By Alli Tretina
COLTS NECK – The 84- acre Spinella Farm has been permanently protected from development through a conservation easement in a partnership of the U.S. Navy, Monmouth County, Colts Neck Township and the Monmouth Conservation Foundation (MCF), local officials said.
The farm, located between Creamery and Phalanx roads, will remain a natural and agricultural asset, supporting environmental conservation, national defense and the region’s rural heritage. The preservation effort ensures the property remains undeveloped while maintaining its ecological and agricultural value, they said.
The $2.76 million project was funded through a collaborative effort: the U.S. Navy contributed $1.38 million (50%), Monmouth County provided $1.08 million (39%), Colts Neck Township allocated $275,700 (10%) from its Farmland Preservation Trust Fund, and the Monmouth Conservation Foundation added $27,500 (1%). The easement ensures the preservation of land along Yellow Brook, a Category 1 stream feeding the Swimming River Reservoir, a critical drinking water source.
By selling the conservation easement, the Spinella family relinquished development rights, prohibiting residential, commercial or industrial construction on the land. The property must remain dedicated to agricultural or conservation purposes, with restrictions on subdivision, resource extraction and nonagricultural activities. These limitations, enforced in perpetuity, bind future owners but allow the Spinellas to continue owning and farming the land, as stipulated in the agreement.
Jim and Linda Spinella, who purchased the property in 2001, have deep ties to Colts Neck. “Colts Neck is important to us,” Jim Spinella said. “My whole family is out here.”
“It’s a great place to raise a family, and Spinella Farm is one of the nicest pieces of property in Monmouth County,” he said in a statement from the MCF.
The couple raised their family on the farm. “We’re right in the middle of town, but you don’t even realize it. You could be in a wilderness area,” Spinella said. He noted in the statement that there are “five bald eagles on the property – two adults and three juveniles… (along with) coyotes, deer, foxes, ducks, turkeys, and some of the fields are near nesting sites for snapping turtles.”
Witnessing the loss of farmland to development over the past three decades, the Spinellas decided to pursue a conservation easement. “We’ve seen significant changes in the town,” he said. “There was a lot more farmland in the past, and there’s been a lot of development. We decided we’d like to see the place preserved and do our part to maintain what was left.”
The project aligns with the Department of Defense’s Readiness and Environmental Protection Integration (REPI) program, which fosters partnerships to create natural buffer zones around military installations like Naval Weapons Station Earle. “Our partnership with Monmouth County and MCF through the REPI program will help buffer Naval Weapons Station Earle from future encroachment, ensuring the installation can continue its vital mission in the strategic defense of our nation without disruption,” said Nicholas Ginther, Community Planning Liaison officer for NWS Earle. “At the same time, this collaboration supports our neighbors in Monmouth County by preserving the historic farmland that defines their community’s identity.”
Colts Neck Township Committee member Sue Fitzpatrick emphasized the collaborative nature of the effort. “This is a cost-sharing component,” Fitzpatrick said at a committee meeting earlier this month. And, she noted, “This will preserve the Spinella property.”
“Any property within the military influence area is eligible for this grant,” Fitzpatrick said. “This would be a win-win for the Navy – to take this particular property and ensure it’s not used for military-friendly purposes, such as high-density housing – and for the property owner, and for Colts Neck.”
The easement ensures the farm’s fields, forests and waterways remain protected in perpetuity, even as development pressures persist in the region. “Projects like this one support the preservation of working farmlands, protect habitat for threatened and endangered species, and offer long-term opportunities for outdoor recreation and conservation education,” said Bill Kastning, executive director of the MCF. “By investing in land protection, we help secure open space and a higher quality of life for residents.”
For the Spinellas, the easement honors their family’s legacy. “I envision my kids and grandkids continuing to use the property,” Spinella said. “That ultimately would be my wish, for them to enjoy it the way we’ve enjoyed it.”
The article originally appeared in the August 28 – September 3, 2025 print edition of The Two River Times.
