04052023 Holly Ravine Aerial

The Holly Ravine property is outlined in orange. The shopping center in the lower right corner of the property once was the Cowtail Bar and Moo Zoo. The preserved Saddlehill farm, formerly Stafford farm, is in the lower right, just over the Voorhees border. More than 1,000 trees exist on the land.

A Cherry Hill Township plan to permit agriculture on its newly acquired Holly Ravine Farm open space drew concerns from the Planning Board over the use of pesticides and the potential for tree removal to make way for farming.

Township Council has asked the board for recommendations before it makes a final decision on adding agriculture/horticulture as a permitted use under the zoning law for the 23-acre property. 

The Township purchased the property to preserve as open space from the Gilmour family for $3,859,000 in January after a developer proposed clearing the land for senior housing. Residents protested developing Holly Ravine.

Township funds from its open-space budget were used to buy the land and one way to recoup at least some of the money from the state is to apply for a grant from the State Agriculture Development Committee, whose mission is to preserve farmland while "maintaining the viability of agriculture."

However, to be eligible for the grant, agriculture must be a permitted use for the land. Although the Gilmour family had farmed the land for decades, it is zoned residential. Agriculture would be a permitted use while the fundamental use under the zoning law would remain residential.

Board members at the Monday meeting struggled between the possibility of getting state agricultural funds, which would then be used to preserve even more open space in Cherry Hill, and the concerns over pesticides and tree removal.

Members voted 7-1 to recommend the zoning change while adding specific recommendations about treatment of the land. Board member Marlyn Kalitan was the dissenting vote.

"I thought this whole property was going to be for the people of Cherry Hill," she told board members. She also expressed concern about pesticide use.

"I believe open space should be open space and not a farm," Kalitan said in explaining her dissenting vote.

Board member Sheila Griffith, who voted in favor of recommending the zoning amendment, did note that the Township seems to be straying from the original concept months ago when it bought the property.

Kathleen Cullen, the Township community development director, said one use does not necessarily mean the exclusion of the other. She said the Township is working on how to design passive recreation, such as walking trails, on the non-agricultural part of the property.

Councilwoman Jennifer Apell, who is the Council member on the board, was the most outspoken about preserving the property.

"I would like to say you can't cut down any trees and you have to use organic farming," Apell said at the meeting.

The board's resolution to Township Council included limiting tree removal and recommending organic farming on Holly Ravine land.

Appell said that although the Planning Board can make only recommendations on the zoning change, putting the tree removal and organic farming concerns in the resolution will give her more clout when advocating for the points at the next Council meeting. A public hearing on the proposed change will be held at that meeting.

"This is one of the only open spaces left in the township. The trees are really important," she said. "I'm really, really concerned about the trees and I'm really concerned about the pesticide."

 Previous 70and73.com coverage of this story:

 

 

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