Harrison County residents got a glimpse of what their county might look like in the future at the Franklin Township Farm Bureau’s meeting last week.

Bureau members and guests were briefed by Gordon Ingle, local attorney and chairman of the Harrison County Conservation Committee on future development in the county.

“Our goal is to have programs that help farmers preserve their land in Harrison County,” Ingle said. “We try to come up with voluntary ways for farmers to preserve their farms.”

Based on past trends and future growth predictions, land use in Harrison County will become critical.

In 1900, Harrison County had 292,000 acres in farmland. As of 2000, 160,000 acres of Harrison County land remained in agricultural use.

Based on expected population growth, Harrison County will need an additional 3,600 homes in the next 20 years, putting increasing strains on land use and infrastructure. There are national economic concerns as well.

Ingle said that 13 percent of the county’s economic output comes from agriculture, and 17 percent of the labor force is employed in agriculture.

“Open spaces and farms make our community a better place and provide a higher standard of living,” Ingle said.

In recent years, it has become difficult for family farms to remain in the family, given the high cost of land and taxes.

“I’m interested in this endeavor, because I’ve seen so many family farms where the children couldn’t afford their legacy,” said Cheri Hildreth, of Lanesville, a conservation board member. “I think these programs are a start on addressing those issues.”

But jobs, the environment and family farms aren’t the only reasons to be concerned with development.

Ingle cited statistics from a Cost of Community Services Study prepared by American Farmland Trust, an advocacy group concerned with land use issues.

The study showed that, on average, residential areas require $1.50 in services for every tax dollar collected, whereas agricultural areas only require 40 cents in services per dollar in taxes. The study says that “converting agricultural land to residential land use should not be seen as a way to balance local budgets.”

The options presented by the Harrison County Conservation Committee are centered on giving the landowner — whose property meets certain criteria — the development value of the land.

The land remains the property of the landowner to be farmed or sold for agricultural purposes, but can not be developed. The committee plans on completing its first transaction this year.

In other farm bureau business, Guy Heitkemper, chairman of the Franklin Township Farm Bureau, asked for volunteers to help with grassroots work on policy issues.

Farm Bureaus gather policy input at the township level. If a particular policy issue is deemed important enough, it eventually moves to the national level, where legislators are informed of the issue.

Policy issues range from the recommendation to create a beekeepers association in Indiana, to Department of Transportation regulations and property taxes.

Robert Schickel, District 10 director of the Indiana Farm Bureau, said these policy issues are very important

“We pay what we’re charged, but we don’t have the power to set our prices like other businesses,” he said.

The next Franklin Township Farm Bureau meeting is scheduled for May 13.

— Patrick L. Boucher is a freelance journalist who lives in Harrison County.