A debt is owed
Frank Hogg 11/5/1

It is rare in this long battle in our town that we can be thankful for the efforts of some of those who have given so much to help so many for so little. In this case for nothing. I'm talking about the lawyer and his efforts to help the town and the farmers who wish to get into the Farmland Protection Program.

Before the lawyer's efforts, farmers had to rezone to get the actual commercial value from their farms, a time consuming and costly process.

Let me explain. The State's Farmland Protection Program 'buys' the commercial development rights of a farm. For example, if a farm was worth $400K as a farm but $900K as commercial property the Farmland Protection Program would pay the farmer the difference, in this case $500K for the commercial value of the farm. The rational is that farmers are under financial pressure to sell their farms commercially and this program is designed to preserve farmland by buying those rights and taking the pressure off the farmer.

The trick is determining the commercial value. In the past farmers were required to have their farms rezoned commercial before an appraiser would give them a commercial appraisal. This rezoning cost time and money for the farmer, the town and the public. It is so difficult that some farmers don't bother rezoning. If they don't rezone then they will be cheated out of the full value of their farm. Wouldn't it make sense if we could just determine the commercial value without going through all that trouble? After all, we just need a number so why actually rezone? This is what the lawyer felt and he put a tremendous effort into proving it. After many months of work and going down many blank alleys he finally did it. He had the Secretary of State of the State of New York look into the matter and the Secretary of State agreed with Frank and sent a letter to him and to the appraiser who was demanding the actual rezone. (See that letter here.)

This is great news for farmers like the Henderson's, Sears and even County Clerk Judy Riehlman. Now they can get full commercial value for their farms and all they have to do is get an appraisal. No costly lawyers, no long delays, no upsetting their neighbors. It is great news for Paul and Maureen Knapp who have spent untold thousands on lawyers and have waited for a year while their rezone goes through the courts. Now they can drop that and just get an appraisal.

Yes, the Town of Preble, the county of Courtland, and all the farmers and townspeople owe the lawyer a dept of gratitude for their efforts for our town.

Thank You!