That's the end of the neighborhood!

I have been to fresh and fancy..the place adds beauty to river rd..they always have nice flowes hanging up..it sure looks prettier than when the klingers owned it...I wish the town and certain others would cut these people a break they r very nice people

I have bought several plants and herbs from Fresh & Fancy recently to give as gifts and the owners were so nice and helpful - even repotted the herbs for me for free. They have a really interesting variety of herbs and vegetables (Chocolate mint! Pineapple Sage!) and the place is really beautiful and lovingly maintained. The best move New Milford has made in a long time - preserving the farmlands at Perrone's and Fresh & Fancy/Klingers!

The existing greenhouses have been EMPTY since they took over the farm, and the few plants that are in there are dead. Trucks are constantly bringing deliveries of larger plants for the Town and Country landscapers to load onto their trucks, and all those plants you see on the property have been trucked in. I sincerely hope that the new "greenhouses" will be for the sole purpose of growing, and nothing else. I wish them well in their farming endeavors, and I hope my suspicions are proved false.

Debi, your family GREW things in the greenhouses.

I don't really have a problem with what they're doing, but it seems to me that both Fresh & Fancy and Perrone Farms are more nurseries than farms. Farms I've been to have a wide variety of fresh fruits and vegetables. Unless I'm missing something, all I see there are plants, trees and shrubs.

"Farm" really just means a plot of land devoted to raising something for profit, whether it be plants, vegetable, cattle, dairy, honey. You don't need to sell vegetables to qualify to be a farm, although how nice would it be to get jersey fresh corn right around the corner! yum...

It would be interesting to see what your mom has to say about all this Debi....don't think she wanted any part of what was happening.

Shirley, not sure if we have ever met thru the years at the farm when my Husband and I ran it, but you could not be more wrong. Having the Low Family on our old farmland is a blessing. I am able to watch my husbands dream and his life go on thru them, they love the place almost as much as we did. I am very glad to see that they are making much needed updates to the property that I just was unable to do myself once Bill died, and they are really trying to make a go of this, and I know I can speak for my Daughter and Grandson when I say that the three of us, as well as our extended family wish them as much happiness as we had. I wish someone would explain why they arent being given a chance.

in response to newmilford67, Alot of things have changed since Osers 40 years ago. My Daughter and Grandson proposed that we keep the farm running. My Grandson begged me to let him take it over, but It was something I just could not do without Bill. And I can vouch also, that next door does not grow all of their own product, Ive lived and farmed next to them from 1964 thru 2011.

to newmilford1967

While you are there, please go to Perrone to see for yourself that most of the plants there also BOUGHT! And do not report back otherwise. I purchased a really beautiful handing plant this summer & was amazed to have found out that it came from another farm in NJ. I have found the same to be true with other nurseries in Allendale, Franklin Lakes, etc. So let's not pick & choose!

Also, I do not know the Klingers personally, but it is an unfair statement for you to have said that the next generation should have not sold the farm. You do not know the true reasons that they had taken this action. Perhaps, someone is physically sick, perhaps one realizes that he/she cannot run the farm & for that reason rather than drive the farm to extinction, it was sold to a wonderful family who could carry on the legacy!

So, perhaps you should think before you speak. And to conduct your research to see the orign of the potted plants. I don't know how many you will find, since it is the end of the summer.

Good luck to the new owners!

Wanted to clarify that the potted plant (which came from a dfferent NJ farm) that I bought this summer was purchased at PERRONE'S FARM.

I am reading the comments and am in disbelief that people can be so negative! It appears that people need to get a life and take their "happy pills". Is it wrong to be positive and wish the new owners much success, and the past owners,being the Klingers, a happy and peaceful future? It is noone's business why the Klingers sold...and it's not their place to have to justify it. Just take your Zoloft, Prozac, Lexapro..etc.. and worry about yourself. Casting stones is so unbecoming!

