Commissioners hear plan to expand municipal participation in Bucks County farmland preservation

Planning staff described a new municipal participation option for Bucks County's long-running farmland preservation program at the Jan. 22 Board of Commissioners meeting.

Mr. Ives, representing the county planning commission, told commissioners the county's preservation program has operated for roughly 35 years and that preserved farms remain privately owned under agricultural conservation easements; the county acts as a co-grantee on easements rather than taking ownership of the land. The new municipal participation program, he said, takes effect this year and is designed to "complement our current existing County state AG preservation program."

Nut graf: The program lets municipalities contribute local funds to be combined with county allocations and thereby increase the county's ability to secure state matching grants; planners said that will allow Bucks County to preserve more acreage and to consider farms further down the county's ranking list rather than only the top five each year.

Details: Mr. Ives said the county maintains a farmland ranking list with a backlog of about 40 farms totaling roughly 1,300 acres; under the existing program the county typically preserves the top five farms from the ranking each round and averages about 250–300 acres preserved per year. The municipal participation program offers two primary benefits, he said: preserving more land to meet the county's stated 2040 comprehensive-plan goals and leveraging municipal money to obtain larger state matching grants. Bedminster Township is participating this year and has allocated local funds to the effort, Mr. Ives said; commissioners said they intend to encourage other municipalities to join in future rounds.

Procedure: The county presented a resolution to authorize the municipal participation program as part of the meeting agenda. Commissioners thanked planning staff and acknowledged the program's history; one commissioner noted the program began after a voter referendum more than 30 years ago. Mr. Ives said the program will allow the county to preserve farms "out of order" on the ranking list, enabling preservation of additional acreage within participating municipalities.

What was not specified: The resolution language and exact state matching ratios were not read into the record and specific funding amounts for municipal contributions were not listed in the public transcript. Mr. Ives named one township participating in the first year (Bedminster) but said officials hope to recruit more municipalities in coming years.

Next steps: The county will move forward with the municipal participation program this year and reach out to other townships and boroughs to expand participation and the acreage preserved in future cycles.