A24-Lancaster Farming, Saturday, July 30, 1988 BY LISA RISSER KUTZTOWN (Berks) Car rying on the family tradition, MC- R-R Art-Acres Kay U2-ET brought top dollar at the Sire Pow er Sale held here Wednesday. The 10-month-old daughter of Modik Valiant Count out of Art-Acres Marbeth Kay U was sold for $B,OOO to Junge Farms Inc. of New Tripoli, Md. She was consigned by Kay U Syndicate of Hagerstown, Md. The dam was sold at the 198 S Sire Power Sale and brought the sale high of $25,000. Art-Acres Marbeth Kay U carries a Cow Index of +56 protein, +62 fat, +1970 milk, and +s2l2 as recorded in the June index. Her lat est record is 36,040 pounds of milk and 1,341 pounds butterfat in 365 days. The EX-90 cow Jias two Excellent and eight Very Good maternal sisters and is sired by Cal-Clark Board Chairman. Art-Acres Elevation Kay, the second dam, is classified as EX-91 and has a life-time record of 138,980 pounds of milk and 4,370 pounds of fat. She has 17 sons in AI, including one EX-91, and three Excellent and 14 Very Good daughters. The next dam, Art-Acres K I Kyland, possesses a life-time record of 109,830 pounds milk and 3,771 pounds of butterfat. She is classified Very Good-86. The sale’s second highest bid went for Mims-Dreams Leader Lebanon County Authorized For Emergency HARRISBURG-The US office to permit other producers Department of Agriculture has use 0 f acreage or to harvest approved Lebanon County for an( j se u hay from this acreage, emergency haying and grazing of “The purpose of this relief is to 1988 conservation reserve and allow an improved supply of live conservation use acreage. stock feed in severely affected Under provisions of this prog- areas of the state,” said Don ram, producers may request Unangst, State Executive Director authority from the local county of A SCS. .year .*sec- Agncultural Stabilization and This brings to 63 the total num- ond highest dollar amount at the sale. Marlin Hoff and John L. King purchased her for conservation service (Ascb) of count j es approved to date. $7,200. Standing with her are members of the sales force and Sire Power. Director Lists Ways To Preserve Farmland BY ALAN R. MUSSELMAN Executive Director, Friends of Ag Land Preservation Saving Lancaster County farm land from development is an important issue for most folks. We are the “Garden Spot of America”; we all depend on our countryside in many ways. To many it is your livelihood, your family’s future and part of you. The land is of financial, family and emotional dimensions. What happens to the land in the future is important Now we number more than 400,000 people and our cities and towns have given way to suburbia and spillover rural development which has begun to affect our agri cultural future. Farmland preservation is not a matter of “growth or no-growth” as some have attempted to make it but a matter of both sound plan ning for how and where our com munities will grow and protecting our best farmland resources for ourselves and for the next generations. The tools used to preserve farm land are many: FAMILY COMMITMENT This “preservation tool” has been around for 200 years and, for the most part, it works. Family decisions not to sell for develop ment; to hand the farm down .from generation to generation or, when sold, to sell to a young-farmer are Valiant Daughter Brings Top Bid At Sale Bubbles, a two-year-old rated Very Good-87, consigned by Mir iam Hess of New Windsor, Md. Purchasing the Kinglea Leader daughter for $7,200 was Marlin Hoff in partnership with John L. King Jr. of New Windsor, Md. Mims-Dreams Leader Bubbles has a Cow Index of +4O protein, +45 fat, +1534 milk, and +sl73 as reported in the July index. For her first lactation of 354 days she had 23,920 pbunds of milk and 883 pounds of butterfat She is bred to Modik Valiant Count. Her dam, Mims-Dream Klans-> man Buttons, is a Very Good-85 with a Cow Index of +22 protein, +32 fat, +1263 Milk, and +sl24. This Coldsprings Klansman daughter carries a record 0f25,980 pounds of milk and 951 pounds butterfat in 365 days. Mims-Dream Cinnamon Bran, the second dam, is a Coldsprings Amos Govern daughter with a EX-90 rating. Her records top at 34,090 pounds of milk and 1,337 pounds of butterfat in 365 days. The sale brought $150,050 with an average price of $2,420.16 per animal. The purchaser who went home with the most animals was James B. Johnson of Hampton, N.C. He bought five animals. Remsburg Sale Service of Jef ferson, Md. and Backus Associates Inc. sponsored the sale. Denny Remsburg shared the auctioneer ing duties with Mike Weimer. Norman Hill and Jay Howes work ed the ring. Haying, Grazing the most longstanding, persistent factors in Lancaster County’s countryside being what it is. How ever, the pressures are mounting; the