Farmland protection plan continues to divide public opinion

NORTH EAST — There is not yet public consensus on the possibility of the town of North East adopting a series of guidelines concerning the future of agriculture and open space, if a public hearing held by the town at the American Legion Hall Post 178 last Thursday, Jan. 21, is any indicator.

Town Supervisor Dave Sherman explained the public hearing was held as part of the board’s consideration process in adopting North East’s Agricultural and Farmland Protection Plan.

Lynn Mordas has chaired the steering committee responsible for the document. With adoption, Mordas said, the plan would move the town toward a positive future for farms and agriculture in town, especially small family farmers. She stressed that adoption of the plan will not incur new costs or raise taxes for residents of the town, and thanked the well over 100 people who directly contributed to the development of the plan.

David Haight, New York’s director for the American Farmland Trust (AFT), a group that has played a significant role in the research and development of the proposed plan, gave a short presentation outlining the main points of the document, which is in its third draft.

The remainder of the meeting was then opened to public comment, and as has been the case with previous meetings, two major camps of opinion quickly emerged.

The first, represented in large measure by owners of smaller agricultural operations and those without direct participation in agriculture, were pleased with the plan’s depth in research and vision. Protecting agricultural use and open land is a key aesthetic aspect of the town’s appeal, they argued, and will also work to keep taxes low.

“Without preserving open space,†said resident Kristie Schmidt, “property values go down.â€

In North East’s comprehensive plan the public has said one of the town’s goals is to maintain its rural character, said resident Sam Busselle.

On the other side of the argument, some of the large-scale farmers and those in the real estate business argued that there was no need for a town-wide agricultural plan and the significant changes resulting from implementation of the plan’s goals would create unnecessary taxes.

“I do not buy the premise that farmland needs to be protected,†argued Kimberly Bruise, who is involved in real estate and is not a town resident. Bruise said that for many years the purchase of development rights have gone smoothly without the involvement of what she called a third party: the taxpayers.

“This is wrong and unthinkable when it [already] works in private and free enterprise,†she said.

Farmer Jim Perotti agreed. He explained that he has sold numerous pieces of property to owners that immediately want farming operations to continue working the land so they can receive agricultural tax exemption. Those owners have already worked out provisions so the land stays open, he said, making the protection plan in front of the board redundant.

“I don’t think we need to spend any taxpayer money to keep land open,†he said.

Resident Peter Greenough (husband of Millerton News reporter Christine Bates) said  the biggest problem for the plan as well as the future of agriculture in town was how to provide beneficial treatment to farmers without displacing the tax burden onto the rest of the town’s residents.

“If you have a fixed budget with numbers you need to hit,†he reasoned, “and you decrease taxes from someone, you have to raise the money somewhere.â€

Mordas explained that adoption of the plan itself would not have any fiscal impact on the town, and any change in tax structure down the road would have to put be to public referendum, meaning a popular vote would be required.

“I understand where you’re coming from,†she said, “but we’re hoping that ag-related businesses will be attracted to the community [as a long-term result of the success of local farms] and they would help the tax base.â€

Another point of contention was the definition of a farmer. The vagueness of that term could result in ag exemption status for landowners who have never farmed a day in their life, several people pointed out. Those comments illustrated the perceived tension between large scale farm operations and smaller agriculture businesses that have popped up in more recent years.

“I would never say I’m a real farmer,†said Leslie Farhangi, who operates an equine-related business on 17 acres in town. “But I support a lot of ag-based businesses, and I think every little bit helps. I’m interested not in [issues relating to the] purchase of development rights, but plans for equine tourism.â€

Ron Steed, of Steed Real Estate, explained that his main objection to the plan was that the ramifications of adopting and working toward the document’s guidelines haven’t been thoroughly explored.

“There are serious consequences to folks who sell their development rights,† he warned the audience. “That should be addressed before the plan is put into development.â€

Public comments lasted more than an hour, and while most opinions remained steadfast in their division, one issue appeared in be in agreement.

“We have five Town Board members, and two are here,†Dave MacMillan pointed out [Supervisor Sherman was joined by Councilman Carl Stahovec]. “How are they going to vote on this?â€

“It’s very undemocratic that more than half of the board couldn’t be bothered to be here,†agreed Schmidt. The following day, Sherman said that  Councilman Tim Shaffer had left him a message prior to the meeting saying he was sick and would not be in attendance.

Sherman said that the next step in the process would be for the Town Board to review the draft at its next meeting, scheduled for Feb. 11. The future of the document, as far as rejecting it, adopting it, or sending it back to committee for another draft will be discussed then.

Sherman said it is unknown whether there will be another public hearing, but written comments will be accepted until Feb. 1 on the third draft, which is available at Town Hall, the NorthEast-Millerton Library and on neccmillerton.org, the Web site for the North East Community Center. Written comments can be e-mailed to northeasttown@taconic.net or mailed to Town Clerk’s Office, Town of North East, PO Box 516, Millerton, NY 12546.

“I’m not opposed to farmland protection,†Greenough said near the close of the meeting, adding another dimension to the already complex idea of the town’s future in agriculture, “but over time it will gentrify the town. And if you don’t do it, the town will gentrify too. That’s the trend.â€