp.htm. Sanders, Laurie. “Rediscovering Northampton: The Natural History of City-Owned Conservation Areas.” September 1999. www.northamptonma.gov/ conscomm/uploads/listWidget/6766/Rediscover%20Northampton.pdf University of New Hampshire Cooperative Extension. “Wildlife Habitat Improvement: Wetlands and Wildlife.” Sept. 1995. Natural Resources Conservation Service. http://soils.usda.gov/ History Northampton Silk on Silk. www.smith.edu/hsc/silk/clickmap/ quilt.html.
United States Department of Agriculture. www.usda.gov
Hampshire Education Collaborative with assistance from the University of Massachusetts, Amherst. 1840s Florence Video Tour. tah.collaborative.org/NAEI/source/Interactivities/ Florence_Walking_Tour/index.html
Recreation
Design Elements
Cole, Richard. “Environmental Impacts of Outdoor Recreation in Wildlands.” Aldo Leopold Wilderness Research Institute. leopold.wilderness.net/research/fprojects/docs12/ISSRMChapter. pdf
Bioswales. http://www.delafleur.com/168_Elm/PDF_files/09_ bioswale.pdf Pervious Paving. http://www.PerviousPavement.org/ Composting Toilet. http://oikos.com/library/compostingtoilet/ body
Bean and Allard Farms: converging visions for a village landscape
appendices
elizabeth cooper, mary praus, kate snyder • Conway School of landscape design
winter 2010
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image Credits Page 4: Aerial photo courtesy of Richard Shephard, Aerial Photography Page 14: Photo of Northampton residents by Jerry Roberts courtesy of the Daily Hampshire Gazette Page 16: Photo of Connecticut River courtesy of creative commons Page 17: Photo of soccer players courtesy of creative commons. http://www.flickr.com/photos/rkleine/ Page 20: Image of Northampton City Seal courtesy of the City of Northampton Page 23: Photo of row crops courtesy of creative commons. www.flickr.com/photos/97487636@N00/ Page 24: Photo of Maines Field courtesy of the City of Northampton Page 26: Photo of Sheldon Field courtesy of the City of Northampton Page 31: Photo of hoop house courtesy of creativecommons. http://www.flickr.com/photos/urtica/ Page 32: Photo of soccer players courtesy of creative commons. http://www.flickr.com/photos/rkleine/ Photo of softball pitcher courtesy of creative commons. http://www.flickr.com/photos/dcdpr/ Page 41: Photo of farmers market overandaroundus.wordpress.com/ Photo of children courtesy of the City of Northampton Photo of wetland forest courtesy of intheberrypatch.wordpress.com/category/hikes/ Map 1: Photo of tractor courtesy of creativecommons. www.flickr.com/photos/97487636@N00/ Map 2: Photo of soccer players courtesy of Derek Jensen Map 3: Photo of brook snaketail courtesy of Tom Murray Photo of Jefferson salamander courtesy of Wikimedia Commons Photo of elderberry long-horned beetle courtesy of Wikimedia Commons Map 4: Photo of vernal pool courtesy of Wikimedia Commons Photo of egg masses courtesy of creative commons Photo of ocellated darner courtesy of Denis A. Doucet Map 5: Photo of American bittern courtesy of creative commons. http://www.flickr.com/photos/birdfreak/3543251710/ Photo of upland sandpiper courtesy of creative commons. http://www.flickr.com/photos/jroldenettel/439835470/ Photo of bald eagle courtesy of creative commons. http://www.flickr.com/photos/jroldenettel/</a> / Map 12: Photo of white pine courtesy of creative commons. http://www.flickr.com/photos/7891209@N04/2432877543/ Photo of red oak courtesy of creative commons. http://flickr.com/photos/andreasbalzer/ Photo of shagbark hickory courtesy of creative commons. http://www.flickr.com/photos/76659733@N00/2471189565 Photo of buckthorn courtesy of creative commons. http://www.flickr.com/photos/esagor/ Photo of multiflora rose courtesy of creative commons. http://flickr.com/photos/dendroica/ Photo of Japanese knotweed courtesy of creative commons Photo of sycamore courtesy of USDA, NRCS. 2010. The PLANTS Database (http://plants.usda.gov, 27 March 2010). National Plant Data Center, Baton Rouge, LA 70874-4490 USA. Photo of red maple courtesy of nerr0371, NOAA’s Estuarine Research Reserve Collection Photo of black locust courtesy of creativecommons. http://www.flickr.com/photos/40838043@N02/3758917464 Map 13: Photo of red fox courtesy of U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Photo of red tailed hawk courtesy of creativecommons. http://www.flickr.com/photos/alanvernon/4204671209 Ocellated darner –http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://bugguide.net/images/raw/
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Bean and Allard Farms: converging visions for a village landscape
appendices
elizabeth cooper, mary praus, kate snyder • Conway School of landscape design
winter 2010
Acknowledgements We would like to thank Wayne Feiden at Northampton’s Office of Planning and Development; James Thompson, the office’s GIS coordinator; and Ann-Marie Moggio at the City’s Recreation Department. We are grateful to the Bean and Allard Farms Task Force and to the people of the City of Northampton for their invaluable input. We also wish to acknowledge the help we received from wetlands scientist Bill Lattrell, National Recreation and Parks Association ballfield expert Bill Beckner, farmer Larry Bean, the Trust for Public Land’s Clem Clay, biologist Elizabeth Farnsworth, planner Peter Klejna, historian Steve Strimer, and organic field consultant Chip Osborne. This project would not have been possible without the direction from and wisdom of the faculty and staff at Conway School of Landscape Design.
Bean and Allard Farms: converging visions for a village landscape
appendices
elizabeth cooper, mary praus, kate snyder • Conway School of landscape design
winter 2010
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The Bean and Allard Farms, two adjacent working farms together known as the Florence meadows, make up 185 contiguous acres of prime agricultural farmland in Northampton, Massachusetts. This report offers local and regional context, analysis, and sustainable alternative designs to balance the three often-competing uses of agriculture, recreation fields, and conservation that the City of Northampton wants on the site.
The Conway School of Landscape Design is the only institution of its kind in North America. Its focus is sustainable landscape planning and design. Each year, through its accredited, ten-month graduate program just eighteen to nineteen students from diverse backgrounds are immersed in a range of applied landscape studies, ranging in scale from residences to regions. Graduates go on to play significant professional roles in various aspects of landscape planning and design. www.csld.edu