decisions are tougher as deve lopment and land value pressures grow. What can you do? Congratu late those who have worked hard and maintained a commitment to the land and farming. It’s not easy. If you are a member of a farm family, get the extended family together and talk about your values and hopes for the future of the farm. What would be gained and lost if it were sold from the family? If it were developed? How would neighbors and community be affected? COMPREHENSIVE PLAN- NING This is an important long range layout of policy and maps to show how the community should grow and how it can be protected and improved. Townships and Lancas ter County have continuous plan ning processes and adopted plans. Know your community plan. What are the policies for farmland pro tection? Are those policies being implemented? EFFECTIVE AGRICULTURAL ZONING This is zoning which actually protects farmland" from extensive development. Most Lancaster •County Townships have effective agricultural zoning. The most junt out of Art-Acn , Marbeth Kay U was the highest-selling animal at the Sire Power Sale on Wednesday. She was pur chased forsB,ooo by Junge Farms Inc. MC-R-R Art-Acres Kay U2-ETstands herewith common approach is to permit one new house, on small lots for every 20 or 25 acres on an original farm. (No more than several houses per farm.) This is called Non- Exclusive Agricultural Zoning. Zoning is regulatory and change able. Effectivev agricultural zon ing should include strong provi sions for permitting compatible on-farm businesses. Most Town ships have a strong commitment and this is the most widespread and important measure available to protect farmland. Some Town ships, however, still have agricul tural or rural zoning districts which permit development of every acre of land. Among these Townships which include Strasburg, Pcquea, Manor, East Hempfield, Leacock, Penn and Rapho development pressures are as strong as ever. AGRICULTURAL AREAS Agricultural Areas (previously Preserves) arc mapped and formal ly adopted areas which do not reg ulate land use but establish eligi bility for compensation for conser vation easements (or deed restrictions), protect farm areas from public condemnation for unplanned capital projects and provide insulation for the farmer from nuisance complaints and suits concerning normal agricul tural activities. Agricultural Areas focus both priiority and preservation dollars on a defined area. Seven agricul tural Areas have been established in Lancaster County. The process involves landow ners, Township government and County government. CONSERVATION EASE MENTS A conservation easement (or deed restriction) is a legal instru ment which protects land from being extensively developed by becoming part of the deed to prop erty and is held in trust by a quali fied conservation organization or government. A conservation easement can be permanent or for a tcrmsjf years, usually more than 25. Permanent easements, if donated, have an appraisable value which can be used as a “charitable conservation contribution” and reduce federal income taxes over a period of up to six years. Esements donated for a term are not tax deductible. Con servation easements can also be sold either permanently or for a term. Lancaster County acquires easements, only in established Agricultural Areas, on the basis of the easements appraised value. Lancaster County’s approach will be better funded when the state farmland preservation program is enacted, possibly in January 1989. (CONTACT YOUR STATE LEGISLATORS.) If a landowner elects to sell a conservation easement for an amount less than the easement’s appraised value this is a “bargain sale” and may also be eligible for tax advantages. Conservation easements are strong legal instruments which protect farmland, natural land and can be drafted to protect historic buildings as well. FARMLAND PURCHASES, EASEMENT AND RESALE Both public and private vation organizations may buy a’ farm when it comes on the market, place a permanent easement to protect the property and immedi ately offer the farm for resale. This purchase and resale method can be expensive but is very targeted to those properties most likely to be converted to some other land use. Many conser vation organizations are making this approach more feasible by LIMITED DEVELOPMENT - selling a small portion of the land for development to save most of it. The Agricultural Preserve Board limits purchase and resale to Agri cultural Areas, other conservation organizations need not limit acquisitions. ‘ FARMLAND REGISTRY Similar to family commitment but more formal a REGISTRY may involve a handshake or more formal agreement between the (Turn to Pag* A2B)
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