Council Hopes to Pull $40,000 from Land Fund to Complete Barn Deal

After years of negotiation, and several failed attempts at compromise, the Town of Bedford and the Educational Farm at Joppa Hill (EFJH) have a deal in place that's likely to save the farm's aging barn and keep its current executive board in control.

Last night, the Bedford Town Council gathered for a special meeting to discuss the agreement (detailed here) and, after much discussion, decided to authorize Town Manager Jessie Levine to sign the deal.

First, however, the council will ask residents attending tonight's Bedford Budgetary Town Meeting to approve a motion to pull $40,000 from the roughly $528,000 in the town's land reserve fund to pay for the removal of asbestos from the barn's ceiling.

Because the money is already in reserve, Levine said the amendment won't have an impact on the municipal tax rate.

Town Council Chairman Bill Dermody said that although he still has significant concerns about the deal, it was imperative that an agreement be reached.

"The alternative is that the barn sits unused in the condition it's currently in, and that's unacceptable," he said. "The council was able to express, individually, our thoughts, and we're all in favor of the agreement after two years of trying to get to this point."

EFJH has agreed to evaluate the barn and determine within 60 days of the removal of asbestos whether it will raise the money to repair any structural and/or safety issues with the barn or demolish and rebuild it.

This agreement, added Dermody, is step one of a long road ahead.

Levine agreed, but noted the compromise to go ahead and remove the asbestos – even though EFJH doesn't currently have enough funds to make potential costly repairs to the barn – was worth it because it accomplishes the town's goal of resolving the safety issue with the barn, whether it ends up renovated or torn down.

Councilors also discussed several other options at Tuesday night's meeting to fund the $40,000 allocation – including asking residents to approve an amendment that would increase the municipal budget – but ultimately decided taking the money from the land reserve fund carried the least risk and impacted residents the least.

"The most fail-safe approach is to simply take this before the voters and say 'here's the money, and here's what we want to do with it,'" said Dermody.

Levine and Dermody agreed that the town and EFJH are likely to enter into negotiations on a new lease agreement – that may extend up to 30 years – that will more clearly define the expectations of the town regarding the operation of the farm.

The Bedford Budgetary Town Meeting takes place tonight at 7 in the Bedford High School auditorium.