Article by Ashley Monfort, NBC 12
“A non-profit just bought a large, historic farm in eastern Henrico and says most of it will remain untouched.
The Malvern Hill Farm is almost 871 acres, off of Route 5, and is connected to a historic battlefield that dates back to the Revolutionary War.
For almost 155 years, historians say not much has changed at the Malvern Hill Farm. Acres of farmland and woods stayed in the Ferguson family for generations, but ownership was split among almost two dozen family members, so it was put up for sale. There was a fear of developers taking an interest.
‘Five-hundred-plus homes on Route 5 coming in, certainly not anything anybody wanted to see happen,’ says Parker Agelasto, executive director for the Capital Region Land Conservancy. ‘It’s such a beautiful piece of land.’
So the CRLC took on the ambitious plan to buy the huge piece of land. With partners at the federal, state and local level, the non profit paid $6.6 million to become the new owners.
‘For our organization, we’re about preserving the land and maintaining working farms and timberland and public access to open space,’ says Agelasto.”
Read more at NCB 12 or check out the Malvern Hill project page.