Volunteer Offering CSA Produce Out Of Crofton Home Cited

CROFTON, MD — A Crofton woman voluntarily connecting people with homegrown food has been cited by the Crofton Civic Association and accused of running a business out of her home. On Mondays, Anne Arundel County residents pop by Sherlin Larsen's home to pick up fresh food from local farmers that's part of a CSA, or community supported agriculture organization.

"I think I have gotten at least produce every week since we started last spring," resident Liz Dingman told WBAL. "I wasn't going to the store. I was either going without something or doing Instacart and paying an upcharge for it and having someone else pick out stuff that wasn't that great often and (I) still wanted to have fresh things."

Larsen, who is a member of a CSA, serves as the liaison or link between consumers in the community and local farmers.

"I set it up and started it during the pandemic, but it grew into this understanding of what farmers and small-time growers go through. And we saw there was support and a passion to support the local economy and bring that money back into the local economy," Larsen said.

Larsen doesn't earn any income or make a profit from her Monday food distributions. She's been connecting residents with farmers for seven months, but received a citation in October from the nonprofit Crofton Civic Association that governs the area of the Crofton community where Larsen lives as a special benefits tax district.

"We did really well for many months and everything was going well, and then in October, I got a letter from the Crofton Civic Association saying I am running a business out of my house and it has become a nuisance to my neighbors. That was the first time there was any trouble," Larsen said.

She was cited for violating the private dwellings section, part of which states "No business or trade ... or noxious or offensive activity shall be carried on upon any lot." But, according to WBAL, the rules were written in the 1960s before a pandemic altered the way people used their homes for work and other purposes.

"It's not a business. It's a community service. No one makes dime off of this, especially Sherlin. She gives more than receives anything, and it's not a nuisance either," Frances Veasey, a resident, said. "Every time I come to pick up my orders, there's nobody here. It's still a sleepy little street, and I don't see where they are coming from calling it a nuisance."

Larsen noted that the timing of the citation was odd and arrived a few weeks after she put up flags and a sign outside her house that included a rainbow flag indicating support of LGBTQIA+ rights, a Black Lives Matter flag and a sign showing her preference in the presidential election.

"I put these up and tensions are really high because of the election — LGBTQ rights — and then, all of a sudden, I get this. It doesn't make sense why they waited six months to say, 'Hey, I have an issue with what you are doing,'" Larsen said.

To read the civic association board president's response, visit WBAL.