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| Pindar Damianos of Duck Walk Vineyards |
Suffolk County on Long Island is New York's number one agricultural county—with more than $250 million in sales in 2006. At the same time, the county experiences some of the most intense development pressure in the state. Faced with burgeoning growth, communities on the East End of Long Island have been faced with the choice to protect farmland and the agricultural industry or watch as housing replaces farm fields. Hudson Valley local, county and state officials embarked on a bus tour to see the results of that choice and learn about the challenges that face farmland protection on Long Island today. More
Wyoming County held its annual County Fair this summer, and in addition to great food, entertainment, and rides, the County passed its Right to Farm Law .
The Wyoming County Board of Supervisors enacted this local law to support theirthriving agricultural industry. A local Right to Farm Law is aimed at maintaining a supportive environment for farmers and reinforcing the “right-to-farm” provisions provided in New York State Agricultural District Law.
In 2005, the County Agricultural and Farmland Protection Board developed a Plan for supporting farms and protecting farmland in the county. Strategies in the Plan include passage of a County Right to Farm Law. Copies of the Wyoming County Agricultural Development and Farmland Protection Plans are available from the Wyoming County Department of Planning and Development.
 The Towns of North East, Red Hook and Clinton lie on the northern edge of Dutchess County and boast quality agricultural soils and entrepreneurial farmers who have adapted to changes in the agriculture industry over the last 50 years to remain viable in spite of challenging economic times and changing land use patterns. However, the increasing growth of the second homeowner population in these communities has made town leaders recognize the need to proactively plan for agriculture in order to ensure its future.
Voters in Red Hook approved the Community Preservation Act last year in a referendum that narrowly passed. The Act created a local real estate transfer fee on the value of homes above the county median. The buyer pays the fee and the funds go into the Community Preservation Fund – a dedicated line for farmland and open space protection and historic preservation. After only one year the fund stands at almost $240,000. Such local capacity for farmland protection work is often the key to getting deals done.
North East and Clinton are actively working to create agriculture and farmland protection plans through funding from the Department of Agriculture and Markets that will encourage, support and protect agriculture as a business and a land use in the community. The Town of Clinton recently had an open house and farm tour to kick off their planning process with AFT New York Director David Haight as keynote speaker. AFT is working with North East on their plan and anticipates holding a public meeting in October.
 The latest innovation in local food products, Mercer’s Dairy in Oneida County, had a brilliant idea – why not combine New York ice cream with New York wines to create a tasty adult dessert? The idea was meant with strong enthusiasm, but also conflict as it would require a change in state law to allow marketing of the ice cream. The New York legislature approved the required changes this session through successful teamwork between Mercer’s Dairy, New York Farm Bureau and the Department of Agriculture and Markets. The bill was sponsored by Assemblyman Magee and Senator Griffo. Look for Mercer’s wine ice cream to be coming to a store near you!
 Historically, the town of Brutus was known for two things—quality farm products and agricultural machinery—both distributed to the rest of New York state through the Erie Canal. Direct access to reliable transportation made businesses successful and the village of Weedsport thrived as a result.
Today, the New York State Thruway offers some of the same opportunities for distribution of farm products. It also encourages the distribution of people, however, and the town has become a bedroom community for commuters to nearby Syracuse and Rochester. This development pressure has had an impact on the farm community, with a loss of agricultural land and reduction in the number of active farm operations.
The town of Brutus was one of the first towns to receive state funding from the New York State Department of Agriculture and Markets to develop a municipal agriculture and farmland protection plan. Working with American Farmland Trust, Brutus intends to support the remaining 44 active farms in town and ensure that agriculture continues to play a strong role in the community, economy and history of the town.
Town of Amherst Celebrates 700 Acres of Protected Farmland
 On March 14th, the town of Amherst in Erie County, New York, celebrated the permanent protection of 178 acres of valuable farmland. Don and Dan Spoth of Donald Spoth Farms and Rick and Karen Vilonen of Ben Brook Farm recently protected 129 acres and 49 acres, respectively. The town of Amherst and the Western New York Land Conservancy now co-hold agricultural conservation easements on a total of 716 acres of farmland in Amherst.
“This land will always be available for local farmers to grow agricultural products,” said Diane Held, New York Field Representative for American Farmland Trust. “Both families can sell this land to other farmers or family members at agricultural value rather than at the high development prices of much of the land in the town.”
Representatives from the offices of Congressman Thomas Reynolds, State Senator Mary Lou Rath and State Senator Antoine Thompson attended the celebration along with county and town officials. Western New York farmers and vendors showcased locally grown foods at the event, many of which are sold at the Elmwood-Bidwell Farmers’ Market (www.elmwoodmarket.org). The event reinforced the need to protect farmland as the foundation of a sustainable local food system.
Town of Marilla Celebrates Milestone in Farmland Conservation
State and local officials gathered with farm landowners to celebrate the permanent protection of the 80-acre Crystal Spring Farm, owned by brothers Mark, Keith, and Michael Foss. The Town of Marilla has now protected a total of 773 acres of viable farmland that will remain available for local agriculture in perpetuity.More
Town of Chatham (Columbia County) – Approximately 25% of the total acreage in the Town of Chatham is used for active agriculture. Town citizens began to worry about this important component of their community as they saw an increase in second homeowners in town. Working with the Glynwood Center, town members underwent Keep Farming: Connecting Communities, Farmers and Food™, a formal process that surveys farms and their impact on the community.
Town of Warwick (Orange County) – The Town has worked in close collaboration with the Villages within it’s jurisdiction to direct development towards village centers using incentive zoning. The town first invested in protecting farmland through a voter-approved bond act of $9.5 million in 2000. Most recently, the community approved a ballot initiative to implement a real estate transfer tax to fund local farmland and open space protection efforts.
New Applications, New Opportunities: The Ireland Family Farm, Onondaga County
September 17th marked the deadline for the New York State Farmland Protection Program applications and this year’s applicant pool looks to be one of the strongest in program history. Over the next several months, AFT will be highlighting farms across the state that have applied to permanently protect their land for future generations. This month, read about
Ireland Farm, a
595 acre farm run by fifth and sixth generation Ireland family members in Spafford, New York. More
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