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Draft 10/8/99 <br />There are tax benefits to donating a conservation easement -both <br />at ..the Federal income tax level and in .state and Federal estate <br />taxes. Many large landowners have, in recent years, begun using <br />conservation easements as a way to keep their land in a desired <br />state for the long-term and ,meet estate planning financial needs. <br />Among .the benefits to conservation easements are.. the <br />aforementioned ability to meet financial needs ` of the .landowner <br />without actually transferring title to the land. This approach has <br />been used widely, particularly in the area of farmland preservation <br />to allow farmers to remain in agriculture while received some <br />return on the property. Conservation easements, since they area <br />less than fee-simple, are.: also .generally less expensive to the <br />purchasing: entity. Awareness of .this tool has increased dramatically <br />in recent .years, ,and the. tax benefits of easements are touted by <br />many financial planners. <br />On the -down side, the actual legal agreement. for a conservation <br />easement can be complex, as it attempts to meet many of the <br />.needs of both parties. Agreeing on a fair value for the easement- <br />and the terms of monitoring by the easement holder must also be <br />carefully developed.. And specifying the. responsibilities. clearly for <br />stewardship .monitoring and maintenance may avoid some of the <br />pitfalls that have occurred in other easement cases, after later land <br />transfers. In all, conservation easements offer many benefits. but <br />are not as clear as fee-simple purchases. Additional information on <br />conservation easements are provided in Appendix M. <br />D. Dedication/Acquisition Through the Development Process <br />A key area of potential land acquisition will be those through the.. <br />development process. Currently, the County has a program. for the <br />dedication of land for recreation purposes, although the alternative <br />payment-in-lieu of dedication .program is more often. used. There <br />are also incentives in the voluntary Flexible Development program <br />to set aside land that contain significant natural and cultural <br />resources. <br />The Joint Master Recreation and Parks report has recommended <br />revamping -.the -payment-in-lieu .and recreation dedication <br />.provisions, and with changes to the Flexible Development <br />. ordinance underway it may be timely to develop a comprehensive <br />approach to acquisitions through the development process. <br />29 <br />