Well I'm glad that some NM residents can see pasr all the smoke & mirrors at F&F since the town council clearly can't. They sit there as a board of adults to decide major town concerns but came out of this decision looking like a bunch of naïve school girls. Does the council seriously believe that Low isn't going to store Town & Country stuff in that barn? Shirley is correct in all of her statements. As a neighbor in full view of the Fancy operation, I can verify (for you Debi) that there have been over a dozen tractor trailers in the past few months delivering $1000's worth of product bc it is basically a storage facility for the product needed and used by Town & Country Landscaping. Their landscaping trucks are there at least 3+ times a week. And if they have all of this product and sell a few things to the maybe 2 customers they have per day, please explain to me Debi, where all of this product is going if not to T&CL? Last season they trucked in 100% of their product & this year they made an attempt at growing 25% of their product (and that's being generous). I know for a fact that Perrone's grows about 90% of their product, contrary to what Debi & Shaaron are trying to imply. Feel free to go on down to Perrone's and check out the 5200 pots of mums that were just planted or stop in the spring and look at the amazing sight of the 15,000 flats that THEY GROW THEMSELVES, and the neighbors on Asbury can verify that the fields are always planted with hundreds of vegetables.

And I'm actually offended that someone would say that F&F looks better than Klingers did. Mr. Bill did 20 times better of a job at Klingers than anyone at F&F is doing. Don't be fooled just because they put a little paint on the place and put up a cute little sign.

and AML, If you all only knew what they put my Mother thru after my Father passed, you would all cringe....and they are doing the same to the new owners.

I think alot of people are missing the fact that this is preserved farmland, in our little town....something most towns cannot say they have. They are trying to keep it alive as such. I think the worry and negativity should be directed at the water company property. Fresh and Fancy is not going to cause flooding, overcrowding, traffic, or anything of the kind, whether or not they have nursery stock delivered to their farm. They are just trying to make a living, like all of us. I give them credit. The "armchair farmers" out there dont know what hard work it is to actually run a farm day to day, its a 24x7x365 job. They have been doing it, learning each day what works, what doesnt....I challenge anyone who thinks they can do it better, to go ahead and do so.

Oh, and you cant keep nursery stock in a barn....no ventilation or sun.

Well AML please tell me where you get your "scientific basis" for saying that "most of the plants there are bought". I do have close dealings with the Perrone's but why should that matter? And as I said before, go take a look for yourself or talk to the owners, they'll gladly show you or tell you what they've planted. And as for the hanging basket you bought, that is part of the 10-20% that they do not grow there along with the trees and shrubs. And I think it should say something about their honesty and integrity that they didn't take those tags off and try to present a false front that they grew the baskets themselves but left the tag to give credit to the other grower.

Not nursery stock Deb, tents, trucks, and any other shenanigans that he doesn't have room for over at Town & Country Rentals....

I am failing to see why anyone..the Perrones, customers, or Klingers should care what is in Fresh and Fancy's barn. As long as it's all legal stuff...no meth labs, then why do we care? Am I missing the big point? I see many other things people should care more about...the United Water Property, the election year, expansion of Sanzaris, the field at the middle school, the report card for our schools, etc.. I will say it again...people need to keep their noses where they belong!!worry about yourself...

Who the hell cares if he has some tents in his barn, how does that effect you directly? how does any of this negatively effect anybody? Im so confused as to why this is such a big deal? no one around them, or in town is directly effected by what is in his barn, or how he chooses to raise his plants. OMG really??

Seahawks2014 prejudicial rants against the NM Zoning Board and the Fresh N Fancy Farms have done a great disservice to Perrone's Farm. I believe that he is a Perrone. My 28 year streak of going to Perrone's has been broken because of the hostility displayed toward Fresh N Fancy Farms. I have been to Klinger's but not yet to Fresh N Fancy. So, with that said, Fresh N Fancy will be my new go to place and I will surely let all of my friends know (and trust me, I do have a lot of friends) to also patronize Fresh N Fancy and not Perrone's. You are a loose cannon spreading vicious rumours and you should really learn to be civil, and work together with the competition.

