HomeMy WebLinkAbout2017-08-09Dryden Ag Advisory Committee
August 9, 2017
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Dryden Ag Advisory Committee
August 9, 2017
Members present: Evan Carpenter, Kim LaMotte, Jeremy Sherman, Brian Magee,
Steve Foote
Liaisons Present: Craig Schutt, Conservation Board and Jason Leifer, Town Board
Guests: Monika Roth and Debbie Teeter, Cornell Cooperative Extension
The Committee used the list (original text italicized) generated from meeting minutes
and member comments, and distributed prior to the meeting, to discuss the Ag
Protection Plan. Items that do not have comments attached have already been
changed in the plan and did not require further discussion.
Page 2 - the Committee would like this page removed - the reasons are the same as
Lansing, Dryden does not have an AG zone and no one on the Committee remembers
ever talking about it.
Move the table of content to page 2 or 3. They do not like the order of the document; the
first thing should be the table of contents.
The Vision for the future of Agriculture in the Town of Dryden is the same as in the
Lansing Plan.
Page 4 - “the remaining farms are concentrated on the best soils which are generally
located in proximity to the Villages of Dryden and Freeville” - not true, the best soils are
in the valleys following the streams that meander through the town.
Page 4 - the numbers do not add up correctly in various places - on page 4 there is a
total of 14,103 but on page 18, an additional 733 acres appear.
Page 5 - the Town of Dryden does NOT have an Open Space Plan. The Conservation
Board conducted an Open Space Inventory in 2003.
Page 5 - Feb 2017 minutes - According to the USDA NRCS - the Town has 5000 acres of
prime farmland and 34,000 acres of soils of statewide significance.
Page 5 - key findings, first paragraph should be northeastern part of Dryden
Page 6 - the Farmers did not agree to “developing a town-sponsored alternative to the
NYS Farmland Protection Program” as a priority recommendation.
Page 9 - It was the intention of the town (as stated in the Agriculture & Markets grant
application) to utilize state funding to develop a municipal Agriculture and Farmland
Protection Plan, to review zoning regulations and their benefit to farmland protection,
and to support farmers interested in participating in the State’s Farmland Protection
Program (purchase of development rights). The Committee does not agree with the
second part of the sentence and asked that it be removed.
Dryden Ag Advisory Committee
August 9, 2017
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The Committee discussed the inclusion of the highlighted information and their
concern that this is suggesting the Town government get more directly involved. M.
Roth and D. Teeter explained the PDR process and the fact that this was part of the
original application to the State for plan funding. The Committee agreed to leave it in
the document.
Page 9 - in February, J. Kiefer asked that the statement “However, there were concerns
within the farming community that some parts of the town’s zoning law might be
unreasonably restrictive” be backed up with examples. The concern of ONE farmer was
the basis for that statement.
D. Teeter went back through the surveys and found that there were several comments
about the zoning. Concern from the Committee was that this is an opinion and this
document is intended to show how to move forward. Ms. Teeter agreed to put the letter
from Ag and Markets and the letter in response from former Supr. Mary Ann Sumner
in the appendix as support for this statement.
Page 10 - the Committee asked for the following definition of Agriculture:
AML301: 11. “Farm operation” means the land and on-farm buildings, equipment,
manure processing and handling facilities, and practices which contribute to the
production, preparation and marketing of crops, livestock and livestock products as a
commercial enterprise, including a “commercial horse boarding operation” as defined in
subdivision thirteen of this section, a “timber operation” as defined in subdivision
fourteen of this section, “compost, mulch or other biomass crops” as defined in
subdivision seventeen of this section and “commercial equine operation” as defined in
subdivision eighteen of this section. Such farm operation may consist of one or more
parcels of owned or rented land, which parcels may be contiguous or noncontiguous to
each other.
