Politics & Government
Dennis Kern Calls Berlin POCD 'One Of The Best In The State'
Longtime Berlin resident has been active in conservation efforts.
Berlin resident Dennis Kern is an attorney by trade but consultant by choice.
He has been involved in the Berlin Land Trust for a long time. The Berlin Land Trust (BLT) was established in 1988 by a group of citizens concerned about the quickly disappearing open space fields, wetlands and woodlands in Berlin and surrounding towns.
The BLT is a non-profit corporation with two major goals:
1. To preserve land in the town of Berlin. A parcel may be significant because of its scenic beauty or importance as a wetland, historic site or natural habitat.
2. To educate residents in the benefits of land preservation.
"The people of Berlin should be very proud of this plan," Kern said. "There is a fine line between conservation and development. Everyone would like to keep things the way they are but without development, there can be no open space purchases. If you look at some of the things the town has done it is very impressive. They took the town dump and made it into Veterans Park and now it is a place that draws people to it."
Berlin has 2,300 acres of open space but a highlight of the past ten years has seen some connectivity between Stop&Shop and Veterans Park and moving back up Farmington Ave. to the proposed police station, Depot Crossing and the railroad station, which is scheduled for major improvements and construction.
Kern said that the Berlin Land Trust likes what the town has done on the POCD and personally he boasts how good the plan is.
"I think it might be the best in the state, if not it's one of the best in the state for sure," Kern said. "I think the people involved have done a great job working on this plan and have given the Planning and Zoning Commission a great guide to go by when they have to rule on projects."
Kern was asked if Berlin had enough single family housing.
"That's always the question," he said. "Home building is not going to stop but there are fewer and fewer parcels of land that can be built on. Unless some property owners who hold large parcels sell, there is not a lot of room to put up a development. You will still see homes built but large developments may not be feasible."
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