A nonprofit that offers nature-based wellness programs with horses is seeking Berlin’s approval to operate a horse boarding facility at a former farm, as it prepares to relocate its East Haddam operation, which has room for up to 16 horses.
The town’s Planning and Zoning Commission will hold a public hearing Oct. 1 on Factum Equine Inc.’s application for a special permit and site plan approval for horse stables and “agritainment” at 2127 and 0 Chamberlain Highway.
The 27.4-acre property is owned by Steven and Debra McLarty, according to an application filed Sept. 3 by Chelsea Bourn, who runs Factum Equine.
Factum, a nonprofit in its third year of operation, offers private and small-group programs involving direct, unmounted interaction with horses. The organization does not offer riding lessons, trail rides or birthday parties, according to its project narrative.
In an email, Bourn said Factum’s programs focus mainly on people facing “extraordinary life circumstances,” including first responders, military service members and their families, and people who are grieving. She said the Berlin site, formerly known as Fontanella Farms, would let the group offer low- or no-cost programs to residents across central Connecticut.
Under the proposal, the horses would live outdoors in five grass paddocks with two 20-foot-wide tracks. The property would be enclosed by a 4-foot perimeter fence. No new buildings are proposed, and an existing barn would be used for storage and shelter. Plans call for nine parking spaces.
In a Facebook post announcing the move, Factum said volunteers working with the McLartys’ Coastland Enterprises cleared a roughly 100-year-old, three-story poultry building that housed 9,000 chickens until the 1950s. The post said crews were starting to install fencing around 20 acres.
Factum would employ two full-time and two part-time workers, all of whom board horses at the facility. Typical seasonal hours would run from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m., with occasional programs ending at 8 p.m.
Daily visitors would range from three to 25, averaging 15, generating about 10 car trips a day and up to 20 during special events, the narrative said. Up to 20 horses could be on site temporarily in an emergency.
More than 80% of Factum’s operating budget comes from monthly memberships, which lets the group offer sliding-fee and no-cost services, according to the application.
Once settled, Factum plans a fall “horse warming” open house and has room for a couple of additional boarders, the post said.
The hearing begins at 7 p.m. in the Town Council Chambers at Berlin Town Hall, 240 Kensington Road, with remote access via Zoom.
