The Massachusetts Department of Agricultural Resources is accepting applications for its Agricultural Preservation Restriction (APR) Program to protect productive farmland and revitalizes the agricultural industry by purchasing deed restrictions and making land more affordable to farmers.
Donor Name: Massachusetts Department of Agricultural Resources
State: Massachusetts
County: All Counties
Type of Grant: Grant
Deadline (mm/dd/yyyy): 06/30/2022
Details:
It is essential to keep the agricultural industry in Massachusetts thriving. The APR Program helps to preserve agricultural land to keep valuable farmland soil from being built on by development companies for non-agricultural purposes that could be detrimental to the environment. The program offers to pay farmland owners the difference between the “fair market value” and the “agricultural value” of their farms in exchange for a permanent deed restriction which prevents any use of the property that will negatively impact its future agricultural viability.
The program offers to pay farmland owners the difference between the “fair market value” and the “agricultural value” of their farms in exchange for a permanent deed restriction which preserves farmland for agricultural use in the future. The goals are to:
- Save the most productive agricultural land available in Massachusetts
- Provide an opportunity for farmers to purchase farmland at affordable prices
- Help farmland owners with estate planning to protect their farms from development
- Provide working capital for farm operations by accessing equity in the land value
- Support farmers, agribusiness, landowners, and urban residents by boosting the local farming economy, food supply, and rural character
- Protect scenic open space and environmentally sensitive lands
It is a voluntary program for farmers who are faced with a decision regarding the future use of their farms. The main objective of the APR program is to protect productive farmland with the deed restrictions and revitalize the agricultural industry by making land more affordable to farmers and their operations more financially secure. The program accepts applications on a rolling basis. In order to be considered a priority for the next funding cycle applications should be submitted by June 30, 2022.
Program Eligibility
Landowners with at least five acres of land with suitable soils in agricultural production for the last two years.
Primary Requirements:
- Farm must be at least five (5) acres in size.
- Land has to have been actively devoted to agriculture for the two (2) immediately preceding tax years.
- Farm must produce at least $500 in gross sales per year for the first five acres plus $5 for each additional acre or 50 cents per each additional acre of woodland and/or wetland.
Other criteria considered:
- Suitability and productivity of land for agricultural use based on soil classification, physical features, and location
- The degree of threat to the continuation of agriculture on the land due to circumstances such as owner’s health, retirement, financial positions, development pressure, or insecurity due to rental agreements
- The size or composition of the land that determines if it is economically viable for agricultural purposes, and the likelihood that it will remain in agriculture in the future
For more information, visit APR Program.
