To the Editor:

Kudos to Nancy Crevier for her Letter to the Editor (April 7, 2023), “Commerce Road Parcel Is Wrong For Proposed Development.” I very much agree that the current proposal for the age-restricted housing development across from the Catherine Violet Hubbard Animal Sanctuary is totally inconsistent with the spirit of the sanctuary, to honor Catherine and her desire to protect “her friends,” creatures great and small.

Indeed, there are many creatures great and small who make their home on this meadow and the connected open spaces which make up a large swath of relatively untouched landscape, which is so rare in today’s world. At the March 3 meeting of the Inland Wetlands Commission, Steve Danzer, soil scientist for the developers, said, “Meadow habitat is rare in Connecticut, almost an endangered habitat. It is a priority habitat for ecological reasons.” His words underscore the lack of wisdom and foresight if the town is to bulldoze that acreage and construct infrastructure, an infrastructure which is totally out of character to its surroundings, but perhaps more importantly degrading to the value of the greater ecosystem that reaches beyond the boundaries of this parcel.

Newtown is so fortunate to have this combination of parcels, which includes numerous acres of town- and state-owned properties which are a mix of meadows and forested areas and includes Deep Brook, a Class A trout stream. Wildlife includes owls, bobcats and other species of birds and mammals which require larger parcels to sustain them. Butterflies including monarchs are abundant in the fields along the Pootatuck River, while ground nesting birds find breeding sites on quiet meadow habitat. And this is exactly the kind of habitat that is quickly disappearing in the greater Newtown area.

Undeveloped, untouched land provides for the health of not only wildlife, but residents as well, in various ways — and protecting that land shows that we are concerned about future generations and what we will leave for them.

The town received the parcel in question from the state to be used for “economic development.” The creation of a housing complex does not seem like economic development except that the town stands to gain some revenue. The job of the town is to weigh that monetary gain against the ecological value of the land as it is, as well as the degradation of the ecosystem that will undoubtedly occur.

A much better project for that site would be some kind of organically managed farming. A blueberry farm had been suggested years ago, which is still a good idea. A better idea might be for a native plant nursery to be established there, in view of the increased need for such plantings.

Or, best of all, leave it as it is — that rare meadow habitat that should be prioritized, as Steve Danzer said. Newtown, let’s do the right thing here.

Mary Gaudet-Wilson

Newtown