Farmland Preservation Programs Research Articles

Agricultural districts and farmland prices

A hedonic price equation of structureless farmland prices in New York State are fitted to 458 land transactions between 1982–1985. No capitalization is found of the state's Agricultural District farmland preservation program, which combines current-use property taxation with several development-inhibiting features. It is hypothesized that landowners avoid joining the program when it would threaten profits from a development sale, and that those who do participate gain little because agriculture is the highest value use of their land.

The Impact of Parcel Characteristics on the Cost of Development Rights to Farmland

This paper examines the economic impact of selected farmland characteristics on the appraised value of development rights. Price elasticities are estimated for the size and location of farmland parcels, the amount of road frontage, the existence of panoramic views, and the distance to urban centers. Estimated elasticities suggest that parcel characteristics have a substantial impact on the cost of preserving farmland. For example, the per-acre cost of development rights is estimated to be 53 percent higher on farmland parcels that have a panoramic view of water than on parcels that have no water view. Similarly, the per-acre cost of development rights on a typical 25-acre farm is estimated to be 90 percent higher than on a typical 150-acre farm. Results suggest that the net social benefits obtained through farmland preservation programs may be enhanced by considering the impact of farmland characteristics on the marginal costs of purchasing development rights, when selecting among a set of candidate farms.

Is Oregon's Farmland Preservation Program Working?

Abstract Oregon's nationally recognized farmland protection program has had some success, but the future viability of commercial farming in Oregon remains in doubt. The recent proliferation of hobby farms threatens that viability by increasing land prices and fragmenting land holdings, thus hindering the expansion of commercial farms and the consolidation of parcels into commercial farm units. To curb the growth in hobby farms, Oregon's legislature and courts have tightened the standards that govern future residential development in agricultural zones. Local governments also have recognized the hobby farm problem and appear to have improved their administration of the state-mandated farmland preservation program.

State farmland preservation programs within the upper Mississippi river basin: A comparison

In the United States, significant agricultural land conversion to non-agricultural uses has prompted many states to enact farmland preservation programs. We compare the state farmland preservation programs in the agriculturally important area of the Upper Mississippi River Basin, notably Minnesota, Wisconsin, Illinois and Iowa. Within the last 8 years, this 4-state region has enacted 10 new laws which strengthen and expand protection efforts, thus revealing an increased awareness of farmland losses and the need to curtail them by state governments. We found that the northern states of Minnesota and Wisconsin have taken stronger regulatory approaches in maintaining their agricultural bases than illinois and Iowa. Minnesota has also enacted a detailed, comprehensive preservation plan dealing with the rapidly urbanizing 7-county region surrounding the Twin Cities of Minneapolis-St. Paul. Iowa is the only state of the four utilizing land-use inventories in their planning schemes, while illinois is the sole state in the region implementing the comprehensive Land Evaluation and Site Assessment (LESA) System to judge compatibility of proposed actions by various state agencies.

Agricultural districts: The demographics of retaining farmland in New York State

In 1971, New York State enacted the agricultural districts program to authorize the formation of farmer initiated districts where agriculture is the legally preferred land use. Although New York farmers have committed more land than under any other state farmland preservation program, the demographic/structural conditions underlying district formation have not been studied systematically. This paper begins that study by attempting to outline the demographic, socio-economic, and agricultural characteristics of areas initiating districts. Knowledge of these conditions in conjunction with district formation procedures can assist in developing strategies to retain land in agricultural production.

Evaluating the effectiveness of local government farmland protection programs

The effectiveness of farmland preservation programs in fast-growth areas cannot be determined solely on the basis of stability in the agricultural land supply within the subject jurisdiction, but must take into consideration extrajuridictional agricultural land loss which can result from stringent local development controls. A better measure of program effectiveness is the coefficient of conversion, which expresses the area of agricultural land converted to urban use per unit of urban growth. The rationale for such a measure and its application in Modesto, California are discussed.

A self-financing farmland preservation program.

A self-financing farmland preservation program.

An Assessment of Suffolk County's Farmland Preservation Program

In 1976 Suffolk County initiated a farmland preservation program to manage residential growth through the public purchase of development rights on prime agricultural land. As currently envisioned, the program will acquire development rights on only about one-fourth of the agricultural land in the county. The most likely acreage for which development rights will be purchased is devoted now to land-extensive crops. On a per acre basis, these crops contribute little to gross farm receipts when compared to the more land-intensive enterprises. It also is possible that the program will increase, rather than decrease, the cost of agricultural production on the program acreage. Furthermore, it may encourage the development of small country estates on the land that is now in commercial agriculture. While the program may help to continue an open landscape in limited areas of eastern Suffolk County, it is unlikely that even without the program all of the agricultural land will be developed. With so little of the potentially developable land included in the program, it appears the purchase of development rights will have little effect on the county's population density. The program will result in cost savings in public services, but on a per acre basis the developmentmore » rights will cost more than the present value of the most optimistic estimates of public service cost savings. Moreover, any tax savings experienced will benefit those taxpayers who live in close proximity to the preserved acreage at the expense of those who live in western Suffolk County. While it seems the program cannot be justified on an economic basis, the unique island geography limiting accessibility of alternative open space, the continuing concern about overpopulation, and the relative affluence of the residents may help explain local support for the program. The Suffolk County situation might be useful to other areas worried about controlling urban fringe growth. 24 references.« less

New Farmland Preservation Programs in New York

Abstract New York State and Suffolk County have sought new means for solving the problem of preserving farmland. Agricultural districting, developed at the state level, provides farmers in semi-rural areas with an opportunity to protect themselves on a voluntary basis from some of the rising costs and governmental actions usually associated with urbanization. Development rights purchase, developed in Suffolk County, provides farmers with an opportunity to voluntarily sell the nonfarm portion of their land's value, thus eliminating most of the problems interfering with farming in semi-suburban areas. Other areas may find the experience with agricultural districts and development rights purchase in New York helpful.

Landowner Behavior at the Rural-Urban Fringe in Response to Preferential Property Taxation

The factors influencing participation in both purchase of development rights and transfer of development rights farmland preservation programs are analyzed using data from a survey of agricultural landowners and from spatial data on individual farms ...