M. Roth asked why the Committee wanted to use this definition which is narrower
than the one provided originally. She was concerned that it might leave out newer
forms of agriculture and create a potential problem for future ag entrepreneurs. The
Committee did not think that would be a problem.
Page 12 - exchange “swaths” for “tracts”
Page 12 - replace the part that starts with north into Cortland County with… north into
the Town of Groton and east into Cortland County and extends south on either side of
the Village of Dryden and to the west to the Village of Freeville.
Page 12 - replace “steadily” with “slowly” in the last line of paragraph one.
Page 12 - editorial changes - “It should be noted Dryden is by far the largest town by
land area in the county, 55% larger than the Town of Lansing, the next largest town.
Dryden has a significant amount of land in State Forests (most notably the Yellow Barn
Forest is 1,289 acres and about two-thirds of the Hammond Hill Preserve’s 3,618 acres),
steep hilly areas, and Cornell-owned land (3,166 acres) – none of which can be
developed for residences.”
Dryden Ag Advisory Committee
August 9, 2017
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Page 13 - Dryden is served by 4 state highways - 13, 38, 366, 392 and 34B and remove
as occurs often in other towns in the county - a quick look at a Tompkins County road
map invalidates this statement.
Page 13 - the wells for the Village are not in service yet. Additionally - what is meant by
“… and then is concentrated in and around the Hamlet of Varna”. It may be relevant
information but doesn’t make sense. Also, is it necessary to have all the information
about Bolton Point in there? Does it matter that they are generating 2.476 million gallons
a day when in the first sentence it is stated that most farms get their water from private
wells? That paragraph can be cut down to the basic facts:
Water: Most Town of Dryden residents, including farms, get their water supply from
private wells, the quality of which varies throughout the Town. Where municipal water is
available, the water supply comes from the Bolton Point Water System, and Village or
Town managed water systems. There is very little state certified agriculture district land
in any of the Dryden water districts.
Page 14 - “The topography of the northern part of the county and in Dryden is medium
elevation with flat areas that are suitable for farming.” This is incorrect. Change to
something like…. “The topography of the eastern part of the county and in Dryden is
defined by rolling hills with wide valleys that are suitable for farming.”
Page 14 - Soils - the Committee asked in February that Channery, Artcort and
Lounsbury soils be added to the list.
D. Teeter stated that Artcort soil has been added as well as Channery which is a
subcategory descriptor. Lounsbury is an unknown - neither D. Teeter nor E. Bieber
were able to find that kind of soil via either an internet search or in the soils books.
Unless someone can find proof of this soil, it is going to be dropped with the
assumption that the name was misconstrued from a different type of soil.
Page 16-17 - there is no mention of Virgil Creek which is a major tributary to Fall Creek
and responsible for the very large aquifer in the valley in which the Village of Dryden is
located and thus where they are drilling new wells.
Page 17 - “A draft document is expected by mid 2017.” Since it is mid 2017 and the plan
is far from complete, please change this to something like ….. Public outreach has been
conducted and the plan development is on-going.
In the list of ways that Dryden farms reduce or mitigate source and non-point source
pollution - please move the Conservation Reserve Enhancement Program to paragraph
one where you talk about the AEM. Short duration grazing systems and rotational
grazing systems are the same things.
Dryden Ag Advisory Committee
August 9, 2017
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M. Roth believes that CREP is a set of practices rather than an official program which
is why it was put under the “practices and infrastructure”. Instead of having it in the
previous paragraph, the Committee agreed to remove CREP, and the actually practices
that are the basis of CREP were added to the list of practices and infrastructure….:
buffering of waterways and stream crossings and fencing to keep animals out of the
waterways.
CNMP - Comprehensive Nutrient Management Plans and Milk House waste disposal
were also added to the list.
The Committee added “some of the” to the title of Practices and Infrastructure … that
way they are acknowledging that some practices may have been missed.
The Committee asked that the small maps be removed from the plan since they are
attached in the appendix. The maps are small and hard to read within the plan and
can be referenced pointing people to the appendix. The Committee agreed that they
prefer more graphs/charts and pictures.
