Residential Sprawl is eating up farmland in Shelby County

Since 1997, 20.2% of Shelby County's residential growth has gone into farmland, without any zone changes. Click here for the numbers of residential units approved by the Triple S Planning Commission in rural and urban areas for the years of 1998 through 2005.

PACE status map for Shelby County

View a map of Shelby County that shows past applications to the state PACE program, purchased easements, and donated easements.

PACE farm family named Farmer of the Year

The 2005 Shelby County Kiwainis Club's Farmer of the Year is the Paul T. Case family, a PACE farm family in northern Shelby County. Click here for the story.

Survey of Shelby County PACE Farms - how they used their easement money

The University of Kentucky surveyed the eleven farm owners who are in the state PACE program. Click here for the results of a 2004 survey of Shelby County's PACE farm owners to see how they used their money from their sell of the agricultural conservation easements.

KY PACE program

To view the information about the state PACE program, click here.

Lexington - Fayette PDR Program

Click here to learn about Kentucky's only local purchase of conservation easements program.

National Assessment of Agricultural Conservation Easement Programs

View a recent report entitled "The National Assessment of Agricultural Easements Programs" at this site. 

AFT assessment of the Maryland program

Maryland - 25 Years of Farmland Protection: An Evaluation of the Maryland Agricultural Land Preservation Foundation - to see it, click here.  

Status of State PACE programs

View a Fact Sheet from The American Farmland Trust on the Status of State PACE Programs.

Agricultural Conservation Easements - definition, pros & cons 

View an American Farmland Trust fact sheet definition, pros and cons of Agricultural Conservation Easements.

Evaluation of Farm and Ranch Lands Protection Program (FRPP)

A survey, done by the University of Nebraska, Lincoln, of owners of agricultural land whose development rights were sold in part through the federal Farm and Ranch Lands Protection Program, summarizes its findings. One of the findings of the survey was that "80% believe that in 5 years their land would sell for a higher price than currently, even with its development rights removed." Click here to see the survey.