Artfarm looks to put down roots

Marcella Trowbridge and Dic Wheeler think they may have finally found land perfectly suited as the home to their vision of "creating high quality theater with a commitment to simple living, environmental sustainability and social justice." The long-time city residents, founders of the ARTFARM organization which produces Shakespeare in the Grove every summer, have submitted a proposal to the City to build an arts and agriculture center on part of the city-owned land near Connecticut Valley Hospital.

The ARTFARM Developers
Wheeler and Trowbridge are in Middletown because of a long connection with The Oddfellows Playhouse Youth Theater, Wheeler starting in 1978 and Trowbridge in 1996. Among other things, Wheeler was responsible for developing the highly successful Children's Circus of Middletown, and Trowbridge brought classical stage training to local youth with the Summer Shakespeare Academy.

Trowbridge and Wheeler founded ARTFARM as an independent, non-profit organization in 2001. Their vision was to combine farm and open space preservation with a facility for performance, workshop, and retreats. Leaving Oddfellows in 2005, they devoted their full-time energies towards Artfarm. The most significant ARTFARM productions have been the annual Shakespeare in the Grove, held at Middlesex Community College. ARTFARM artists have also participated in environmental education and theater productions at Wesleyan, Middlesex Community College, and other public and private schools in the area, as well as teaching for the Hartford Stage Company and Long Wharf Theater.

While performing, teaching, leading workshops, and raising their four children, Trowbridge and Wheeler have continued to look for a farm which could serve as a home to ARTFARM. Although they have been offered attractive land in such places as Maine and far upstate New York, their roots in Middletown are too deep for them to leave, "Our community is here," said Trowbridge. However, the land they have found available in Middletown and surrounding towns was too expensive, unsuitable, or both.

Wheeler said that they looked at all of the city-owned open space when the city solicited proposals to develop the land for recreation or agriculture, but were drawn immediately to the southern-most, parcel 5. Saturday I biked out to the land to meet the Trowbridge-Wheeler family on the land, and we walked its full extent, talking about their plans for the land.

ARTFARM's use of the land
Parcel 5 is a spectacularly beautiful property, without any question the most natural and unspoiled of the 5 parcels under consideration for development, and perhaps one of the most beautiful in all of the city. The north-western half consists of 2 long hayfields separated by a narrow stand of trees on a bit of a rise. Often farmers leave these small ridges forested because there are too many large rocks to make mowing safe, they also help to prevent erosion of the fields. The south-eastern half is an old forest sheltering a streambed. The most remarkable feature of the land is obvious to anybody who has tried to maintain a field. Unlike most forest/field edges, here there are virtually no invasive vines climbing the trees. Even the forest between the fields is open, with cedars, oaks, mountain laurel and a moss-covered floor, it is a magical enclave.

When I cycled up onto the upper hayfield, a hawk immediately took to the air from the trees between the hayfield. While waiting for Trowbridge and Wheeler to arrive, I watched the hawk circle the fields, screaming constantly, perhaps because I was intruding on his/her space, or perhaps because it was a juvenile looking for parental help.

The ARTFARM proposal is to build two barns near Brooks Road, one for Arts, and one for Agriculture.Wheeler said the Arts barn would fit a theater seating 60-90 people, somewhat bigger than the Green Street theater, but not as big as that of Oddfellows. He thought an unpaved parking area with about 30 spots would suffice.

Trowbridge wants ARTFARM to work with children who don't normally encounter the natural world, sort of a natural world counterpart to KidCity. She envisions a "Children's EcoArt Trail" in the forest between the fields, and other trails in the larger forest near the stream.

The large hayfield could be the site of large, outdoor performances during the summer time. They said that theatergoers for a large production could park at Middlesex Community College, about 1/2 a mile away, and walk or take a shuttle bus to the performance.

The agricultural aspect of the proposal has a barn for small livestock, including chickens and goats. They also would like to plant fruit trees and berries, along with vegetables. However, both Trowbridge and Wheeler were cautious about proceeding too fast, and said they planned to work with consultants with expertise in agriculture, native species, and land use to determine the best way forward:

Realistically, as stewards of the land, we would need to proceed step by step. We want to be mindful and do what would benefit the land.

What is clear is that Trowbridge and Wheeler are not interested in commercial farming, they do not want to raise one crop for cash, she told me, "Artfarm in general, we're polyculture."

The Economics of ARTFARM
A lease of city-owned land would be a solution to the dilemma that ARTFARM has faced in acquiring land for the Trowbridge and Wheeler vision, because it removes the major cost of acquiring the land. ARTFARM is a small non-profit organization, with a budget of $113,000 in 2008, according to the proposal. Wheeler told me that he envisioned spending over $500,000 to develop ARTFARM on the parcel, but that the expenses will be spread out over at least five years, "We are not expecting to raise and spend and build it all in a year or two, nor do we have the resources to do that at the moment."

ARTFARM's business plan includes a substantial amount of community involvement in the project. For example, the barn would be constructed as a community barn raising, and most of the supporting labor for the theater and the agriculture would be provided by interns eager to play a part in ARTFARM's vision, and to work with trained theater professionals. Trowbridge cited a number of organizations worldwide who every year have a flood of young interns happy to spend their summer doing a combination of farming and theater in exchange for little more than food and a place to sleep.

Wheeler said that they would seek grants to make capital improvements, but he emphasized the role that earned income would play in ARTFARM's operation. He envisioned afternoon theater workshops, as well as longer retreats ("A 4-day Shakespeare retreat, with walks in the woods."). He said that most comparable theater retreats are quite far north, either in northern Vermont or far up-state New York, he felt that many people in the big cities such as Boston, New York, and Philadelphia would be very happy to be able to attend a workshop in a country setting without having to drive as far.

The Artfarm proposal does not directly provide money to the city, they have requested a 99-year lease at $1 per year.

Other Benefits to the City
Trowbridge and Wheeler hope that their proposal will bring something valuable to the community, through ARTFARM's work with both adults and children in theater and environmental education. Trowbridge was hesitant to claim that Artfarm would be an "economic engine", because for her the arts should not be judged on the basis of dollar generation. However, it is clear that if ARTFARM brings small groups of people to Middletown for theater workshops and retreats, other Middletown businesses will benefit.

ARTFARM's continued connection to Middlesex Community College would also provide benefits to both ARTFARM and the college. Wheeler teaches there, and he pointed to benefits to students in the arts as well as in biology, "Having a small theater studio just down the road could be useful for the college, and potentially Biology Courses might access the space for research projects, fieldwork, etc."

This parcel is in a very quiet and undeveloped part of Middletown, even by Maromas standards. Most of the neighboring land consists of state-owned reservoir land, there are at most half a dozen privately owned neighboring parcels. Louise Petroka has lived in a house on Tollgate Road, since the mid-1980s; her land shares a long border with the city-owned parcel. She intercepted us when we were touring the land on Saturday, thinking that we might be lost (we were). She was somewhat alarmed at hearing about a possible theater on the land, I think envisioning extensive building and parking lots replacing the natural woods and hayfields she and her husband have enjoyed as neighbors. However, Petroka brighted considerably upon hearing that there would be nature trails and children's activities.

For Petroka and other neighbors, the major concerns will likely be how much traffic will be generated, and how much impact the use will have on the natural beauty of the land.

Wheeler said that the ARTFARM use of Parcel 5 "would have a very low impact on the land." Trowbridge said that their goal was to "Keep the land intact but create a way for people to experience it."

Disclosure: I am a member of the ARTFARM board of advisors.