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Conservancy Reintroduces Effort to Protect Chattahoochee Hills Farmland, Seeks City AG Plan Grant
Summary
The Chattahoochee Hill Country Conservancy outlined farmland-preservation goals, farmer-support initiatives and an application to the Food Well Alliance to fund a city agricultural plan, noting only about 8% of the city's land is USDA-classified prime agricultural soil.
Lily Baucom, chief operating officer of the Chattahoochee Hill Country Conservancy, told the City Council on Sept. 9 that the nonprofit has redrafted its mission and is ramping up programs to preserve farmland and support local farmers.
"I am honored to serve as the chief operating officer of the Chattahoochee Hill Country Conservancy," Baucom said, and she urged residents to engage in an upcoming community meeting the conservancy plans to host this fall. She cited a local food-system audit and said the group intends to apply for a Food Well Alliance City Agriculture Planning grant this autumn to fund a formal city AG plan and stakeholder process.
Baucom provided baseline data to frame the work: "only about 8% of land in Chattahoochee Hills is classified as USDA prime agricultural land and 15% is technically farmland of statewide importance," she said, arguing that every acre preserved contributes to food security and rural character. She described partnerships with the Conservation Fund, which has purchased three local farm properties to support next-generation farmers, and noted one farm—Deer Creek Farm—among recent successes.
The conservancy described practical program ideas already underway: farmer forums and trainings, a proposed shared commercial kitchen and cannery (a grant application is pending), agritourism programming including an AG & Art tour, and coordination with city staff on farmland set-asides in recent development reviews. Baucom asked the council and residents to attend the conservancy’s fall meeting to learn about conservation options from partners such as the Conservation Fund, American Farmland Trust and USDA.
The conservancy presentation was received positively by council members, who referenced upcoming comprehensive-plan work and expressed interest in preserving rural viewscapes and supporting local farmers as part of future policy decisions.
