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ORANGE COUNTY <br />BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS <br />ACTION AGENDA ITEM ABSTRACT <br />Meeting Date: June 15, 2010 <br />Action Agenda <br />Item No. 4-e <br />SUBJECT: Acceptance of Two Grants for Purchasing a Conservation Easement at the <br />Breeze Farm <br />DEPARTMENT: Environment, Agriculture, Parks PUBLIC HEARING: (Y /N) No <br />and Recreation ( DEAPR) <br />ATTACHMENT <br />ADFP Contract (Draft) <br />FRPP Cooperative Agreement <br />Amendment <br />INFORMATION CONTACT: <br />David Stancil, 245 -2510 <br />Rich Shaw, 245 -2514 <br />PURPOSE: To consider accepting a state grant from the NC Agricultural Development and <br />Farmland Preservation Trust Fund and federal matching funds from the federal Farm and <br />Ranch Land Protection Program for the County's purchase of an agricultural conservation <br />easement on the Breeze farm in Orange County. <br />BACKGROUND: The acquisition of agricultural conservation easements to help preserve <br />prime farmland is a longstanding goal of the Board of Commissioners and a priority of the <br />Lands Legacy Program. During the first ten years of the program, Orange County has <br />helped to protect 1,550 acres of privately owned farmland and natural areas with permanent <br />conservation easements. <br />In December 2009 Orange County applied for state matching funds from the NC Agricultural <br />Development and Farmland Preservation (ADFP) Trust Fund. The funds would be used by <br />the County to complete the planned two- phased conservation easement on the Breeze farm <br />located on Schley Road (Cedar Grove Township). In 2008 the County acquired an easement <br />on a 141 -acre portion of Breeze farm (Phase 1). Phase II will be on the adjacent 153 acres. <br />The County's grant application anticipated the possibility of obtaining up to $172,000 in <br />federal matching funds for this project from the federal Farm and Ranch Land Protection <br />Program (FRPP). The County applied for those federal matching funds in March. <br />DEAPR was notified in early April that the County's Breeze farm application was selected to <br />receive $150,000 from the ADFP Trust Fund. Then on May 21 DEAPR was notified that the <br />County was awarded $172,000 in federal FRPP matching funds for the same project. Over <br />the next several months DEAPR will work with the landowners and the grant agencies on the <br />details of the easement and bring it back for Board approval at a future meeting. <br />Draft agreements for the grant funds are attached for the Board's consideration. The ADFP <br />Trust Fund has provided a model contract that is to be completed in order to obligate the <br />state grant funds by July 1. The federal FRPP requires that the County amend an existing <br />Cooperative Agreement that the County entered with the US Commodity Credit Corporation <br />