Page 17 - in the paragraph regarding Cayuga Lake and the TMDL, C. Schutt asked
that it be changed to reflect that phosphorus is the primary concern but nitrogen and
sediment are also serious concerns.
Page 19 - land in farms - 2nd paragraph is almost identical to Lansing Plan. Also - who
are the “several Groton crop farmers”? please remove “however, there are also several
Groton crop farmers from that farm land in the town.” “most typically for dairy livestock,
although farmers also reported raising equine, beef cattle and sheep.” And “The growth
of diversified farming operations in the town has been slower relative to other parts of
the county.” The Committee doesn’t know anyone growing sunflowers and trees so
unless Extension has information they are unaware of, please change that. Additionally
the last sentence in that category does not make sense. Recommendation is to add “but”
between “certified” and “follow”.
E. Bieber asked that some of the “exciting” facts be put in a box so they jump out to
the reader - things like the population increase of only 7% while there has been an
increase of 11% in the acreage of land owned or rented by farmers and that 25% of the
town’s land base is in agriculture.
In the chart - vegetables/fruit - this needs to be adjusted since there are now 2 CSAs -
TC3 and Ithaca Organics. Also, there are more than 55 farming enterprises listed which
is confusing.
On page 21 - remove “The three largest crops farmers in the town have no “next
generation” in place. The land they work is in the agricultural band mentioned above,
but it may be more acreage than the larger dairies can absorb. Some of this land
boarders the Village of Dryden, which may make it attractive for development.”
Dryden Ag Advisory Committee
August 9, 2017
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The Committee, D. Teeter and M. Roth agreed that this can be edited or completely
removed.
Page 23 - the committee stated several times that they do not see th e potential for more
direct marketing and thus ask that “Most of the start up farms are locating in the Town
of Ulysses, however, there is potential for more direct marketing farming in Dryden given
the proximity to populations in the Dryden Village and nearby Cortland.” be removed.
Page 24 - 2nd to last paragraph - exchange “absorbed” in lieu of “squeezed”
M. Roth agreed that references to other towns can be removed. She does feel there is
more potential for direct marketing and Ag and Markets likes to see this kind of
reporting. It might be in the wrong section of the plan - maybe it would fit better in
“future opportunities and trends”.
There were concerns about whether this might be misleading if someone was
considering moving to this area. M. Roth feels that it would be misleading if the person
was thinking of farm markets but niche CSA kind of products could work. She asked
what can be added to the increase in equine farms? How can the farmers build on the
influx of students with animals moving into the area? How can the Town help build
that?
E. Carpenter stated that we don’t want to force anyone into a certain direction but
rather want to be able to help folks imagine and dream and try new areas.
As far as the change from “squeezed” to “absorbed”, D. Teeter stated that they are
being squeezed. The Committee agreed to simply remove that sentence.
Page 25 - committee asked that this be removed. “Several actions could be considered
by the town to help preserve an active local farming community. One is to make rural
landowners aware that selling or renting farmland to a neighboring farmer instead of
the highest price may help preserve the local farming community. An incentive program
that encourages landowners to sell to local farms could be considered. New farming
enterprises might be encouraged through similar incentives that connect current
landowners with beginning farmers with the goal of ultimately transitioning land to new
owners. Creativity and commitment will be needed to secure a future for farming. To
realize the vision for agriculture’s continuation will require an engaged town agriculture
committee and agriculture community, as well as consensus among town officials and
the community at large that agriculture should be protected and promoted for the benefit
of all”
The Committee has concerns about the Town being too involved in daily farming
activities.
D. Teeter stated this would be an overview kind of outreach, but not direct interaction
due to the fact that the Town is not aware of what is happening on the daily, intimate
level.
