County Could Pony Up to Save Farmland
By Magney, Reid
La Crosse County in the future could buy development rights to farmland so it won’t be plowed under for subdivisions or shopping centers.
The La Crosse County Board has given planner Charlie Handy three months to work up a Purchase of development rights – known as PDR – plan for them to consider.
“I’m very much in favor of this,” said Supervisor George Hammes, who also is chairman of the developmentpressured town of Holland near Holmen, Wis. “We have to give farmers an option.”
Handy explained to supervisors Monday how PDR can directly help farmers while controlling property taxes and fending off urban sprawl.
PDR has been used on the East Coast to preserve vanishing farms, and a new initiative by the Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection could make money available locally to buy development rights.
The town of Onalaska has been studying PDR for two years.
How it works is: Just as property owners can sell mineral, timber or air rights to land, they also can sell development rights. If a farmer sells development rights, the land can only be used for agricultural production.
Handy used the example of farmland that’s worth $5,000 an acre if it’s used for farming, and $10,000 if it’s developed for housing. The county would pay the farmer $5,000, which the farmer could invest for retirement or use to improve the farming operation. In exchange, the farmer couldn’t develop the land or sell it to developers.
Supervisor Donald Bina, a farmer, said farmland now sells for between $2,500 and $3,500 an acre.
The county wouldn’t own the land – just the development rights – and it likely wouldn’t have public access, Handy said.
The county could accomplish essentially the same thing through zoning by legally restricting development of farmland, Handy said. But that raises issues of fairness, and whether government is taking something from a landowner without compensation.
Money to buy development rights could come from a variety of sources, including state and federal grants, as well as private sources, said Handy. He estimated the county might have to contribute one-quarter to onethird of the program’s cost.
In 2005, voters in other states approved referendums that raised $1.7 billion for PDR programs, Handy said.
Buying development rights saves taxpayers money, Handy said. Studies have shown taxes paid on farmland more than cover the cost of local government services. On the other hand, residential development costs government more money than it pays in taxes, Handy said.
Urban areas in the county would benefit as well, Handy said. Having farms and open spaces nearby improves the quality of life in cities and suburbs, and a healthy farm economy benefits urban businesses, he said.
Handy said he’ll bring supervisors plans for a pilot project to buy development rights for one or two farms this year. That will gauge farmers’ interest in PDR, and help the county set priorities for the kinds of farmland it wants to protect most.
BY THE NUMBERS
Two-thirds of La Crosse County is farmland or woodland:
307,274 – total acres of land
115,284 – acres of farmland
89,743 – acres of woodland
20,200 – acres of residential use
6,100 – acres of commercial use
2,300 – acres of manufacturing 73,647 – acres of other uses
Source: La Crosse County Comprehensive Plan Existing Conditions Report
Copyright La Crosse Tribune Dec 13, 2006
(c) 2006 La Crosse Tribune. Provided by ProQuest Information and Learning. All rights Reserved.