Howe Now Howe Farm?

The Kitsap County Parks and Recreation Advisory Board on Wednesday voted to recommend a proposal from South Kitsap School District and WSU Kitsap County Extension for agricultural projects at Howe Farm that would be open to both students and the public. The decision passed unanimously despite protests from people at the meeting at Givens Community Center who said the 83-acre county park in South Kitsap should be left as it is.

The plan is to expand the school district’s agriculture program and 4H club activities to the farm property. The district now has a 2-acre working farm on its high school campus, with pigs, sheep and goats that are raised by students and 4H members. Having access to Howe Farm would allow students to raise large farm animals, including cattle and horses, said Thomas Mosby, the district’s director of career and technical education.
Working with WSU’s master gardeners, students could do field research on a range of topics related to agriculture and natural resources. Plans, to be phased in over time, call for a barn and fenced area for animals, a salmon hatchery and aquiculture study area, an aviary for poultry and gardens whose produce would be sold at a student-run market. There also would be an outdoor turf grass lab and areas for studying forestry and stream management.
Most who commented on the plan described it as a proverbial win-win situation. But not all in the audience favored the proposal. Leona Phillips said she and many others enjoy using the park in its undeveloped state, and she fears increased activity will disrupt both wildlife and the tranquility of the property.
Citing the federal Endangered Species Act, she said, “There are red-tailed hawks, bald eagles in the area where they’re going. This is definitely harassing the wildlife.
“I was at Howe Farm one day when two bus loads of kids came and it was horrible. They were running all over, no control, breaking branches. … This is just wrong, just wrong. There are 100 people at that park every day who walk the trails, walk their animals. I’m all for these agricultural programs, just not there.”
Danny Horovitz, who represents South Kitsap on the board, said, “The parks department and schools should be a really good fit that allows the public to get the most use out of Howe Farm as possible.”
Horovitz noted that the general public would benefit by having the students do much of the development work, such as improving trails. He added a minor note of concern about their trying to do too much and too many projects that may not get finished. “But it is better to get started in a spirit of tolerance and compromise since we will be judged by what the public uses and sees done at Howe.”
Some spoke of the frustration they felt about deadlocks and disagreements among interested parties that have, in the past, stalled plans for the park’s development.
“I guess I’m really tired of everybody blaming each other,” said Karl Duff, representing South Kitsap. “I’d like to see something get going at the park.”