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Ulster County unveils draft agricultural plan; public urges more processing, housing and implementation funding
Summary
Ulster County Planning Department presented a draft Ag & Farmland Protection Plan that updates decades-old data, maps priority farmland and lists 100+ strategies including a county loan fund, food hub study and farmworker-housing pilot. Farmers and advocates pressed for processing capacity, easier access to grants and stronger implementation resources.
A public presentation of a draft Ulster County Agricultural and Farmland Protection Plan highlighted updated maps, economic data and a set of priority actions intended to shore up farmland and support farmers.
An opening presenter called the document "an incredible thing" that assembles an "unbelievable wealth of data, maps, resources" about Ulster County agriculture and introduced Nan Stolzenberg of Community Planning Environmental Associates, who led the presentation. Stolzenberg said the county's prior plan dated to the late 20th century and that the new draft uses 2022 U.S. Department of Agriculture Census data and state Ag & Markets programs to inform planning and funding opportunities.
"The maps and the data that are in this plan is required for [farmers] to participate" in the state's Farmland Protection Implementation Grant program, Stolzenberg said, and she described an analysis that identifies priority farmland areas countywide to support easement applications and local decision-making.
The draft compiles three core elements: an assessment of current conditions, a long-term vision and goals, and a toolbox of strategies. Stolzenberg said the plan organizes more than 100 actions into four chapters: agricultural economic viability; farmland and land use; resiliency and sustainability; and…
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