1. Ellen Dayhoff, Adams County Agricultural Land Preservation Program
Adams County, Pennsylvania
Agricultural Land Preservation
AWG Workshop, October 15, 2003

3. ORGANIZATION OF PENNSYLVANIA GOVERNMENT
STATE
COUNTY
GOVERNMENT
21 TOWNSHIP GOVERNMENTS
IN ADAMS COUNTY

4. 67 Counties in Pennsylvania

5. 21 Townships in
Adams County
$Gettysburg

6. There are 6 School Districts
in Adams County!
There are 501 in the State!

7. Pennsylvania ! Our National Ranking . . . # 4 for Milk Cows, grapes,
mushrooms & christmas trees
# 5 for Apples
# 6 for Peaches & Strawberries
USDA 1997

8. Of course, Pennsylvania
is NUMBER 1 for
FARMLAND
PRESERVATION !

11. #1 Standard bred Breeding
Hanover Shoe Farms
#1 Standard bred Breeding
Facility in the WORLD!
Gettysburg National
Military Park
ADAMS COUNTY
All of our water is generated
within the county
# 1 in State for Peaches & Apples

12. Why Adams County, Pennsylvania?
~ Location, location, location
~ Tourism
~ Rural, scenic beauty
~ Quality of life
Gettysburg

13. Why Hawaii? ~ Location, location, location ~ Tourism
~ Rural, scenic beauty
~ Quality of life

14. Pressure???

15. ADAMS COUNTY POPULATION, 1950 – 2010*
23 % increase
4th fastest growing
County in PA –2000 census
*SOURCE: ADAMS COUNTY OFFICE OF PLANNING & DEVELOPMENT

16. Ellen Dayhoff, Adams County Agricultural Land Preservation Program
Here’s an interesting picture. Our population is growing, but we are a more “rural” county now than we were in We are spreading out on the land, not necessarily settling in boroughs or other places with a core population of 2,500 or more.
Our townships may have populations of more than 2,500, but the people are not concentrated in any one location. They are dispersed across the land.
AWG Workshop, October 15, 2003

17. The Gettysburg Area Senior High School
Built in 1998 – student capacity 1,600

18. Ellen Dayhoff, Adams County Agricultural Land Preservation Program
The acres of land in farms has declined pretty steadily from 1880 to the most recent federal agricultural census in Note that the most rapid decline was from 1959 to 1969, in the years just before the growth rate increased in the 1970s.
We have lost about 37 percent of our farmland since 1880.
AWG Workshop, October 15, 2003

19. 2020
1960
2000
1980
ADAMS COUNTY
LAND USE

20. What tools DO we HAVE? RIGHT TO FARM LAW AGRICULTURAL SECURITY AREAS
CLEAN & GREEN
COMPREHENSIVE PLAN
AG PROTECTION ZONING
PURCHASE OF DEVELOPMENT
RIGHTS (PDRs)
(County, Township & Land Conservancy
of Adams County)

21. Purchase of Development Rights
Since 1989
The State of Pennsylvania and all
participating Counties have invested over $557 million,
Preserving 2,266 farms totaling 265,137 acres.
October 2003

22. How did the Pennsylvania
Program get started?
ACT 43 of The “ASA” Law
created the possibility of a
PDR program;
Regulations to implement the PDR program were created in 1988 with ACT 149

23. Where does the state money come from?
Bond Issue of $100 Million
This bond referendum passed with a 2 to 1 margin in November, 1987.
This bond has now been totally spent.
Cigarette Tax Revenue = $20million/year
Originally this was based on 2 cents/pack, but
is now a dedicated funding source;

24. Where does the state money Growing Greener Program
come from?
Growing Greener Program
$20 Million of “Growing Greener” money was allocated toward farmland preservation in 1998 for a 5 year period.
Growing Greener was an initiative by the Ridge
Administration for environmental preservation issues as well as farmland preservation.

25. Farmland Preservation PDR - How can you get started?

26. Gain local support Elected Officials Chamber of Commerce Citizens
Landowners & Farmers
AWG – You’re already on your way!

27. Ask some tough questions
How much farm land do we need?
Which farmland areas are necessary
to keep Hawaii’s agriculture viable?
How do we focus farmland preservation
where it will do the most “good”?

28. Ask some tough questions
Does the amount of farmland in our
state matter?
Does farmland loss in our state currently
affect farms, supporting agricultural
businesses, and others?
How much farmland does our state
need to keep its agriculture base?

29. By answering these questions, you will be able to start to
put together a PDR
program and ranking system.

30. The LESA Ranking System
Pennsylvania created
The LESA Ranking System
( With the help of AFT! )
Land Evaluation Site Assessment
Land Evaluation: Soil Analysis
Site Assessment: Farmland Potential
Clustering Potential
Development Potential

31. First – A farm must meet certain Minimum Criteria to qualify
The state regulations stipulate
certain Minimum Criteria as
well as certain Ranking Criteria;
A farm must meet the State
Minimum Criteria in order
to receive any state funds;

32. First – A farm must meet certain Minimum Criteria to qualify
A County may add County specific
Minimum Criteria to their program,
but it must be approved by the state;
State involvement: There needs to be
some level of consistency statewide, but
the Counties MUST be allowed to be
flexible!

33. How does the Adams County
LESA system work?
Adams County Nursery

34. State Minimum Criteria
Is the farmland tract in an ASA?
Are 50% of the soils in Soils Classes
I through IV?
Is at least 50% of the tract Tillable Land?
Is there a Soil Conservation Plan
for the tract?
Is the tract at least 50 acres in size?

