Dec. 20 -- We own Bennetts Pond! The Town today took title to the 458 acres referred to as the North Parcel - the largest and most scenic portion of the Bennetts Pond property. Today's action capped a 3-year effort to insure the crown jewel of Ridgefield's open space did not fall prey to the developer's bulldozer. The remarkable effort was spearheaded by a group of folks who came together as the Ridgefield Open Space Association (ROSA), which waged a grass-roots campaign to preserve the town's largest remaining open space parcel. Through a lengthy and arduous process of public hearings, referenda, fundraising, and community activism, ROSA galvanized elected officials and townspeople to support a Town takeover of the property. ROSA president and co-founder Ellen Burns today thanked supporters in an e-mail message today, noting, "It [the taking] wouldn't hsve happened without you - we made a difference!" Burns also noted, "[We] would like to acknowledge the efforts and hard work of our elected officials, without whom this property could not have been saved: Ridgefield First Selectman Rudy Marconi, Selectmen Barbara Manners, Steve Zemo, and Peter Yanity, and State Representative John
Frey. We will be forever grateful to them, as will future generations
of Ridgefielders who will enjoy this beautiful land as open space in
perpetuity."
Today's final action was delayed for several days by a last-minute concern over rumored enviromental damage to the property - which was dispelled when First Selectman Rudy Marconi chartered an urgent survey of the site. The study showed that no environmental problem existed. Thus, at 3:30 PM today, Town Attorney Monte Frank (photo, right) recorded the Certificate of Taking on the Ridgefield Land Records, thus conveying title to the Town. The happy occasion at Town Hall was witnessed by (photo, from left) First Selectman Rudy Marconi, Town Clerk Barbara Serfilippi, and ROSA President Ellen Burns.
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