Rensselaer County Selected By State For Four Farmland Protection Projects; Brings Total to 5,000 Acres Protected

submitted by Rich Crist
Efforts to protect farmland and open space in Rensselaer County received a significant boost with funding by New York State of four important preservation projects, Rensselaer County Legislature Majority Leader Ken Herrington announced.[private]Rensselaer County has now protected approximately 5,000 acres, when the four new projects are added to the list of previous conservation efforts.
These four projects total over 1,400 acres. The County had previously protected approximately 3,600 acres.
“This is outstanding news for Rensselaer County, because some very important farm and open space properties are being preserved for agricultural use for future generations,” said Herrington, who also serves as chair of the County’s Agricultural and Farmland Protection Committee.
“Farming is a major part of the heritage of Rensselaer County, and we are grateful to have been chosen for these four projects. We are proud to have helped protect 5,000 acres of farmland and open space, which are essential to the natural beauty of our County,” said Chair of the Legislature Stan Brownell.
The four projects include two farms in Schodack, one in Berlin, and one in Hoosick. The Schodack farm preservation projects are notable because there had only been funding for one project in southern Rensselaer County, in Stephentown.
“The pressures on agricultural properties in southern Rensselaer County are significant and we appreciate the support by the state to protect two farms in our area,” said Vice Chair of the Legislature Alex Shannon.
Herrington also credited the work of the Agricultural Stewardship Association, who have helped prepare and present County projects for funding over the past decade the county has been engaged in the farmland protection effort.
The awards included:
• $1,296,905 to permanently protect GEM Farms, a 541-acre highly diversified enterprise that raises buffalo, beef, hay, soybeans and vegetables. The farm also lies within a priority area designated for protection by Scenic Hudson within the Hudson Valley / New York City “foodshed.” The protection of the 179-acre “Home Farm” parcel will serve to buffer the Vlockie Kill, and an unnamed tributary to it. Scenic Hudson will contribute $414,435 towards this project.
• $587,989 to permanently protect Tilldale Farm, a 375-acre organic grass-fed beef operation, owned by Dany and Joanne Tilley and Marjorie Herrington. Tilldale Farm has more than 12,000 feet of frontage on the Hoosic River. The farm also lies within a priority area designated for protection by Scenic Hudson within the Hudson Valley / New York City “foodshed.” The landowners are contributing a bargain sale donation equivalent to 12.5% of total project costs.
• $541,205 to permanently protect Mapledale Farm, a 351-acre dairy operation. Mapledale Farm is located in the Historic Route 22 Corridor Special Area, as identified in this land trust’s Farmland Conservation Plan. The farm has more than one mile of frontage along the Little Hoosic River. The landowners are contributing a bargain sale donation equivalent to 12.5% of total project costs.
• $126,665 to permanently protect a 139-acre addition to the already 400-acre dairy operation at Dutch Hollow Farm. The farm lies within a highest priority area designated for protection by Scenic Hudson within the Hudson Valley / New York City “foodshed” and it is located within the Agricultural Stewardship Association’s Schodack Priority Area for farmland protection projects. Scenic Hudson will contribute $216,816 towards this project and it has already received an award from the Federal Agricultural Conservation Easement Program to cover 50% of the purchase price of this conservation easement.[/private]