35. Additional Minimum Criteria
Adams County
Additional Minimum Criteria
The tract cannot be within the 1990
federal established boundary of the
Gettysburg National Military Park;
If the LE Score is 40 or less, the farm
will not qualify.

36. (State then allows the remaining 30% to the discretion of the county)
LESA FACTORS
Land Evaluation: 40%
(State = 40%)
Farmland Potential: 40%
(State = 10%)
Development Potential: 10%
Clustering Potential: 10%
(State then allows the remaining 30% to
the discretion of the county)

40. LAND EVALUTATION SCORE Relative Value Total / Total Acres = 71.36
LAND EVALUATION WORKSHEET
Soil Type Acreage x Relative Value = Total
Arendtsville x = 2523
Neshaminy x = 903
Landsdale x =
Buchanan x =
Mt. Airy x = 425.5
TOTALS (acres)
LAND EVALUTATION SCORE
Relative Value Total / Total Acres = 71.36
/ = 71.36

41. Not in Adams County . . . Does the “Relative Value” approach
work when you have diverse soils?
Not in Adams County . . .
We worked with NRCS to determine
what OUR best soils are
based on corn production OR
orchard production

42. FARMLAND POTENTIAL Acreage of proposed land Percent used for cropland
Stewardship – Soil Conservation Plan (RMS)
Human Resources (Owner/Operator)
Duration (Century Farm)
Historic/Scenic/Environmental

43. DEVELOPMENT POTENTIAL
Amount of road frontage
Extent of non-ag uses in area
Proximity of Sewer or Water
On-site Waste Disposal Potential

44. CLUSTER POTENTIAL Proximity to other easements or applications
Consistency with County Comprehensive Planning Map
Effective Ag Zoning
Amount of Ag Use in Area
Proximity to other ASA’s

45. The Application, Ranking and
Purchase Process
1. Applications are accepted (annually,
semi-annually, “Application Rounds”, etc.;
(Remember, an application must meet all
State and County minimum criteria);
2. Evaluations are completed on qualified
Applications, and they are ranked based
on their LESA score;

46. The Application, Ranking and
Purchase Process
3. Based on available funds, the top ranked
applications are appraised ($500 deposit);
The County Board presents the landowner
with an offer to purchase an easement;
5. The offer is contingent upon a Title Search
and approval by the Adams County
Commissioners;

47. The Application, Ranking and
Purchase Process
6. Landowner decides on type of payment;
- Lump Sum (Yes, unfortunately Capital Gains must be paid on these proceeds)
- 5 year installment (the state now allows
long term installments, as well)
- Like-Kind Exchange

48. The Application, Ranking and
Purchase Process
7. Determine if a survey is needed.
Some PA Counties require the landowner to
provide the survey when needed. If a legal
description closes within 1:200, we do not
require a survey;
8. Are any subordination agreements needed?
This can get difficult, and needs to be dealt
with very carefully;

49. The Application, Ranking and
Purchase Process
9. Prepare documentation for State review and
approval;
10. Present the farm to the State Review Board
for final approval;
Wait for the checks and go to settlement!

50. What are the Incidental Costs ?
Appraisal
Title Search
Survey Costs
Notification of Adjoining Landowners
Legal Costs
Closing Fees
For Adams County, these costs add up
to between $3,000 and $8,000 per farm

51. The Perfect Administrator
Planner
Conservation District Technician
Realtor
Attorney
Banker
Teacher
CPA
…and make sure they grew up on a farm!

52. Adams County Farmland Preservation Operating Budget
Year Budget Issues Cty Match
1990 $ 15,000 Part Time Administrator $150,000
0 acres preserved
1996 $ 52,980 Part Time Administrator $257,000
Part Time Clerical Start GIS
5,000 acres preserved
2003 $ 165,000 Full Time Administrator $490,000
Full Time Assistant (GIS) + Bond
Part Time Clerical
12,187 acres preserved

53. To date Adams County has invested $4,471,955 preserving 12,187 acres
on 78 farms throughout the county.
In the past, all money invested for
easements has come from
the County General Fund.
“Rollback” penalty from Clean & Green
also goes into Farmland Preservation

54. The Adams County Commissioners have recently approved our first
Bond for Farmland Preservation!
This $2 Million Bond Issue
must be spent within a 3 year period.

55. How do we stretch
our dollars??

56. BARGAIN SALES Adams County has saved over $1.7 million
utilizing bargain sales.
A “Bargain Sale” is when the landowner
accepts less than 100% of the appraised
easement value.

57. Partnering – Get Creative!
American Farmland Trust
FRIENDS of the National Parks at Gettysburg
The Civil War Trust
The Conservation Fund
Federal Farmland Preservation Program
Land Conservancy of Adams County

58. Partnering with American Farmland Trust
Milton and Marie Hoffman Farm

59. Partnering with The FRIENDS of the National Parks at Gettysburg

60. Federal Farmland Preservation Program
Partnering with The
Federal Farmland Preservation Program
and The Civil War Trust
Weikert Farm

61. Ellen Dayhoff, Adams County Agricultural Land Preservation Program
A member-supported, non-profit land trust dedicated to preserving
natural, agricultural, historical, and recreational land.
AWG Workshop, October 15, 2003

62. Ellen Dayhoff, Adams County Agricultural Land Preservation Program
Partnering with Land Conservancy of Adams County
Adams County Nursery
AWG Workshop, October 15, 2003

63. TOTAL ACRES PROTECTED LAND CONSERVANCY OF ADAMS COUNTY
Year

64. Ellen T. Dayhoff, Director
Adams County Agricultural Land Preservation Board
670 Old Harrisburg Rd, Gettysburg, PA 17325
Ext. 335
Sam and Ellen Dayhoff