A Queens County family is looking for answers after their cattle fence was cut down.
Page Henderson’s family owns a small farm in Brooklyn that spans both sides of Highway 103 where Transportation and Infrastructure Renewal is conducting brushcutting in anticipation of a paving project.
The family’s cattle fence was cut May 24 without warning but the cattle were in another pasture at the time.
“They just cut that all down and we had no idea they were coming to cut the sides of the highway until they were there and the fence was down and someone called my father at work.”
She says the fence is on provincial property but was placed there through an agreement between her grandfather and the province when the 103 was first built.
“The safest spot for our fence to go would be closer to the highway where it’s more flat, where the fence could be straight,” says Henderson.
She says the government at the time didn’t want cows getting loose and even paid for the supplies to build the fence.
After the fence was destroyed last week, Henderson’s father rebuilt, which took over six hours.
The cows are rotated between the fields every two weeks and the family is concerned their main fence, where the cattle are currently located, will be cut and they’ll get loose.
That fence is also electrified and provides power to other parts of their farm and other livestock.
Henderson says her family has been calling the department since May 24 and have not received any response.
She says they want to warn the workers about the electrified fence and what could happen if it’s taken down.
They also want to reaffirm the original agreement and have a chance to explain why the fences are placed where they are.
A spokesperson for TIR told Acadia News they are looking into the issue.
The work is being done as a part of an improvement project, which was contracted out to Dexter Construction.
Construction is expected to wrap August 31.
Photo caption: Page Henderson explains through a screenshot of Google Maps. Blue – where the cattle currently are. Orange – Where brushcutting occured last week. Red – The direction construction is moving.
Story by Brittany Wentzell
@BrittWentzell