Dryden Ag Advisory Committee
August 9, 2017
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E. Carpenter pointed out that we don’t want the Town to be providing incentives as
that generally means an increase in taxes.
Page 25 - 26 - “There have been various attempts at hosting a farmers market in Dryden
but with little success in attracting customers and as a result, farmers tend to drop out
when sales are slow. This trend can probably be attributed to the fact that the demand
for summer produce is met by the farm stands that offer daily shopping opportunities all
season long.” Remove this as it contradicts the rest of the paragraph.
C. Schutt said he talked to Kelly (owner of Dryden Agway) who runs the Farmer’s
Market and she has said that the Market is doing great.
M. Roth stated that she would rewrite this section to make it relevant.
- statement about vegetable and berry growing is misleading. Currently Dryden has a U-
Pick blueberry location which is small. That is all. The other U-Picks have failed. Please
remove the entire paragraph.
D. Teeter feels that in the past u-picks have been successful and could be again.
Page 26 - “Given the populations in Dryden and Cortland, there may be opportunity for a
niche CSA farm if the current operations are not able to meet the demand”
D. Teeter pointed out that almost all CSAs are sort of niche and the group agreed that
“specialty CSAs” would work.
As far as the suggestion regarding a survey to determine the need/desire for local
foods, that part was removed as it is known that there is a large desire locally for
locally produced foods.
Page 26 - the Committee has stated on several occasions that the CSA market is
saturated directly contradicting the last statement in the Farming Operations category.
Page 26 - Landowner survey results, 3 paragraph, last sentence “only one said no…..”
That sentence fragment does not agree with prior statement.
Page 26 - question mark next to “dislike zoning”
Page 26-27 are identical to Lansing - were the same questions asked and the same
information gathered? In addition, starting with the first paragraph on page 27, the
numbers/statistics are from the Lansing Plan.
D. Teeter has changed that which was about Lansing and has reviewed/checked all of
the statistics and questions.
Page 28 - the spacing for the top paragraph is different than the following paragraphs.
Page 29 - Carpenter Farm should be Wide-Awake Farm or indicate that more than one
farm was involved in the attempt.
E. Carpenter said that it was actually Wide-Awake Dairy (Evan’s), Wide-Awake Farm
(his father) and Wide-Awake Holsteins (Gabe Carpenter’s) as a group that was
Dryden Ag Advisory Committee
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involved. The Committee agreed that this could be eliminated without harming the
plan or it should be changed to simply WideAwake Farms.
Page 30 - top of page - Other protected Farms in Tompkins County - the Committee does
not see the relevance of this information and suggested it be eliminated.
Page 30 - bottom of page - the text box is not properly placed to the wording got cut off.
Page 30 - “during the 8 year review” - change to “every eight years for a review”
Page 33 - since a new comp plan was passed for Tompkins County in 2015, why is
there so much information about the 2004 plan? That should all be changed to reflect
the current status.
Page 33 - last paragraph under TC Comp Plan - “…farmland protection given that work
IS being done….” And has the county farmland protection plan been passed? You have
“to be completed July 2015”.
Page 34 - the committee does not agree with the last paragraph and has asked that it be
removed.
The Committee agreed that with the modern technology and transportation, it is not
properly stated. The close proximity is not a big deal anymore.
Page 39 - #5- so should industry/light be permitted in RA or not?
This is a question for George Frantz.
Pages 40-41 - Why is the table of Permitted Land Uses labeled as “for planning use only
and not an official listing of land uses”?
This is a question for George Frantz.
Pages 39-42 - formatting - huge space on page 39, followed by the charts, creates
difficulty in following the text.
This is a question for George Frantz.
Page 47 - Dryden’s vision statement is the same as Lansing’s? Consequences of
Farmland Conversion is the same as in Lansing? There is nothing original in Dryden?
Changed based on the comments made by E. Carpenter at a previous meeting.
Page 50 - Population, Housing Development and Business development can all be
concentrated in a simple paragraph since they have all been identified/addressed
previously in the document.