The Zoning Board members all have full time jobs and devote their free time to hear cases. They do not rant and rave as you do & spew out hateful statements.

Get a life!

AML I think you might be the one that needs to calm down a bit because YOU are so clearly blinded by rage that you didn't read my statement correctly. I realize you bought the basket from Perrone's and that's why I said it speaks volumes that they are honest with their customers and gave credit to the other grower. You'd also lose the bet that my last name is Perrone...maybe yours is Low? I don't really see how anything I said was a rumor, it's all fact if you want to check up on it. But overall, I can't see why you're all getting so worked up over a silly little internet article, especially enough to get controlling over it and tell your friends where to shop. It won't have much of an effect really....

Well, at least I have the integrity to apologize if I mis-read your rant! My name is not Low, & for you to say that is is a "silly internet article" speaks volumes for your character! I am simply sticking up for what is righteous, even though as I have stated numerous times, I have yet to patronize the new farm, nor, do I know the new owners. If it were a "silly article" then I guess you were not smart enough to have read it & moved on....you commented various times, so, how "silly" could it have been? At least I was smart enough to have surmised in my first post that you were either a Perrone, or, someone very close to Perrone, as the hatred and prejudice was quite obvious. If it were a "silly: article, you would not have criticized the Zoning Board in such a childish & antiquated fashion by calling them "naive schoolgirls." Why not "naive schoolboys" or "naive" children for that matter?

Obviously, you are not well read about the backlash that consumers have shown major companies lately...companies caved in to demands as a result of a loss of income. Do some research on the internet. I will not spell it our for you. The impact is more severe for a small entity.

Enough said...time will only tell...I will not waste further time on someone who is extremely prejudicial, narrow-minded, & whines like a baby because the Zoning Board did not see it your way! Maybe if you showed up at the meetings instead of hiding, your opinion would have swayed them??

I commented because similar to you, I was doing what was righteous and not letting you and other commenters wrongfully give Perrone's a bad name over one simple plant tag! Let's not start the childish and antiquated technique of name calling AML. Attacking my character and saying I'm not smart enough is a form of argumentative fallacy. But I guess you already knew that since you're so savvy and astute... Fortunately for Perrone's and F&F, the lands are protected and required to remain farms so either way the business will remain.

I wish Fresh & Fancy well, they are nice people and have a nice business there. They treat their customers well and I enjoy the expanded selection they have with more perennials and trees and bushes available. I live in the neighborhood and have had no problems with them.

I don't understand why there Is always a negative comment about what Perrones is growing when this is an article about Fresh & Fancy! It seems like Klingers has a bitter taste in their mouth towards Perrones. I always thought they were friends.

Wow.....
Debi - it certainly does matter what goes in those greenhouses. The land is meant only to be farmed, not to be a cover for a place to store all your stuff that's on property that may soon be developed or bought out. I guess I have a problem with people being less than sincere. Your sarcastic tone may be indicative of other issues that remain in your life.
I stated that I wished the Low family well with their farming endeavors....I stand by that statement. This past Christmas was awesome, when they put up the lights and played the Christmas music. I hope we see more of that.

This thread is amazing to me. Unfortunately, I had a scheduling conflict the night this application was voted on, but had I not, I would have voted in favor of everything requested including the sign that was turned down. As a member of the zoning board, it is not my job to speculate on alterior motives of an applicant, or to get caught up in rumors. If the owners of any property in town are not using a property within what is permitted, it is the job of the building department to enforce.

What I find amazing is that so many people can decide on so many things for other people. We really need to get back to minding our own business and dealing with our own problems instead of making them for others. Good luck to fresh and fancy farms I hope they do well and as always I hope the Perrone's do well businesses in town we hope to thrive and not compete. They own all that open property in new Milford let's be thankful they want to put a couple silos on it and not a shop right apartment building and a bank. SOD

Well said Mr. Petrolia! SOD

Has anyone ever asked Perrones how much they pay the town for the land in Berkley Woods that they house their mulch piles on? Just sayin