County Easement Purchases
Under the County Easement Purchase Program an interested landowner voluntarily agrees to sell to the County Agriculture Development Board the development rights to his or her property, and a permanent deed restriction is then placed on the land. A landowner's agreement to accept permanent agricultural deed restrictions in return for compensation is known as "sale of development easements." Landowners retain ownership of preserved land, with the new deed restriction ensuring that the land will not undergo non-farm development. The county and state share easement purchase costs, which represent the difference between a property's farm (or deed restricted) value and its full market value. Land value is determined by appraisal.

If you are interested in preserving your farm by selling the development easement, below you will find information about the application guide, program summary and Ranking System, and the current application form.

· Application

· Application Guide

· Application to Sell a Development Easement