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Committee to form subcommittee to review five farmland and open-space protection applications totaling $1.3M
Summary
Committee members reviewed five 2026 farmland/open-space protection applications requesting about $1.3 million in county funding against a $450,000 budget, agreed detailed review is needed, and will form a subcommittee to vet projects and return recommendations to the full committee.
The Trails and Open Space Committee reviewed five 2026 farmland and open-space protection applications requesting about $1.3 million in county funds and agreed to establish a subcommittee to conduct a detailed review before recommending awards.
Staff outlined five projects (four farmland protection, one open-space protection) including: Boulder Brook Farm in the town of Malta seeking county funds for 26 acres (county request referenced in packet), several Stillwater-area farms, a large 101-acre horse farm in Ballston (county request and total cost provided in packet), and other parcels. Staff noted the county's current farmland/open-space budget was approximately $450,000; staff also observed one older award ($95,000) might be available to increase the pool to about $545,000, which would still fall well short of the $1.3 million requested.
Committee members said partial awards may not be viable for farmland-protection projects and recommended a subcommittee conduct a "deep dive" into each application, request additional materials from applicants, and evaluate which projects best meet program intent. The chair said staff or Jason will email committee members to solicit volunteers for a three-person subcommittee. The subcommittee will review applications and return recommendations to the full committee at a future meeting.
