APB Meeting Summary 09172025 - Laserfiche WebLink

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2 Cross for a new subdivision. Discussion followed. Ms. Streitfeld appreciated the way our new preservation plan draft provided numbers and detail. Her group will help with supporting our efforts and getting folks to turn out for special meetings. She urged the APB to be as active as possible in the current land use plan update process. Perhaps the APB could work with her group to host a listening session in Bingham Township. In some ways farmland preservation is about the choice or vision for the county, which is a political decision. We need to decide if we wish to retain farming and rural land or grow into a county that is largely a bedroom community for nearby cities. It was significant that the public input surveys for the land use plan update revealed that residents placed highest priority on farmland preservation and supporting agriculture. b) VAD Program Updates and Planning for VAD Breakfast: Perrin provided an overview of an application by Daniel Kosciusko, for 2.36 acres on Erwin Road, near Mt. Moriah Rd. They have planted an area of approximately% acre in blueberries. They have future plans to plant an orchard. He has a pollinator garden in the front yard. Our ordinance currently stipulates that a farm must have at least one acre in active cultivation in order to qualify for the VAD program in horticulture. Does their farm currently meet the requirements to be considered a bona fide farm? Not at this stage, due to the fact that they haven't had any sales yet. The owners wish to show that agriculture can be done on small parcels, as a way to recognize that farming is happening while there is a large subdivision being proposed. Discussion followed. Members agreed that the owners are doing good work but felt that they couldn't approve it due to the acreage. Ranells moved to deny the application, but encouraged the owners to reapply once they reach the 1 acre threshold; seconded by Hooten. Our annual VAD breakfast will take place on Nov. 19t", at 8 am at Camp Chestnut Ridge. Invitations will be sent in October, including to the BOCC and county manager. c) Grant application for Cost of Community Services Study: Staff submitted a letter of intent to initiate our application to the NC ADFP Trust Fund, for a grant of up to $14,000 to pay for a new study to update our 2006 study. We can match this with the gift of$2,000 from the OC Farm Bureau that we received thanks to the efforts by former member Howard McAdams. Mike Ortosky has encouraged us to update this. Staff shared the Wake County study from 2024 as a good example. Most past studies have demonstrated that for every dollar of county revenue, the cost to the county of servicing farmland ranges from 25-75 cents versus well over$1.25 or higher for residential. Perrin noted that Wake and Chatham counties have both implemented PUV rollback funding for farmland preservation. This is essentially saying that "ag pays for itself." d) Improvements to the APB website: Staff provided an overview of an effort to update and enhance the APB's website, to create a new landing page for the new plan that provides access and illustrates our process. Members viewed the various separate websites now hosted by the county for the different farm/ag programs. It isn't easy to find farmland resources. Members thought it might be best to host it on our own APB board page, with staff email address for the public feedback. Staff will work on getting this implemented.