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Albemarle, N.C., United States
A blog about (1) scenic trips and hikes in Randolph, Montgomery and Stanly counties and (2) historical information on the area and (3) land conservation efforts in the Piedmont area of North Carolina. Scroll to the bottom of this page to view my Web Links and Blog Archive. Also click on any photo below to enlarge.

Wednesday, July 9, 2008

Classic Guilford County Dairy Farm Has Been Saved

Wonderful news that the Gerringer Dairy Farm has been saved from development pressures and that the new conservation easement arranged through the Piedmont Land Conservancy, federal and state farm trust funds will provide money for the farm to remain an active dairy farm into future generations.

The Gerringer project was initiated by the Guilford County Open Space Committee; however, the use of conservation easements for several reasons was not sufficiently supported by the County Commissioners. Conservation easements are a very important tool for land preservation. Basically the Gerringer's are receiving almost 50% of the appraised value of their land because they are agreeing to never develop their property. They will be paid on the front end for the value of their development rights. Such a program is important to help family farms obtain some of their land value without selling their land to developers.