Teal Farm by livingfuture

It was the 1770s stone farmhouse in the Catskills that initially pulled in Fabio Chizzola. Then the 32-acre apple orchard became his passion.

For those of you unfamiliar with it, On Common Ground is a publication of the National Association of Realtors (NAR), and is produced in connection with NAR’s Smart Growth program. This winter 2010 edition is full of interesting articles all of which touch in some way on what it takes to be a green community. The first story, Walking into the Future, poses an interesting challenge - I think - to smart growth in Vermont. By its very nature, most of Vermont is not “walker-friendly”. We Vermonters rely heavily on the automobile to get us to/from work, school, dining, shopping, cinema, health services and most everything else. Though rural communities define the landscape, sadly they are often void of necessary services and a strong economic base. Consequently, many of our small communities are witnessing a declining population. Maintaining the richness of what makes Vermont…Vermont, while addressing societal needs today, tomorrow and well into the future will require re-examining where and how growth takes place. In my opinion, planning and designing communities around a core set of sustainable principles is critical to a healthy, prosperous future. According to the National Building Museum’s “Green Community” exhibit, “a green community conserves its land, offers multiple options for transportation, provides open space for recreation and cultivation, and uses its natural and cultural resources wisely.” I think leading by example is powerful, and I think that Teal Farm is ripe to become THE global leading example of how to begin to create a sustainable, beautiful green community. Teal Farm is, as its creator has defined, a future-looking farm, ecological preserve and collection of high-performance buildings. With its 540 acres of mixed agricultural land and forest, already-established gardens, and setting on the edge of the charming village of Huntington, Teal Farm is the perfect “first step” in the pursuit of creating a model of how a truly mixed-use, fully integrated green community can look, feel, operate and exist. I think Teal Farm has “what it takes”…do you? SS [Ms. Shawn Smith|Owner, CEO & COO, REALTOR, United Country-The Legacy Collection - Woodstock, VT: Exclusive representative of the Teal Farm offering; & United Country Real Estate National Director of Conservation & Green Properties]

While I am a firm opponent to hydroponics for a number of reasons, this is an interesting take on the future of food production within the walls of Metropolis. These scenarios need desperately to take complex soil-plant interactions into account in order to have credibility. But this concept is food for thought for sure. MH