County Commissioners vote to end Farmland Preservation program

At their first executive committee meeting after the Nov 7 election, county commissioners voted 5-2 to terminate the county’s four-year old farmland preservation ordinance, a decision could be made final Tuesday (Nov 21) when commissioners hold their monthly meeting.

The majority clearly took the 62% vote against a 15-year, one-half mill property tax to fund farmland preservation as a blanket rejection of the program. Commissioner Watkoski said “I think this is a grand opportunity to take the county out of the farmland preservation business.” Fellow commissioner David Shiflett disagreed saying “I think the voters reasonably said no to a tax. I can’t support disbanding the ordinance and board at this time.”
Read Farmland program faces ax in the Leelanau Enterprise and Farmland preservation program is voted down in the Traverse City Record-Eagle.