Obstacles Persist for Potential Community Garden

Chatham Borough officials think they may have found a location to rebuild the community garden — if they can get a little cooperation.

Borough Engineer Vincent J. DeNave proposed Woodland Park as the location for the new garden, which must be rebuilt after PSE&G revoked the lease agreement for the original community garden due to safety concerns for the new monopoles installed as part of their North Central Reliability Project.

Still, Woodland Park has its own challenges, DeNave said. The park is owned jointly by both Chatham Borough and Chatham Township, which means both governing bodies must give their permission for the location to be used as a community garden.

After a meeting at the proposed site with the administrators of the borough and township, Robert Falzarano and Thomas E. Ciccarone, DeNave said he believes the township is willing to give permission for the garden, but not be a financial partner in its construction.

"Mr. Ciccarone did not speak for the entire township committee, but he did indicate that if it was for free, he believed there would be no issue" in granting permission for the garden, DeNave said.

"He also indicated there was no interest in participating financially in this," DeNave said of Ciccarone. "He prefaced this by saying that would be his strong recommendation to the committee, and he would be speaking with the committee at their next meeting."

DeNave estimated "it would take $20,000 to get [the garden] entirely prepped and ready to go." The Community Garden Committee has about $9,000 available, he said, and reusing materials from the previous garden such as the deer-proof fence will also help lower the cost.

If split between the two municipalities, DeNave said, the estimated cost to build the garden would be $4,000 to $5,000 each.

"If we are to pay for the improvement, [the township committee] will allow it on that property," DeNave said.

The original gardens were built with donated labor and materials from local businesses, including Green Path Organic Landcare and Coviello Brothers. It is not clear if those businesses will be willing to make similar donations for the second (or third, if you include the original garden's 2010-11 expansion) time.

DeNave estimates about 35 percent of the plot-holders in the recently closed garden were residents of Chatham Township.

Another challenge to the site are overhanging trees and limbs along the roadway, which DeNave recommended the borough remove as soon as possible.

"There were limbs down across that driveway. There were hangers across up in the wires," DeNave said of the park's access road. "If we're going to be doing anything there, we're going to have to clean it up."

DeNave said the limbs could be chipped on-site since the mulch could be used in making the garden plots.

The Chatham Township Committee next meets at 7:30 p.m. Thursday.