Marion Carll Collective Farm Continues Battle for Recognition

The Commack community continued their efforts to keep the Marion Carll farm preserved despite efforts by the Commack Union Free School District to sell the property today. The  Environment, Planning, and Agriculture committee of the Suffolk County Legislature held a meeting in which residents spoke out against County Executive's Steve Levy's amendment to Farm Preservation Act, which would place certain requirements on farms that would rule out the very farm that this Act was designed to protect.

Legislators John Kennedy, Jon Cooper and Lynn Nowick introduced legislation to include the Marion Carll Community Farm in the Suffolk County Farmland Preservation Act. Currently, the Town of Huntington has designated the farm a historic site. In June, the school district attempted to sell the site and was rebuffed by local residents with a 2-1 ratio.

The Commack Community Association, in conjunction with an advisory board has three goals for the property, and have formed a 501(3)(c) corporation to receive donations. They wish to make it:

1.     An historical and cultural center for the preservation and presentation of the history of Commack from the pre-colonial Native American period to the 19th century agrarian era.

2.     A working farm which could serve as a place for students to learn where their food is grown and participate in that process.

3.      A community center for the residents of Commack.

More on this story as it develops.