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2 <br /> b) Approval of 2024 Meeting Calendar: Members reviewed proposed draft calendar. Woods <br /> moved to approve the draft as presented, seconded by Hooten; motion carried. <br /> 6. Discussion Items: <br /> a) Lands Legacy Action Plan update presentation: Chris Hirni provided an overview of the <br /> Lands Legacy Program and the process for updating the plan every three years. This past <br /> plan cycle was interrupted by Covid, so the 2017/18 update of the older plan was never <br /> completed. He's updating that plan to carry the program through 2027. Hirni presented a <br /> PowerPoint program outlining the program goals. The purpose of the plan is to establish <br /> priorities for the program, with input from the APB. The County's goal is to obtain <br /> approximately a 50% match for County funds. In 2017, the APB recommended the following <br /> goals for the 2018-20 Action Plan: continue working with farms interested in protecting <br /> prime/active farmland with permanent agricultural easements; and: pursue state and <br /> federal grant funds to match County funds available for easement purchase. Lands Legacy <br /> funds are primarily intended to be used for park/preserve protection and expansion but can <br /> be used for conservation easements as well. This plan will feed into the County's pending <br /> new Land Use Plan. There is not a set budget for the fund, so it varies depending on <br /> allocations and expenditures. On average, the program receives from $125k to $250k per <br /> year. There is about $2.1 million in the conservation easement fund and about $1.4 million <br /> in the Lands Legacy fund; this carries over from year to year. It's difficult to get landowners <br /> to agree on appraised valuations generated at the outset of the project—that are outdated <br /> by the time all funding is obtained from outside grants—this takes 1-2 years. This is a <br /> problem with property values are rising so quickly. Discussion followed. It appears that the <br /> program will require a significant increase in County funding in order to remain effective in <br /> the current market. Hirni will include language to help emphasize these issues: focus more <br /> on prime active farmland; identify areas of high development pressure and ag loss as per <br /> the work of the farmland protection subcommittee; and address current funding disparities. <br /> b) Annual Report and Work Plan: review of draft: Staff asked members to look this over and <br /> share any comments/suggestions/edits and get their input back by the end of the day on <br /> January 191n. The APB will make our report to the BOCC on Feb. 15tn <br /> c) VAD Report/update: Perrin reported on the results of the annual breakfast, with around 80 <br /> attendees plus staff. She would welcome any feedback about the program, food etc. Total <br /> cost was $1,917, generously covered by the Farm Bureau. One idea is to have VAD farmers <br /> invite any friends who might be potentially interested in enrolling their farms to attend. <br /> Perrin will be on parental leave for twelve weeks starting in early March. <br /> d) Farmland Preservation Subcommittee: Saiers provided a brief update. The <br /> farmer/landowner survey yielded about 92 responses. She's organizing the data and will be <br /> sharing with the subcommittee members next week. <br /> e) Membership: We have one vacant district position in the Schley/Eno district. With the <br /> retirement of McKnight, we now have a vacancy in the White Cross district. Staff shared a <br /> list of eligible VAD farm owners within those districts and asked members to provide <br />