$603,750 in New York State funding for 395-acre Chace Farm on Scenic Route 90 makes a total of $2.4 million dedicated to preserving 928 acres in the Homer-Preble Agricultural Corridor 

Governor George Pataki announced that Cortland County has received a grant of $603,750 from New York State's Farmland Protection Program. Cortland was one of just 19 municipalities in New York State to share in a total of $16 million allocated in the 2001-2002 funding round designed to protect economically viable farmland. The State's farmland protection program is administered by the New York State Department of Agriculture and Markets.

The grant will be used to purchase the development rights to 395.12 acres of the Chace Farm on Scenic Route 90 in the Town of Homer. The Cortland County Agricultural Local Development Corporation, under the auspices of the Cortland County IDA, will purchase the development rights and hold the conservation easement through New York State's Farmland Protection Program.

This is the third major grant that Cortland has received in the past three years from New York State for farmland protection. A grant of $1 million was allocated to Cortland County in the 1999-2000 funding round to protect the 359-acre Cobblestone Valley Farm in Preble. A grant of

$864,675 was allocated to Cortland County to purchase the development rights to the 174 acre Intervale Farm in Preble in the 2000-2001 grant round.

The project funded in this round involves the purchase of development rights for Chace Farm, owned by Leslie and Lorraine Chace. The farm was selected for inclusion in the State's program because of its location in the Homer-Preble Agricultural Corridor, as well as its location on a designated state scenic byway. Another factor was surrounding residential development.

NYS Agriculture and Markets Commissioner Nathan Rudgers commented on Cortland County's efforts promoting agribusiness and protecting farmland. "Cortland is an excellent example. Through their innovative approaches, the IDA has bought the development rights to several farms, ensuring the future of some of the best farmland in New York State." Cortland County is the only place in New York State where the county's economic development organization has stepped forward and taken an active role in a farmland PDR program, and promoted it as an economic development strategy.

Cortland County's Agricultural and Farmland Protection Plan, prepared by the Cortland County Agricultural and Farmland Protection Board under the auspices of the Cortland County Planning Department, calls for the creation of "agricultural districts" and local initiatives to protect agriculture's land base. The Cortland County IDA works closely with the Agricultural and Farmland Protection Board and Cortland County Planning to implement recommendations of the County's Farmland Protection Plan.

The Cortland County IDA recently created a new nonprofit organization, the Cortland County Agricultural Local Development Corporation, which is the only entity of its kind in New York State developed by an economic development organization as a tool for farmland protection. The Cortland County Agricultural LDC was incorporated in June 2000 as a single purpose, domestic, nonprofit, type C corporation under New York State Not-For-Profit Corporation Law. It will serve as the holding mechanism for conservation easements and the purchase of development rights through both federal and state farmland protection plans. The Agricultural LDC will also serve as the monitoring agent for the program, working with farmers to utilize the capital funds through the grant program to ensure the sustainability of the farm.

The Cortland County BDC also recently created a new Agribusiness Committee to help support agribusiness activities in the County. The committee is co-chaired by BDC board members David Lundeen and David Law, and is comprised of representatives of Cooperative Extension, Cortland County Soil and Water, and various members of the agricultural community.

"Farmland protection is an important economic development tool to assist Cortland's $43 million agriculture industry," said BDC/IDA Executive Director Linda Hartsock, who also serves as director of the Cortland County Agricultural LDC. " We're proud to be one of the leaders at the State level in this movement, and salute the farmers here in Cortland who are working with New York State to assure that their farms will stay in productive farming."

IDA Chairman Paul Slowey added, "Cortland is the only IDA in New York State to implement a farmland protection program. We believe that programs like these promote the viability and profitability of local participating farms, and help grow this sector of our economy."