Pennsylvania - YORK COUNTY
Countywide program - Formed in 1989 - researched by Deborah Bowers
OVERVIEW - York County in 2003 has one of the dozen most active local agricultural easement programs in the nation in the number of acres acquired. Twenty of the county's townships have agricultural zoning, most with sliding scale densities. Eight townships also have transfer of development rights (TDR) programs on their books, but with limited activity to date. The county funds the local match for acquisitions entirely out of general appropriations, avoiding bond financing that is common in other Pennsylvania counties. Interstate 83 runs north and south through the heart of York County, providing quick access to employment centers just south in the greater Baltimore area in Maryland. Transportation access and cheaper housing costs attract many Maryland homebuyers, primarily in the southern part of the county. Growth pressures also come from adjacent Lancaster County and from the Harrisburg region to the north. The historic City of York is the county seat and the largest community.
EASEMENT ACTIVITY - 24,664 county-acquired agricultural
acres in 123 properties: corn, soybeans, wheat.
Goals: No specific program goals.
Other Easement Programs: The Farm and Natural Land Trust of York County
holds about 4,000 agricultural easement acres. Lower Windsor Township has an
independent easement program, but the number of acres acquired is not known.
Total Agricultural Easements in County: Approximately 28,700 acres.
FUNDING
Acquisition Spending to Date: $36.6 million
Revenues: State funds ($29 million), local general appropriations ($7.1
million) and federal funds ($560,000). In 2003, Lower Windsor Township began
to use a dedicated revenue source-landfill tipping fees expected to raise $400,000
a year-to fund an independent easement program.
GOVERNANCE - The York County Agricultural Land Preservation Board (ALPB) oversees the program. Its seven members are appointed to three-year terms by the York County Commissioners. The program's staff are part of the Department of Parks and Recreation.
STAFF AND OPERATING BUDGET - The staff includes a full-time program director and an agricultural resource conservationist responsible for conservation plans and monitoring. The annual operating budget is about $90,000.
ORIGINS - York County Commissioners eagerly enacted the program in 1989 following establishment of the state program and funding by the Pennsylvania legislature. The first easement was acquired in 1991.
ACQUISITION PROCESS AND STRATEGY - The staff screens
applications for minimum qualifications, then ranks all eligible farms and presents
results to the ALPB. Recommendations for easement purchase are approved by the
county commissioners before submission to the state for final approval and funding.
Some discretion and geographical targeting is employed by assigning extra points
to farms located in townships that have agricultural protection zoning.
Rating of Parcels: Quantitative. Agricultural quality criteria make up
57 percent of points and development proximity accounts for 23 percent. Lesser
weights are allocated to farm management and planning compatibility. Extra points
are assigned to parcels located in townships with agricultural protection zoning,
varying by extent of protection or type of zoning technique.
Other Criteria: Minimum state-designated criteria are size or contiguity,
location in an Agricultural Security Area, soils, and harvested cropland.
CONNECTIONS TO LOCAL PLANNING AND LAND USE POLICIES
- Townships and boroughs in Pennsylvania are responsible for planning and zoning.
Some of York County's townships seek to confine new residences in agricultural
areas to parcels with the least productive soils. The program does not consult
with townships in acquiring easements, although it gives priority to parcels
in areas with agricultural zoning.
Zoning: Twenty municipalities in York County have adopted agricultural
zoning in some form- most use sliding scale, a few use fixed-area based zoning.
Many of these result in allowed residential densities of approximately one unit
to 10 acres.
TDR Arrangements: Of the eight townships with TDRs programs on their books,
only one has designated sending and receiving areas. Several of the transfer
arrangements require that sending and receiving parcels are commonly owned.
DEMOGRAPHICS
2000 Population: 381,751
1990-2000 Population Change: + 42,177 residents; +12 percent
AGRICULTURAL LAND
261,164 acres: 83 percent cropland
Conversion to Urban Use: Comparative conversion data not available.
OTHER AGRICULTURAL CHARACTERISTICS
1997 Market Value: $128 million Number of Farms: 1,698
Principal Commodities: Soybeans, corn, wheat
MAP NARRATIVE - EASEMENT GEOGRAPHY
(PROGRAM MAP)
Easements are generally dispersed through the county, although most
are located in the southeast. Coincidentally, this is also the most development-pressured
part of the county. The largest block of easements of about 2,000 acres is in
Chanceford Township.