Praise for preservation of open space
Taxes, water supplies, police protection, the right to form a village, the right to disconnect from a village, and the right to protect or sell your property. It's all been on display in the public arena for residents of Campton Township and the new village of Campton Hills. And it's all been played out in varying degrees of intensity in public meetings, boardrooms and homes.
With all of those ingredients brewing what appears to be the perfect political storm, it is fitting and timely that we get a reminder of why people are so passionate about the lifestyle offered in the rural setting of Campton Hills and the surrounding area -- regardless of whether they are for or against the creation of a village government. Putting all of that aside, the 20th annual awards dinner for the Garfield Farm Museum last Friday night provided the perfect setting and recognition for what many agree is most important for the areas west of the Tri-Cities: That a significant amount of the land be preserved.
The Garfield Farm Inn and Museum has allowed area residents and visitors to take a step back in time that is becoming more difficult with each passing year and each new housing development, road or bridge. Located on 281 acres in LaFox, this farm site from 1840 was placed on the National Register of Historic Sites and opened to the public in 1977 as a re-creation of a working farm and a museum. Protecting the land around Garfield Farm has been critical to its existence in the swirl of development that began in those late 1970s and hasn't slowed down much since.
Jerome Johnson, who has worked tirelessly as the executive director of the museum and as the Garfield Farm historian for the past three decades, called it "just a miracle " in describing the beauty and importance of preserving the nearby property of Harley Woods -- and the fact that so many property owners have had to agree at the same time to sell their land for Campton preservation.
In an excellent example of cooperation and concern for the future of Campton Township, the five children of the late Lawrence and Helen Motz were honored for agreeing to sell 55 acres of their family farm near Harley Woods to Campton's open space initiative. This gesture, along with others with adjoining property, helps the township move positively toward acquiring land for open space that was approved through referendum by voters in 2005.
The key has been to get all nearby property owners to agree to sell -- and they have. Those who originally established the farm and museum -- Elva Ruth Garfield and Eve S. Johnson -- would be proud to see this kind of community support.
We join supporters of Garfield Farm in praising this act of preservation, as well as thanking those who have left impressive endowments and grants. It is a living history lesson in our midst, one that Campton residents wisely have embraced for the benefit of future generations.