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36 <br />eascnicnts will be in perpetuity and in compliance with the Noilli Carolina Historic <br />and Conservation Agreements Act and applicable Federal and State tax laws. <br />C. Minimum Eligibility Criteria <br />The agricultural and/or open space land must be at least ten (10) acres in size or <br />contiguous to a ten (10) acre tract for which the County holds the conservation <br />easements, and be, in agricultural and/or open space use. <br />D. Application Procedure <br />Guidance documents for donating conservation easements are housed at the Soil <br />and Water Conservation District office. Upon contact by a landowner, a meeting <br />will be set with the County Attorney and a member of the Board to discuss <br />donation of conservation easements. <br />E. Review of _ pnlications <br />The Buncombe County Soil and Water Conservation District will rank each of the <br />applications using the Soil Assessment and `T' Formula of Conservation Criteria <br />of the Farmland Ranking System. The Buncombe County Soil and Water <br />Conservation District will forward the application and Soil Assessment to the <br />Buncombe County Planning.Department which will rank each of the applications <br />using the Site Assessment Criteria of the Farmland Ranking System. The Planning <br />Department will review the documentation to determine whether the minimum <br />eligibility criteria are met, will prioritize applications and may make <br />recommendations to the Board on the waiver of any of the criteria. <br />F. Acquisition <br />1: The County Attorney will obtain two appraisals on tracts considered for <br />entry into the.program. One appraisal will establish current fair market value of <br />the property at its current highest and best use.. The second appraisal will establish <br />the value of the property for agricultural or open space use. Payment for these <br />appraisals will be based upon negotiations with the landowner at the County's <br />discretion. <br />_ 2. Upon receiving the written appraisals, the County Attorney will prepare a <br />Donation Verification Statement to document the value of the interest conveyed to <br />the County. This statement will be based on the difference between the appraised <br />values. If.an agreement is reached, a. contract to convey will be signed promptly <br />by the landowner and the County Board of Commissioners or their designee. <br />3. The County Attorney -will cause any necessary title examinations to be <br />performed and all documentation -to be pre. pared, If the property in question is <br />