Farming on the Edge: Five Townships to Vote on PDR

Oct. 6, 2004

With strip malls and subdivisions eating away at the region’s farmland and open space at an ever-increasing rate and sprawl reaching farther and farther out from Traverse City, five Northern Michigan townships have stepped forward to explore new options with the potential to save upwards of 25,000 acres.
On November 2nd, voters in Elk Rapids, Milton, Torch Lake, Acme and Whitewater Townships will have the opportunity to protect scenic views, rural character, water quality and land use in this fast-growing area just north of Traverse City by approving a Purchase of Development Rights (PDR) millage.
Loss of farmland in Grand Traverse County since 1982 has been about 27% and nearly 22% in Antrim County. Large farmland parcels are being purchased and subdivided at an unprecedented rate. Land fragmentation has been rated as the most important environmental issue by all conservation-related organizations operating in the Grand Traverse region. Many estimate the region’s largest farms will be splintered into tiny parcels and sold off in the next 10 to 15 years, greatly changing the rural character of the area.
Recent studies have estimated Michigan will lose 25% of its orchard land by the year 2040 and, if current land use trends continue, the state will lose nearly two million acres of farmland in the next 40 years. Nationwide, over 1.2 million acres of farmland is lost each year. Michigan is losing over five acres of farmland every hour to sprawl.
If successful, a PDR millage in these townships can reverse that trend and preserve a quality of life that can be handed down to future generations. Preserving farmland and open space will also help to protect wetlands and water quality in lakes rated among the cleanest in the United States. Residents of these five townships have rated the protection of water quality as their number one concern in recent surveys.
“It’s clear that the Grand Traverse region is at a pivotal time,” explained Scott Everett, director of the Central Great Lakes Region for American Farmland Trust. “Farmers, communities, counties and townships are reaching out for strategies and are working to provide options for owners of prime farmland. One of those options is a PDR program.”
“Every state is losing some of its best farmland,” said Ralph Grossi, American Farmland Trust president. “With that goes our agricultural economy, wildlife habitat and groundwater recharge farmland supports.
We must increase funding for agricultural easements at all levels of government, we must target conservation funds to our best, most threatened agricultural areas, and we must support effective planning and smart growth to steer development away from our best farmland. It is our responsibility to safeguard this irreplaceable resource for future generations.”
Long-time Elk Rapids and Milton Township farmer Dorance Amos and others have provided the leadership necessary to place a PDR millage on the ballot this November. “I think the results of the PDR vote is going to greatly influence the long-term decisions made by many farmers whether or not to plan for the next generation of farmers on this land,” Amos said.
Rolling hills, scenic views, cherry blossoms and roadside farmstands define rural character. A successful PDR vote this fall will maintain these important elements that have defined our region for generations.