Farm Lease or Purchase Opportunity
My wife Pat Moyer and I own Clyde River Farm and Forest in East Charleston, Vermont. While
not a certified farm, we use organic practices. We are retiring and seeking to sell or lease the
vegetable farm business for the upcoming season, as well as some additional land. There are
several options we’d consider:
Our preference is to sell property, but we could work out a lease/purchase option. The
vegetable farm is currently on a 200-acre parcel, with about 2.5 acres in production, with high
tunnel, propagation house, farm stand, new home under construction with garage/shop. We
have 4000 Christmas Trees on 5 acres, used annually in our Princeton NJ holiday sales. There
are also 250 blueberries (100 producing copious amounts) and a few currents, raspberries and
elderberries. We have a 32x70 high tunnel, 8x12 propagation house 40x80 hay barn and a 10
x12 Farm Stand on the corner of VT Rt.105 and Ten Mile Square Road. We would be willing to
subdivide the veggie farm site, to sell less acreage and a building site. There is a farmhouse
apartment for rent, to enable the new lease/ owner to move in in 2020 without building.
The other part of the property is a 600+ acre parcel protected by conservation easement
owned by the Vermont Land Trust, consisting of 350+ acres of forest, 183 acres of open water and wetland, 14 acres of hayland and an active sugarbush.
Also for sale is 5.5 acres with our 56x20 2-story house (where we currently live), barn and shop.
Our asking price is $170,000.
Maps and pictures are available for an overview of all options. Call us at 609-865-3627 or 802-
673-5569 for more information.
Clyde River Farm
Overview
The owners of Clyde River Farm and Forest are looking to retire and seek to sell or lease up to 50 acres of tillable land as well as up to 650 acres of forestland. The property is divided between two parcels: a 600+ acre parcel protected by conservation easement consisting of 350+ acres of forest, 183 acres of open water and wetland, 14 acres of hayland and an active sugarbush; and a 100 acres (not conserved) parcel consisting of 50 acres of forestland and 50 acres of tillable land currently used as an organic vegetable farm (not certified) with high tunnel, propagation house, farm stand, home and garage/shop. There are several options available for purchase or lease or some combination of the two. The forested portion of the property was conserved in 2003. See maps attached.
Property Description
Bill Manning and Pat Moyer have operated the property first as a site for the non-profit Northwoods Stewardship Center, founded in 1989, originally as the Vermont Leadership Center, then as an organic (not certified), veggie and berry farm, (250 blueberries. Raspberries) with hayfields, sugarbush, and Christmas trees. The property includes about 50 tillable acres, 600 acres in forest management and 50 acres of wetlands with special protections on either side of the Clyde River.
The land also includes a unique ecological treasure: A- ranked intermediate Fen, home to a multitude of flora and fauna, including several rare species of regional significance. The woodlands are managed under a forest management stewardship plan with a mature stand of white pine, hardwood stands yielding copious amounts of firewood, and over 2000 untapped portions of sugarwoods at various states of maturity.
The organic vegetable farm is currently in operation, having concluded its 2019 season of farm stand, CSA (32 members) and wholesale store and restaurant sales. Recent soils tests are available for the farm.
Infrastructure includes:
- 40x80’ hay barn
- 32x70’ high tunnel, 10x8’ propagation house and 3x8 germination box
- 10x12’ farm stand by the road
- 36x60’ post and beam home, shop and garage
- 36x36’ shop and garage/woodshed
Existing housing could be included with the property, and the conservation easement allows for new housing to be built, see details below. The sellers could retain the existing house with 100 acres.
Possible Lease and Purchase Options and Pricing
- Scenario 1. Lease of the organic veggie farm (non-certified) for the 2020 season and beyond at $500/month, housing provided at $400/month in neighboring farmstead. Owners continue to live in 36x60’ farmhouse. Option to buy under any one of the following scenarios.
- Scenario 2. Lease of organic veggie farm, as in scenario 1 with option to apply lease-to-purchase of 600 acres of conserved land with 1.5-acre building site that was excluded from the conservation easement $629,000.
- Scenario 3. Lease of organic veggie farm as above, with option to apply lease to buy 36x60’ farmhouse, 36x36’ shop and garage, high tunnel, propagation house and farm stand and 100 acres for $575,000.
- Scenario 4. Purchase of 600 acres of conserved land with 1.5-acre building site $629,000.
- Scenario 5. Outright purchase of 600 acres of conserved land with 40x80’ hay barn, 1.5-acre building site, 2 miles of Clyde River and organic farm with infrastructure, house and shop $995,000.
Other options for lease or sale are also available.
For more information about the property, farm operation, and scenarios, contact Bill Manning at billmanning@mac.com or 609-865-3627. Serious buyers may request more specific information about the current farm business.
For more information about the conservation restrictions on the property, contact VLT’s Dan Kilborn at dan@vlt.org or 802-745-6303.
