Township Plans To Keep Styer Orchard Operating As A Farm

Styer Orchard in Middletown isn’t going anywhere, although the family that runs the orchard and farm will likely be changing.

The Field family that farms the majority of the 109-acre preserved property is looking to exit their license agreement with Middletown, which owns the property. The Field family operates the farm under the company name Styer Orchard Inc.

“The township has every intention to keep the farm open,” Township Manager Stephanie Teoli Kuhls told LevittownNow.com. “We are in the process of negotiating the conclusion of a license agreement with the farmer.”

The Field family has run the farm that is widely known for its orchard that grows strawberries, plums, apricots, peaches, nectarines, blackberries, apples, straw, tomatoes, okra, eggplant, acorn squash, zucchini, pumpkins, and other vegetables and herbs since 2001.

The current agreement between the township and Field family is set to expire in 2021. The township, according to Teoli Kuhls, does not receive regular income from the preserved farm.

Attempts to reach the Field family this week were not successful.

Teoli Kuhls confirmed that the popular Market at Styer’s Orchard is operated by a different family and will not be impacted. Their agreement with the township is set to expire next year and they have indicated they want to stay.

Residents were sent into a tizzy earlier this week after social media posts about the farm not opening for strawberry picking season and an equipment auction sign that went up.

The auction at the farm will take place Saturday and is for property belonging to the Field family farming operation, Teoli Kuhls said.

The Field family’s intention to end their operation at the farm came as a surprise to the township, Teoli Kuhls said.

The township manager added that there are “lots of options on the table” and meetings will be taking place to determine how the farm will continue.

“We hope to have it open for peach picking,” she added.

The township purchased the Styer Orchard property for $2.4 million in the late 1990s. In its final years of private ownership, there was a battle over possible development on parts of the farm.

Over the years, Styer Orchard has become a staple for area families and for school field trips.

Despite the concern, Teoli Kuhls said the township “intends to preserve the cultural resource.”