Buncombe County staff announce new easements, apply for $2 million AGZ renewal and highlight tax-credit extension

Staff for Buncombe County’s farmland preservation program told the board that the county closed a Community Farm expansion easement last week and is advancing five new easement projects in the Leicester/Sandy Mush area.

The presentation, delivered by Ariel (presenter, S3), said the Community Farm donation easement closed on the 14th with Southern Appalachian Highlands Conservancy’s involvement. "The most exciting news of the day is that we closed the Community Farm expansion easement, last week on the 14th," Ariel said. She described several agricultural growth zone (AGZ) parcels that have completed environmental assessments and are now in survey or appraisal stages.

Why it matters: staff said these easements will connect with existing protected lands and help keep working farms in production while strengthening contiguous protected corridors in the county. Staff plans farm visits with landowners in August and will return to the board at the August meeting with transaction-cost and easement-purchase estimates so commissioners can vote.

Key details and funding plans Ariel said staff intends to apply in August for three state-supported items: renewal funding for the county’s AGZ program, a farmland protection plan update and a cost-of-community-services study. "We anticipate asking another 2,000,000, for that AGZ grant, matching it with 2,000,000 from the existing bond. So we'd have 4 more million for projects," Ariel said. The county will prepare budgets for required local matches and identify which projects could be AGZ-funded versus bond-only if necessary.

Projects highlighted included three Reimer Davis tracts off Newfound Road (about 129–130 acres collectively), a Sooner Branch parcel near Sluder/Sluter Ranch Road (about 55 acres with roughly 52% prime soils), and the Ruby Brown Farm (41 acres off Brown County Road) — the latter noted as a century farm with many buildings that will require exclusions under state grant rules limiting house sites in an easement.

Program and deed-template change Staff warned board members about a program change in the state easement template: buildings must now be within a designated farmstead envelope if a landowner expects to be able to rebuild after loss. Ariel and Martha (S4) described that minor structures up to 500 square feet may still be allowed outside the envelope, but a property’s impervious surface is generally capped (staff cited a 2% impervious-surface limit used in deed calculations). Ariel said the change is intended to help stewardship and monitoring of easements.

State policy context Terry (S2) noted positive state budget news for farmland protection and a renewal of a state conservation tax credit: "The conservation tax credit, the state conservation tax credit, they did extend that. So now that's through 2030." Staff said the state also added recurring AGZ dollars and additional nonrecurring funds this year, which strengthens the county's grant applications.

Next steps Staff will hold farm visits in August, circulate materials by email for absent members, and return with detailed transaction and purchase estimates so commissioners can vote in August. After the board vote, staff will complete due diligence and submit AGZ-designated projects to the state for funding review and approval.

Credits and attribution Quotes and attributions in this article are drawn from meeting participants listed in the meeting transcript (Ariel/S3; Martha/S4; Terry/S2).