[HISTORY: Adopted by the Town Council of the Town of East Longmeadow 4-14-2026. Amendments noted where applicable.]
In East Longmeadow, where farming is an essential part of the Town's history, farming continues to be a necessary and desirable activity that provides food, clean air, economic diversity, local employment, cultural and recreational activities and open space for all citizens of our community.
The purpose and intent of this bylaw is to state with emphasis the Right to Farm accorded to all citizens of the Commonwealth under Article 97 of the Massachusetts Constitution and all state statutes and regulations thereunder including but not limited to Massachusetts General Laws Chapter 40A, Section 3, Paragraph 1; Chapter 90, Section 9; Chapter 111, Section 125A; and Chapter 128, Section 1A. We the citizens of East Longmeadow restate and republish these rights pursuant to the Town's authority conferred by Article 89 of the Articles of Amendment of the Massachusetts Constitution ("Home Rule Amendment").
This bylaw encourages the pursuit of agriculture, promotes agriculture-based economic and employment opportunities, and protects farmlands within East Longmeadow by allowing agricultural uses and related activities to function with minimal conflict with abutters, and Town agencies. This bylaw shall apply to all jurisdictional areas within East Longmeadow.
FARM
shall include any parcel or contiguous parcels of land, or water bodies used for the primary purpose of agriculture. The words "farming" or "agriculture" or their derivatives shall include, but not be limited to, the following:
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Farming in all its branches and the cultivation and tillage of soil.
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Dairying.
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Production, cultivation, growing and harvesting of any agricultural, aquacultural, floricultural, viticultural, or horticultural commodities.
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Growing and harvesting of forest products upon forest land, and any other forestry or lumbering operations.
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Raising livestock including horses.
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Keeping horses as commercial enterprise.
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Keeping and raising of poultry, swine, cattle, ratites (such as emus, ostriches and rheas) and camelids (such as llamas and camels), and other domesticated animals for food and other agricultural purposes, including bees and fur-bearing animals.
FARMING
shall encompass activities including, but not limited to, the following:
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Operation and transportation of slow-moving farm equipment over roads within the Town
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Control of pests, including, but not limited to, insects, weeds, predators and disease organism of plants and animals.
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Application of manure, fertilizers and pesticides.
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Conducting agriculture-related educational and farm-based recreational activities, including agri-tourism.
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Processing and packaging of the agricultural output of the farm and the operation of a farmer's market or farm stand including signage thereto.
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Maintenance, repair, or storage of seasonal equipment, or apparatus owned or leased by the farm owner or manager used expressly for the purpose of propagation, processing, management, or sale of agricultural products.
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On-farm relocation of earth and the clearing of ground for farming operations.
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Construction and use of farm structures and facilities for the storage of animal waste, farm equipment, pesticides, fertilizers, agricultural products and livestock, for the processing of animal waste and agricultural products, for agritourism, for the sale of agricultural products, and for the use of farm labor, as permitted by local and state building codes and regulations, including construction and maintenance of fences.
The Right to Farm is hereby recognized to exist within the Town of East Longmeadow. The above-described agricultural activities may occur on holidays, weekdays, and weekends by night or day and shall include the attendant incidental noise, odors, dust, and fumes associated with normally accepted agricultural practices. It is hereby determined that whatever impact may be caused to others through the normal practice of agriculture is more than offset by the benefits of farming to the neighborhood, community and society in general. The benefits and protections of this bylaw are intended to apply exclusively to those agricultural and farming operations and activities conducted in accordance with generally accepted agricultural practices. Moreover, nothing in this Right to Farm bylaw shall be deemed as acquiring any interest in land, or imposing any land use regulation, which is properly the subject of state statute, regulation, or local zoning bylaw.
The Town of East Longmeadow requests selling landholders and/or their agents (and assigns) provide written notice to prospective purchasers substantially as follows:
"It is the policy of the Town of East Longmeadow to conserve, protect and encourage the maintenance and improvement of agricultural land for the protection of food and other agricultural products, and for its natural and ecological value. This disclosure notification is to inform buyers that the property they are about to acquire lies within a town where farming activities occur. Such farming activities may include, but are not limited to, activities that cause noise, dust and odors. Purchasing, and henceforth occupying land within East Longmeadow means that one should expect and accept conditions as a normal and necessary aspect of living in East Longmeadow."
This notice will be published on the Town's website and in the annual report.
Any person who seeks to complain about the operation of a farm may, notwithstanding pursuing any other available remedy, file a grievance with the Zoning Enforcement Officer, the Board of Health, or the Town Manager, depending upon the nature of the grievance. The filing of the grievance does not suspend the time within which to pursue any other available remedies that the aggrieved may have.
If any part of this bylaw is for any reason held to be unconstitutional or invalid, such decision shall not affect the remainder of this bylaw. The Town of East Longmeadow hereby declares the provisions of this bylaw to be severable.