The Land Trust has been awarded $4.7 million to protect at-risk farmland in the Finger Lakes. Funded through the Farmland Protection Implementation Grant (FPIG) program, three of the Land Trust’s projects were selected for protection through the use of perpetual conservation easements. Grant funds will be used to cover the costs of purchasing the easements, surveying, and associated legal costs.
In Ontario County, 400 acres of a fifth-generation farm owned by the Pritchard family will also receive permanent protection through the Land Trust. Dating back to the 1890s, Catalpa Farm produces a diverse range of crops, including corn, soybeans, winter wheat, hay, and clover seed. The property is located in a priority area for the Land Trust and is adjacent to a 596-acre Catalpa Farms parcel protected by the organization in 2017 with funds from the Farmland Protection Implementation Grants program.
Photo: Nigel Kent
The Catalpa Farm property is located within the Town of Canandaigua’s designated Padelford Brook Greenway, a 10,800-acre area identified for targeted farmland protection and agricultural viability. The Town has adopted zoning and planning measures to reduce development pressure and support agricultural uses in this area. The conservation easement features resource protection area designations in two areas to protect stretches of the creek running through the property.
Also in Ontario County, the Land Trust will protect a 273-acre parcel at Brock Acres in the town of Canandaigua. A commodity crop farm, Brock Acres features approximately 2,600 feet of frontage on Beaver Creek, a tributary of the Seneca River. The property is across New Michigan Road from a 700-acre parcel protected by the Land Trust in 2019 with funds from the Farmland Protection Implementation Grants program.
Photo: Nigel Kent
The Brocklebank family, who owns and manages the farm, has worked with the Ontario County Soil and Water Conservation District to install various water management projects to ensure nutrient runoff be captured and kept out of water courses. The easement will protect the stretch of creek located on the property, a small farmstead area, and agricultural fields. The property is adjacent to Catalpa Farm, altogether creating a complex of protected farmland of over 1,500 acres.
The Land Trust will also permanently protect Cargile Farms in the town of Skaneateles, Onondaga County. This third-generation family farm is owned and operated by the Cargile family as a beef cattle enterprise. The farm consists of 169 acres, including approximately 72 acres in crop production and 20 acres of pasture, as well as woodlands and wetlands. Beef cattle on the farm are sold locally, and a butcher shop on the premises provides custom processing services for other local meat producers. The property is adjacent to the 300-acre Skaneateles Conservation Area, which hosts over 7 miles of hiking trails and is owned and managed by the Town of Skaneateles.
This conservation easement is divided into three zones: a Farmstead Area that includes existing residential and agricultural structures; a Resource Protection Area that provides increased protection for the wetland, stream corridor, and forested slopes; and the remainder of the property is designated as Farm Area which can be utilized for agricultural production.
The Farmland Protection Implementation Grants (FPIG) Program is administered through the New York State Department of Agriculture and Markets and provides financial assistance to counties, municipalities, soil and water conservation districts, and land trusts to enable them to implement farmland protection activities consistent with local agricultural and farmland protection plans.
