The Kane County Agricultural Committee on Aug. 21 approved a resolution to authorize an amendment to the conservation easement on the Evans Farm in Big Rock Township, allowing the property to be subdivided so two local farmers may purchase separate parcels.

Sarah, a county staff member, told the committee the Evans parcel “was among the earliest enrolled under the program” and that “this is only locally funded. No federal funds are tied to this to this farm.” She said the original owner helped establish the county program and the property transferred to his daughter, Carol O’Brien, after his death in 2023.

The easement amendment would permit subdivision of a parcel split by Big Rock Creek, creating two distinct agricultural-use zones: rotational cropland on one side and pasture used for seasonal livestock grazing on the other. Sarah said the current owner has two potential local buyers, one intending to continue cropland and the other pasture.

Committee members asked about practical access across Big Rock Creek and whether the township would permit separate access points. Committee member Arnold asked whether the creek could be crossed and whether the township would provide access; Sarah said Shaw Road provides frontage and that township officials were contacted and indicated access would follow Shaw Road. Committee member Leonard pressed whether the committee should require confirmed access before approving an amendment; other members replied the committee’s authorization concerns the easement amendment itself, not the terms of a future sale.

During discussion the committee clarified the scope of its action: the vote would authorize the county board to approve an amendment to the conservation easement deed to allow subdivision, subject to the farmland protection program and the county ordinance cited in the presentation. The committee did not change the easement’s core restriction that land placed in the program remain in agricultural use.

The committee moved and seconded TMP 251014, “approving an amendment to the deed of agricultural conservation easement for the Evans Farm through the Kane County Farmland Protection Program,” and approved it by roll call. The transcript records roll-call responses as Alan (I), Leonard (yes), Hennessy (yes), Williams (yes), Roth (yes), and Juby (I). No no-votes or abstentions were recorded on the motion.

Why it matters: the amendment allows long-enrolled farmland to transfer to new, local operators while keeping the land in agricultural use. Committee members noted remaining implementation tasks — particularly confirming practical access across the creek — are matters for the buyer and seller and for township permitting rather than for the easement amendment itself.

The committee then moved on to a separate, related easement amendment for the Peterson Farm.