Farmland program meeting set

STAFF REPORT

REYNOLDSBURG — Farmland owners can learn how to apply for Clean Ohio Agricultural Easement Purchase Program funds during an upcoming meeting offered by the Ohio Department of Agriculture.

The meeting will take place from 6 to 8 p.m. Feb. 9 at Hiram College Kennedy Center, Second Floor Ballroom, 11730 Garfield Road, Hiram.

It will feature a presentation by the department’s farmland-preservation staff as well as testimony from a landowner who has participated in the program.

Meeting attendees also will have the opportunity to discuss the program with Ohio Department of Agriculture staff.

Agricultural easements are voluntary legal agreements restricting nonagricultural development on farmland, with the land itself remaining on the tax rolls and under private ownership and management.

Landowners may undertake any agricultural activity permitted under Ohio law, and they can sell their farm or pass it along as a gift to others. The easement, however, remains with the land, prohibiting any future nonagricultural development to make certain that it remains used for agricultural purposes.

Local partners Countryside Conservancy, Portage County Regional Planning and Western Reserve Land Conservancy also will attend the meeting to provide information and direction to landowners.

It is important for attendees to connect with these partners, who submit the Agricultural Easement Purchase Program applications to the department on behalf of farm owners, according to a press release from the state agriculture department.

Visit www.agri.ohio.gov for more information about the Clean Ohio Agricultural Easement Purchase Program.