LandsofAmerica.com - Land Resources / News / Preserving Morris farmland might become easier
#1 in Land for Sale Online
Land ID Search
International Paper Timberland for Sale
Click Below to Find a Farm or Ranch for Sale
America
Alabama
Alaska
Arizona
Arkansas
California
Colorado
Connecticut
Delaware
Florida
Georgia
Hawaii
Idaho
Illinois
Indiana
Iowa
Kansas
Kentucky
Louisiana
Maine
Maryland
Massachusetts
Michigan
Minnesota
Mississippi
Missouri
Montana
Nebraska
Nevada
New Hampshire
New Jersey
New Mexico
New York
North Carolina
North Dakota
Ohio
Oklahoma
Oregon
Pennsylvania
Rhode Island
South Carolina
South Dakota
Tennessee
Texas
Utah
Vermont
Virginia
Washington
West Virginia
Wisconsin
Wyoming

Land for Sale
sort by
Most Popular
Most Expensive
Most Acreage

Land Resources / News / Preserving Morris farmland might become easier
Preserving Morris farmland might become easier (complete article from source)
Source: DailyRecord.com, by Michael Daigle
July 05, 2008

The Morris County Agriculture Development Board has recommended changes to the county's farmland preservation plan that would bring its rules in line with those of the state, and could make it easier to preserve farms.

The catch, said Frank Pinto Jr., executive director of the county preservation trust, is that unless the state takes action, the fund that supports farmland preservation will run out of money in 2009.

The county agriculture development board will hold a joint public hearing with the county's planning board on the revised farmland preservation plan on July 17.

Pinto said the change in the county plan would allow the agriculture board to preserve farms all year, instead of waiting until state funds are available once a year.

In response to this change, the county board surveyed the farms in the county that are not preserved but are eligible for preservation as a way to speed up the process. Joining the preservation program is a voluntary decision made by the farmer, Pinto said.

Besides the preservation of farmland, the agriculture industry in Morris County also produces millions of dollars of goods. In 2002, the plan's executive summary said, Morris County farms sold $42 million worth of goods.

State rules that streamlined the farmland preservation process were adopted in 2007 by the state agriculture development board. The proposed rules establish a new county planning incentive grant program that will enable counties to accept and approve applications from landowners year-round, rather than once a year, as is the case under the county easement purchase program.

In addition to the new county incentive grant program, landowners interested in preserving their farmland can take advantage of other programs.

Pinto said the hearing is necessary because the farmland preservation plan is part of the land use element of the county master plan.

100 farms

Since 1987, Morris County has preserved 100 farms totaling 6,495 acres. Funds come from the county's preservation trust funds, authorized by voters to a maximum of 5 cents per $100 of assessed value. The tax generates about $44 million annually. In 2007, $11 million was used to purchase farmland.

The freeholders this year reduced the open space tax to 4 cents per $100.

Pinto said that even with the tax reduction, the county will generate sufficient funds for preservation of farms, open space and historic properties, in part because this year the value of the county's tax base rose by 10 percent to more than $102 billion.

Pinto said one issue facing Morris County is that the land targeted for preservation is getting more expensive and the target lots are getting smaller.

He said that the real concern is that the state trust fund for open space and farmland purchases runs out next year. The fund has $80 million left from a $200 million bond approved by state voters in November.

There was no action taken on the issue during the negotiations on the 2009 state budget that was just signed by Gov. Jon Corzine.

The lack of open space funding was the subject of a rally this week in Trenton as environmental and preservation groups demanded a stable funding source.

The Keep it Green campaign posed three funding sources: borrowing $800 million through a bond measure, enacting a water tax of 40 cents per 1,000 gallons to raise $150 million annually, or using $175 million from the state sales tax for preservation efforts.



Click here for complete article from DailyRecord.com
Signup | Contact Us

View All Land, Farm, Ranch, and Waterfront Properties for Sale

Land for Sale | Alabama Land | Alaska Land | Arizona Land | Arkansas Land | California Land | Colorado Land | Connecticut Land | Delaware Land | Florida Land | Georgia Land | Hawaii Land | Idaho Land | Illinois Land | Indiana Land | Iowa Land | Kansas Land | Kentucky Land | Louisiana Land | Maine Land | Maryland Land | Massachusetts Land | Michigan Land | Minnesota Land | Mississippi Land | Missouri Land | Montana Land | Nebraska Land | Nevada Land | New Hampshire Land | New Jersey Land | New Mexico Land | New York Land | North Carolina Land | North Dakota Land | Ohio Land | Oklahoma Land | Oregon Land | Pennsylvania Land | Rhode Island Land | South Carolina Land | South Dakota Land | Tennessee Land | Texas Land | Utah Land | Vermont Land | Virginia Land | Washington Land | West Virginia Land | Wisconsin Land | Wyoming Land

Rural Homes for Sale | Alabama Homes | Alaska Homes | Arizona Homes | Arkansas Homes | California Homes | Colorado Homes | Connecticut Homes | Delaware Homes | Florida Homes | Georgia Homes | Hawaii Homes | Idaho Homes | Illinois Homes | Indiana Homes | Iowa Homes | Kansas Homes | Kentucky Homes | Louisiana Homes | Maine Homes | Maryland Homes | Massachusetts Homes | Michigan Homes | Minnesota Homes | Mississippi Homes | Missouri Homes | Montana Homes | Nebraska Homes | Nevada Homes | New Hampshire Homes | New Jersey Homes | New Mexico Homes | New York Homes | North Carolina Homes | North Dakota Homes | Ohio Homes | Oklahoma Homes | Oregon Homes | Pennsylvania Homes | Rhode Island Homes | South Carolina Homes | South Dakota Homes | Tennessee Homes | Texas Homes | Utah Homes | Vermont Homes | Virginia Homes | Washington Homes | West Virginia Homes | Wisconsin Homes | Wyoming Homes

Lake Houses for Sale | Alabama Lake Houses | Alaska Lake Houses | Arizona Lake Houses | Arkansas Lake Houses | California Lake Houses | Colorado Lake Houses | Connecticut Lake Houses | Delaware Lake Houses | Florida Lake Houses | Georgia Lake Houses | Hawaii Lake Houses | Idaho Lake Houses | Illinois Lake Houses | Indiana Lake Houses | Iowa Lake Houses | Kansas Lake Houses | Kentucky Lake Houses | Louisiana Lake Houses | Maine Lake Houses | Maryland Lake Houses | Massachusetts Lake Houses | Michigan Lake Houses | Minnesota Lake Houses | Mississippi Lake Houses | Missouri Lake Houses | Montana Lake Houses | Nebraska Lake Houses | Nevada Lake Houses | New Hampshire Lake Houses | New Jersey Lake Houses | New Mexico Lake Houses | New York Lake Houses | North Carolina Lake Houses | North Dakota Lake Houses | Ohio Lake Houses | Oklahoma Lake Houses | Oregon Lake Houses | Pennsylvania Lake Houses | Rhode Island Lake Houses | South Carolina Lake Houses | South Dakota Lake Houses | Tennessee Lake Houses | Texas Lake Houses | Utah Lake Houses | Vermont Lake Houses | Virginia Lake Houses | Washington Lake Houses | West Virginia Lake Houses | Wisconsin Lake Houses | Wyoming Lake Houses

Powered by LandsofAmerica.com
COPYRIGHT © 2003-Current, All Rights Reserved
Terms of Use