Morris Township Farmland Acreage Added To Preservation Plan

MORRISTOWN, NJ — Almost eight acres of scenic Morris Township farmland has been permanently preserved as part of an ongoing partnership that protects the Washington Valley viewshed, local officials announced on Monday.

The 7.76 acres of the Vallevue Farm will be added to the 21.5 acres of land that was preserved back in 2015. The additional acreage will cost $1,042,800 to preserve and will be funded through the joint effort involving the County of Morris, the Township of Morris, the Morris County Municipal Utilities Authority (MUA) and the family which owns the land, according to a news release.

The newest acquisition of land will protect the Washington Valley viewshed, which is a six-acre meadow that runs along Picatinny Road. The additional acreage allows Morris Township to complete a loop trail around the property stretching from the Ted Largman Community Garden parking lot.

The preservation project also provides a remnant farm pond that drains into Gillespie Brook, which is a tributary of the Whippany River as a designation of the trail system, officials announced.

In 2015, the county, township and MUA preserved a 21.5-acre swatch of the 58-acre Vallevue Farm using $1.6 million in open space funding, officials said. The property, which has historically been used as a small family farm, is located in a historic and environmentally sensitive area of Morris Township, two miles from downtown Morristown.

Funding costs for the preservation of the 7.76 acres will be provided through the Morris County Open Space Trust Fund ($684,900), the Morris Township Open Space Trust Fund ($236,100), the Morris County Municipal Utilities Association ($100,000) and a $21,800 from the Rosenhaus family, which owns the farm.

The Vallevue farm connects to 188 acres of open space that was acquired from St. Mary’s Abbey and which was preserved in 2009 by Morris County and Morris Township. Part of the project has since been added to and managed by the Morris County Park Commission as an extension to Lewis Morris Park, officials said.

Much of the Washington Valley is surrounded by property preserved through the MUA, which purchased land in the region decades ago for a potential reservoir project that was later abandoned. The MUA continues to help preserve nearby environmentally sensitive property in this area, the news release stated.

“This continues a preservation effort recognized many years ago as important to protecting the character, environment and overall beauty of Morris County,” Stephen H. Shaw, director of the Morris County Board of County Commissioner said in a news release. “The Washington Valley area offers everyone in the area, visitors and residents alike, more than just a glimpse of our historic and rustic roots. Anyone who walks the trails will also realize the environmental treasures being protected there through our open space planning.”

Officials said that the Rosenhaus family decided years ago to sell the land around the farm for conservation and to restrict development of the property that the family retained. By doing so, it preserves the historic footprint of the area as well as the views that can be seen across the Washington Valley.