Interviewer: Mia Brennan
Date: 25 May 2020
How did you end up in the Ag Reserve?
Originally from Long Island, Jay was working in the Boston area when, in 1972, he took a position with the National Institutes of Health (NIH), MD, in the Bureau of Drugs under the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). He and his wife lived for a year or so in Bethesda when, after visiting and exploring the Sugarloaf mountain area, they moved to the Ag Reserve in 1973.
They bought and moved to the property they currently own and still reside; a farmhouse built in 1892, including 3 surrounding acres. This property was part of the larger farm/acreage owned by Mr. Vale that surrounds their farmhouse. At the time, Mr. Vale still lived on the adjoining property and Jay, after returning home in the evenings from work, would often help Mr. Vale making hay in Mr. Vale’s fields. In later years, Jay and his wife had the opportunity to purchase additional acreage from Mr. Vale, contiguous to their farmhouse property. First they purchased the barn and adjoining 4-5 acres. More recently Jay and his wife purchased an additional 40 acres of Mr. Vale’s property.
Jay and his wife have two sons, one born in Ohio prior to arriving in MOCO, and the other born in Montgomery county. Jay continues to work for NIH.
Describe the Ag Reserve when you first arrived.
There was already much activity and discussion already underway in the early 70’s concerning how to retain the farmlands in MOCO, leading up to the establishment of the Agricultural Reserve in 1980. Jay became involved with the Montgomery Countryside Alliance and the Sugarloaf Citizens Association, becoming President of the Sugarloaf Citizens Association for 5 years in the ‘80s. He is still active with the Sugarloaf Citizens Association and is currently serving on their board. Limiting ‘city’ sewer and water helps prevent the dense development and suburban development from encroaching on the Ag Reserve. One of the biggest battles was the defeat in 1986 of a proposal by a local mining company to reclassify a 530 acre tract near Boyds so that it could be mined. This victory capped an eight year battle that began in 1978.
What are the biggest changes in the Ag Reserve since you’ve been here –
One of the biggest changes in the Ag Reserve was the damming of Little Seneca Creek and creating Seneca Lake in 1984. The lake was built to provide an emergency water supply for the metropolitan Washington, D.C. area in response to a draught in the 1970s. It also provides a recreational destination in addition to Black Hill Regional Park.
Another noted success of the Ag Reserve was the purchase and establishment of the Bucklodge Forest Conservation Park. This became the first acquisition by Montgomery County through the Legacy Open Space program, in October of 2000. The Legacy Open Space program is an initiative to identify and protect thousands of acres of exceptional open land and historic resources throughout the County.A private developer was trying to put a golf course on the location of Bucklodge Forest, which sits on a sole source aquifer. The establishment and maintenance of a golf course would lead to the contamination of the aquifer. On the porch of Jay’s farmhouse, the purchase of Bucklodge Forest was signed by County Executive Douglas Duncan.
The development of wineries and events could be a potential threat to the Reserve. What constraints or limits should be put in place to preserve the Reserve? Events such as music, wineries, breweries, food events, can bring a lot of traffic into the Reserve. Wineries are an asset but also can come with extensive special events (concerts); the increase in number of people and the number of cars, on rural, country roads could have negative impacts. How much of these types of events and venues can the Ag Reserve safely support while retaining the integrity and health of the Reserve?
In 2080 the Ag Reserve with be 100 years old, what do you hope it looks like? What do you think it will look like?
At its 100 year birthday, Jay hopes the Ag Reserve will remain intact and relatively unchanged! Ideally city water and sewer won’t have expanded further into the Reserve. Currently no overnight lodging is allowed in the Reserve and Jay believes this initiative helps limit overuse and development and should continue. In addition, Jay hopes public support for the Ag Reserve remains high and that, as people who have taken the lead on initiatives that preserve the Reserve retire or pass away, new residents will believe in and support the goals of the Ag Reserve, take the helm of various groups and committees, and continue the battle of fighting off development and initiatives that encroach on the Reserve.