Page 50 - Ag support businesses - Lilley’s Tack and Feed, eliminate the three under
value added because they are not using local products to make their finished product,
move TC3 Farm to Value Added and add Clarks Sure Fine to Ag Support.
Dryden Ag Advisory Committee
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M. Roth indicated that these lists should be moved to ag description, not in the section
about pressures on Agriculture.
D. Teeter stated that these “added-value” businesses are business that are in some
way supportive or connected to local agriculture whether they actually use local
products or not. The Committee asked for a definition of “value-added” in the plan to
ensure the reader’s understanding.
Page 50 - bottom paragraph is needless.
The Committee agreed that this paragraph should stay but with the lists above, it will
be moved.
Page 52 - Section C, statement 1 PDR needs ()
Page 52 - why is “plan adoption” on this page? Please remove
Page 52 - Add Section F based on GML to recommend ag member on the Planning Board.
This was added to D. Ensuring Farm Friendly Zoning. The Committee has voted
previously to add the actual language from the law. They agreed the language could be
added to the appendix while including the statement:
“Appoint an agricultural member to the Town Planning Board, in accordance with
GML §271” as bullet c.
General Municipal Law, Town Law.. § 271. Planning board, creation, appointment
11. Appointment of agricultural member. Notwithstanding any provision of this chapter
or of any general, special or local law or ordinance, a town board may, if an agricultural
district created pursuant to section three hundred three of article twenty-five-AA of the
agriculture and markets law exists wholly or partly within the boundaries of such town,
include on the planning board one or more members each of whom derives ten thousand
dollars or more annual gross income from agricultural pursuits in said town. As used in
this subdivision, the term "agricultural pursuits" means the production of crops, livestock
and livestock products, aquacultural products, and woodland products as defined in
section three hundred one of the agriculture and markets law.
As Noted in Minutes but not found in plan:
- Jan 2017 - The Committee asked for a review of Ag history in Dryden with an
emphasis on the past 10-20 years
- May 2017 - Monika Roth indicated that there are a large number of acres in
Dryden that are used for research - where is that indicated or discussed in the
plan and what about the threat to production farms when they have to compete
with research farms?
- The taxes, the fact that Cornell milk is sold on the same market as private
farmers, disease control experiments, etc.
Dryden Ag Advisory Committee
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March 8 - Vision of the future of Ag in the Town - M. Roth asked if the Committee had a
vision of the future of ag in the Town.
E. Carpenter – we are down to 3 large dairy farms with a lot of small expanded hobby
farms popping up as businesses, like the breweries. What we are trying to accomplish
is to be left alone from regulations that would hinder the farmer to develop what they
see is the direction that the consumer nearby is going for. We don’t want any restrictions
or regulations that would restrict the rapid response of the farmers to meet that market.
We don’t want the farmer to be restricted. If a farm wants to have 2,000 cows, let them
because that gets other land that has been growing brush for years back into
production. Or a person who wants to put greenhouses on vacant land, let them do it.
We have the two ends of the spectrum here in Dryden. The small 40-100 acre farms are
disappearing but there are other ag businesses taking their place. We used to have a
woolen mill in this Town, we had enough sheep in the town to keep the mill busy. It was
good for all of the agriculture in Dryden. The woolen mill got started which led to the
increase in sheep in town. They were able to respond rapidly to take advantage of the
market.
Goals and Strategies chart - need a key attached with explanation of why some is
italicized and who the acronyms are identifying in the responsibility column.
Additional changes include changing Zoning Ordinance to Zoning Law, the addition of
a definition of value-added businesses, and on the top of page 50 - should be County
of Cortland not City of Cortland. Additionally, Farm Worker Housing has not yet been
added to the plan/zoning review.
The meeting was adjourned at 9:30PM.
Respectfully Submitted,
Erin A. Bieber
Deputy Town Clerk