October 14, 2025
Members present: Kara Rogers Marshall, Chairwoman, James Szipszky, Zachary Donais, William Madsen, Kent McCord, David Desiderato
Public Comment
Oleta Shaw spoke about the farm on town-owned land on Barndoor Hills Road. The farmer sprayed herbicides and posted signs, but the signs stayed up for a week at a time, preventing public use. The farmer provided no advanced notice of the time or date of the spraying and did not disclose what was sprayed. Trash, such as garbage bags, pallets and tarps, remains in the field.
Peggy Lareau remains concerned about 16 Barndoor Hills and wants more info about what is going on. She strongly believes the town should be a role model for farming practices.
Continued Farm Lease Conversation
Szipszky shared a draft document laying out recommendations for management of town- owned farm leases. He recommends that farmers leasing town land hold a preseason meeting to let the public know what will be planted, have the soil tested annually and plant cover crops. The Connecticut Department of Agriculture provides financial incentives to permanently preserve farmland, and he believes the town should explore it. Marshall will seek to schedule a joint meeting with the Agricultural Commission to discuss these issues.
Sustainable Connecticut
The commission will need to submit work by August 2026 to achieve recertification. Members will assess what work needs to be done and what appetite there is from the board of selectmen to achieve recertification.