October 28, 2014
State Rep. Jason Rojas hailed the announcement of a $594,750 state grant to the Manchester Land Conservation Trust Inc. to assist in the purchase of 62 acres of the Botti Farm for open space preservation in the southwest corner of Manchester.
Rojas, who worked with officials in Gov. Dannel Malloy’s administration to help preserve the land, gave the following statement:
“The farm is one of the many treasures I discovered in south Manchester years ago. Even while having grown up in East Hartford, where we are really built out, I never really visited the Bush Hill Road neighborhood which was essentially in my backyard where I purchased my first home on nearby Oak Street. I later gained a true appreciation for the amount of forest, open fields and farms (Overbrook Farm and Botticello’s are nearby) that surrounded older as well as more recently built neighborhoods.
“The Botti family acquired the land in 1914 and primarily grew apples as well as peaches and vegetables. The property includes Bush Hill, a rise of 326 feet, offering views in every direction. It is also just a few minutes’ drive from densely developed residential and commercial areas. I can only imagine that the farm has been targeted for further development given the addition of some nearby developments over the last decade.
“Homes are currently being built on adjacent DeSousa Drive and Martins Manor. While the economy and challenge of connecting to city water and city sewer have limited development most recently, Manchester continues to be one of the most rapidly developing towns in the state.
“The Trust has an outstanding record of being great stewards of its lands and the Botti Farm is contiguous to the 13-acre Manning Ferris Park that is owned by the trust. The addition of both parcels would result in a 75 acre park which would be mainly deep woods. The Trust also owns and maintains the Buckland Pond Park and Miller Pond Park also on Bush Hill Road. The farm does have the potential to be farmed again which is important given the recently announced rise and interest in farming and local food production.”
The grant was announced Tuesday by Malloy and is among $7.8 million in state grants that will assist 25 communities in purchasing 2,237 acres to be preserved as open space.
The grants come through the Open Space and Watershed Land Acquisition program, which is administered by the state Department of Energy and Environmental Protection (DEEP). This program provides financial support to local governments and land trusts in purchasing open space, using state bonds and funding from the 2005 Community Investment Act.