Agricultural preservation program reports new purchases and pipeline after $15 million FY26 request
Loading...
Summary
Agricultural preservation staff briefed the council on the county’s easement program, reporting recent closings and pipeline activity: the county closed on the Day property and expects the adjacent Harrison Farm to come forward. Staff said approximately 293 easements totaling roughly 23,393 acres have been preserved since the program began.
Howard County’s agricultural preservation office updated the council on the county program’s FY2026 activities and pipeline, including recent acquisitions and ongoing applications.
Staff said the program closed on the 80‑ to‑86‑acre Day property and expects the 67‑acre Harrison Farm — adjacent to Day — to come to council within a few months. Presenters said the county’s preservation program (IPRES) has completed easement purchases on 173 properties (the presentation counted additional easements dedicated through subdivision processes) and reported a total preserved acreage of about 23,393 acres across roughly 293 easements dating to program inception.
Program administrators told the council that a $15 million request requested last year remains in project GEO 164, and staff said about $1.95 million remained from an earlier $50 million spending authority approved in 2013. Councilmembers asked about eastern‑county farm participation, scoring for smaller eastern parcels, and outreach to landowners. Staff said zoning (RC and RR) has historically dominated the program and that minimum acreage rules had been adjusted (the minimum acreage threshold had been reduced to 20 acres) but that higher land values in the eastern part of the county reduce the number of willing sellers. The council discussed whether the Agricultural Board would examine amendments to scoring or outreach; staff and board representatives acknowledged scoring changes had been discussed but that they had not yet finalized an eastern‑district‑focused modification.
Why it matters: The county’s agricultural easement program is one of the principal tools to preserve farmland and working landscapes and influences development patterns. The presence of a pipeline of adjacent preserved parcels helps keep larger contiguous blocks of farmland intact.
What’s next: The Harrison Farm easement is expected to come to council in the next few months; staff said they will provide district‑level lists of preserved and uncommitted parcels on request and continue outreach to potential eastern‑county landowners and the ag board to consider scoring adjustments.
