While local officials were still basking in the glow of the town’s decision to purchase the 189-acre Fairfield Hills property in the center of town, the Connecticut General Assembly last week voted to add another 645 acres to Newtown’s growing inventory of open space by funding the purchase of more than 18,000 acres of utility land statewide. The state has agreed this year to fund $65 million of the total $90 million price of property now owned by Kelda, the British firm that purchased the Bridgeport Hydraulic Company. Along with a $10 million contribution from The Nature Conservancy, the money currently committed to the project, along with promises to fund the remainder out of future state budgets, has triggered final negotiations to close the deal. These negotiations will be critical in determining the future use of the open space lands.

The 645-acre tract of Kelda land in Newtown lies at the edge of town in the Poverty Hollow area. The state Department of Environmental Protection is eager to acquire the land to expand the adjacent Huntington State Park on the border of Redding and Bethel into Newtown. The state has already provided access to the park for pedestrians from Equestrian Ridge Road, but the many horse owners in the area are concerned that negotiations will leave Bridgeport Hydraulic Co. land management policies in place for the property – policies that prohibit horses and dogs from this key trail linking Newtown to the main trail system in the state park.

Unlike the Fairfield Hills negotiations where Newtown had a place at the table, neither the town nor other interested parties, including the Coalition for the Permanent Protection of Kelda Lands, is a party to the talks between the state and Kelda over the terms of the sale. Contract negotiations, however, are expected to move quickly in anticipation of a transfer of the property possibly as early as the spring of 2002.

In this critical time, Newtown’s town officials and its state legislators have to make the town’s preferences known to the negotiators. That means that townspeople themselves must let their local leaders know how they wish the land to be used and administered once the state takes ownership. Preserving hundreds of acres abutting a treasured state park from development is a major step forward. Ensuring that the land is available for the use and enjoyment of the people who are ultimately paying for its purchase is the logical next step.