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Donor family opposes sale of Claybrook parcel; Select Board declines private purchase request
Summary
Owners of Fowl Inc. asked to acquire the 88‑acre Claybrook parcel for private conservation management, prompting a strong objection from donor family members who said the land was given to the town as a public nature preserve and must remain so. The Select Board declined to offer the parcel for private sale pending further discussion and affirmed donor intent concerns.
A request by a private group to acquire an 88‑acre town parcel known as the Claybrook parcel prompted heated public comment and a clear statement of donor intent at a Plymouth Select Board meeting.
Fowl Inc., represented by Jessica and Brian Mayhew, said the privately run land‑management group would conserve the land as an ecological preserve and bring private capital and technical expertise to stewardship. The presenters noted the parcel abuts land they already manage and said private ownership could allow more intensive conservation work and grant access unavailable to the town.
Multiple residents, the town’s conservation commission and members of the donor family opposed the proposed private sale. Peter Faver and a letter read into the record from his brother Fred said the parcel was donated to the town in 2021 as a public nature preserve and that the Faver family is “100% against such sale.” The letter stated donors explicitly wished to place the parcel in public hands “for the benefit of current and future generations.”
Conservation Commission members and local land‑trust representatives emphasized the easement and stewardship obligations, and warned that selling land donated for conservation would set an unwelcome precedent that could discourage future donations. The Pemmy Baker land trust, the parcel’s easement holder, said its responsibility is to uphold the easement terms regardless of who owns the land, and that its monitoring and enforcement would continue.
After extended public comment and discussion, the board said it was not prepared to pursue a private sale of the property and encouraged continued collaboration between private volunteers and the conservation commission. Select Board members repeatedly noted the importance of honoring donor intent and that any change to conservation ownership would require careful public process and legal review.
No formal transfer or sale was approved; the board indicated it would not move forward with selling the donated parcel to a private owner at this time.
