News

Letter (and Poem): Support Land Trust’s Purchase of Fowler Property, a Rare Opportunity for the Town

By |

Knowing the agrarian history of our town it’s heartwarming to project the rider atop his horse in Frost’s “Snowy Woods” to today’s New Canaan (see poem below) and the image of a parent pulling their young children through the woods on a sled. Easier said than done, though. The opportunity for a New Canaan family to walk out their door and into the woods is already elusive and getting more so by the day. New Canaan has a special opportunity this winter—right now—to preserve a 6.35-acre parcel of land on the east side of town (to be named the Silvermine-Fowler Preserve) and attach it to the existing 41 acre Hicks-Kelley Audubon Uplands, unifying much of the Silvermine. This land becomes a tremendous asset for the entire community to enjoy with our families and friends and ensures the woods’ good stewardship for generations to come.

News

Letter: New Canaan’s Help in the Land Trust’s ‘Fowler’ Property Purchase Would Benefit All

By |

Dear Editor:

I would like to express my support of the acquisition of the Fowler Property by the New Canaan Land Trust. By adding this parcel to adjoining nature preserve, residents on the east side of our town can enjoy passive recreation and active appreciation of the beautiful nature in our area. Preserving open space in New Canaan adds to everyone’s property values. Improving opportunities for walking in the natural world makes our town more attractive to future residents. In addition, preserving open space retains habitat for wildlife, assists with wetlands and watershed preservation and helps with carbon capturing so essential in our changing climate.

Government

Selectmen Signal Support for New Canaan Land Trust’s Purchase of Fowler Property

By |

Town officials on Tuesday morning voiced support for a special appropriation to help a local organization dedicated to land conservation acquire a wooded 6-acre parcel now available for purchase. Though the three-person Board of Selectmen stopped short of an official vote—the discussion of the Silvermine Road property came before the trio as a non-voting, informational item—the group spoke in favor of helping the New Canaan Land Trust buy it. At the time of the selectmen’s regular meeting, the Land Trust was seeking $320,000 from the town to close the $1,070,000 purchase (overall, $1.3 million is needed). Selectman Nick Williams said that he was “generally supportive” of the Land Trust’s efforts to acquire what’s called the “Fowler property,” named for its owner, award-winning zoologist and longtime New Canaanite Jim Fowler. “These opportunities do not come along that often,” Williams said at the meeting, held in Town Hall.

News

Letter from NCHS Student: Protecting Pond and Entire Fowler Property Would Benefit Whole Community

By |

Hello. My name is Christy McGough. I am fifteen years old and I attend New Canaan High School. In the summer of 2016 I was a summer steward for the New Canaan Land Trust where I was educated about the environment with a group of other high schoolers my age who love nature. I learned how to identify different species of trees, plants, and ferns, and I was taught the correct way to properly interact with the environment.

News

Letter: Town Must Act Quickly To Help Land Trust Acquire Fowler Property

By |

We’re writing to support a special appropriation for the New Canaan Land Trust’s acquisition of the six-acre Fowler property in Silvermine. The town would fund a relatively small share of the overall cost. But if it fails to act quickly, other commitments would lapse, and the deal could collapse. The main concern of some town officials is setting an unwanted precedent for the budget process. But wouldn’t it be an even worse precedent to allow the deal to die?