REYNOLDSBURG, Ohio – Licking County farmland protection efforts received a boost recently when Don and Jackie Clark and George and Sharon Miller donated the development rights from their 47-acre grain farm to the Ohio Department of Agriculture, the second easement donation in Licking County and the seventh in Ohio.
The Clark family wants to preserve this Monroe Township farm, not only because of its excellent soils, but also because of its history.
Five generation. “This farm has been in our family since 1891,” said Don Clark. The acreage has been farmed by Wait Clark, Clarence Clark, Smith and Donna Clark, and now belongs to Don Clark and Sharon Clark Miller.
“It’s the family’s desire to retain the farm in agricultural productivity in perpetuity,” he said.
Clark believes the agricultural easement is the best way to honor his family’s wishes.
An agricultural easement is a voluntary legal agreement that keeps the land in agricultural production forever. The landowner still owns and manages the farm, but agrees that the land will never be developed for any purposes except agricultural. The landowner may sell or pass the farm along to others, but the easement remains with the farm.
Agricultural easement donations that meet Internal Revenue Code criteria are treated as charitable gifts, and federal income tax advantages may also apply.
For more information on agricultural easements call the Ohio Department of Agriculture’s Office of Farmland Preservation at 614-728-6211 for more information.
