River Heights works with state and national groups to preserve Zollinger Farm

By Brock Anderson

December 12, 2005 | RIVER HEIGHTS -- In its infancy America was a land of open spaces and vast frontiers where farming was most Americans' livelihood. However, as farmers turn in their tractors for briefcases, the face of America is changing.

"Down the road we'll wish we had more open land than we have," River Heights Mayor Vic Jensen said.

Even Cache Valley's agricultural heritage is being swallowed up by new subdivisions and businesses. Organizations such as Utah Quality Growth Commission and The Trust for Public Land are helping preserve open spaces throughout Utah. The preservation of the Zollinger Farm near River Heights is the latest conservation effort being made in the valley.

"Agricultural conservation is important because it protects rural lifestyles and provides open space. It is especially critical in Cache Valley where agriculture is a very large economic driver," John Bennett, project manager for Utah Quality Growth Commission said.

"Limiting the conversion of prime farmland to residential development will continue to support Cache County's critical role in Utah's agricultural economy," Shauna Kerr, director for The Trust for Public Land in Arizona and Utah, said.

According to the Trust's Web page, the group is a national nonprofit land conservation organization working to preserve open space. Since the organization's founding in 1972, they have helped protect more than 2 million acres of land in 46 states. Other projects have also been completed in Washington D.C., Puerto Rico, Canada and the Virgin Islands.

"The Trust for Public Land works with willing landowners who want to see their property preserved as working land, open space, parks, sites of cultural significance, or wilderness area," Kerr said.

Since 1985, Kerr says, the Trust has completed more than 40 projects in Utah. In Cache Valley, it has carried out four projects. Recently the Murray Farm in Wellsville received funding to be preserved as a public access point for the Wellsville Mountain wilderness area.

Kerr says there are four factors the Trust evaluates before pursuing a project. They consider whether the conservation of the land helps conserve land for people, the landowner's desire for the preservation of the property, the willingness of a public entity to become a permanent steward of the land, and the availability of private and public funding to complete the project.

According to Ron Zollinger, his fruit and tree farm, east of River Heights in an unincorporated area of Cache County, has been in the family for over 100 years. Zollinger grows apples and raises trees and plants for landscaping. "We're one of the largest growers of nursery stock in the valley."

Zollinger says the conservation of open space is important in order to preserve the positive quality of life that has been in the valley for decades. He says the valley is growing quickly and cities aren't setting aside much land for open space.

Kerr says The Trust for Public Land has been working on securing a conservation easement on the Zollinger Farm for more than a year.

"Once the conservation easement is placed on the Zollinger Farm, the land will be preserved in perpetuity as open space. Agricultural use will be permitted, but no development or subdivision will be allowed," Kerr said. She said Zollinger may sell the land in the future, but the restrictions placed on the land will be transferred to any subsequent owner.

According to Kerr, the value of the farm's conservation easement is established by an independent appraisal. The Zollinger Farm was appraised at $1,478,000. Only about $42,000 more is needed to complete the project, she said.

A large amount of money for the project was provided by the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Farm and Ranchland Protection Program. The remaining funds came from the Utah Quality Growth Commission's LeRay McAllister Critical Lands Conservation Fund, the landowner's donation and donations from community members and organizations, Kerr said. She has approached River Heights, Providence and Logan city officials about donating to the project and is waiting for their responses.

Once the money is raised, Kerr says the funds are used to buy the conservation easement from the landowner. "The easement is then conveyed to the permanent steward, in this case, the Utah Department of Agriculture and Food."

Zollinger says if it wasn't for the conservation easement, he wouldn't have a farm. "That was our only hope for keeping it together." He says it's typical for small farms to get split up as they move from one generation to the next. Land values go up and those who want to buy the farm from their family can't afford it.

Many people in the valley support the conservation of the Zollinger Farm. "The county government listed Zollinger as its first priority for conservation, and it had strong legislative support as well," Bennett said.

Jensen said, "It isn't just open space, its productive open space." He said he plans to propose to the City Council that they donate $5,000 towards the conservation easement.

"The farm itself is an important and increasingly rare piece of Cache Valley's agricultural character. It serves as visual open space and it provides habitat where people and wildlife can co-exist," Kerr said.

Bennett said even those people not living near the farm benefit from its conservation. "While we may not be able to walk the Zollinger Farm, or have our vistas and views protected, we benefit because the products the Zollingers produce are important for our economy, and those who live or visit in the area get to watch a farm in action."

Kerr said The Trust for Public Land hopes to close the project in January.

For more information about the Zollinger conservation easement, or to make a donation, e-mail Shauna Kerr at shauna.kerr@tpl.org, or call her at (505) 988-5922, ext. 3.

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