A Sevier County resident is working with Foothills Land Conservancy to preserve some 500 acres on Bluff Mountain

 

Farmer donates land to save heritage, property

Laverne Farmer is fighting time.

The 76-year-old Townsend resident wants her 185-year-old farm to be preserved long after she’s gone.

“It’s been a farm ever since the settlers came in here,” she said. “The Indians were around when they came. It’s been in my family all these years. I just don’t want to see it messed up with development. I don’t have any family (left). I figured as soon as I was gone, there would be somebody in here plowing it up for building houses. I don’t want that.”... more

 

Easement preserves nature, heritage

TOWNSEND - To say Laverne Farmer's roots run deep in Tuckaleechee Cove is like saying Santa Claus has plans come Monday night.

Farmer's roots go all the way to bedrock.

Her family has owned the ground near Bethel Baptist Church in Townsend since the state of Tennessee was 28 years old. They got it in a land grant in 1824... more

 

West Knox horse farm preserved

Stewardship rides tall in the saddle with Christine G. Hayworth.

"I have always been taught," says the delightfully spirited 70-year-old, "to be a good steward of the land and what we have been blessed to have."

Thus she has legally placed her 130 acres of rolling hills in the heart of West Knoxville off-limits to the development-minded business people who have been casting a covetous eye on the ground for decades... more

 

Foothills Land Conservancy stands near half of goal of protected sites

Halfway there.

The Foothills Land Conservancy stands to secure protection for 4,000 acres of land across Tennessee as 2007 ends. That’s nearly half of the goal that organization set for itself: adding about 8,000 acres to the 17,000 already protected in time for the FLC’s 25th anniversary celebration in 2010.

More than 1,500 protected acres on 11 tracts will be added in Blount County alone, including 210 acres fronting East Lamar Alexander Parkway (U.S. 321) in Townsend and an 18-acre property on Little River... more

 

Land Conservancy is best opportunity to save open space

One of our best hopes for saving open space and the pastoral beauty of Blount County and the East Tennessee area lies in the efforts of the Foothills Land Conservancy.

The idea of conserving water and soil was a new one 50 years ago. As this nation has grown there has always been plenty of new area to develop with the westward expansion. And there still is, but we must do a better job of planning and saving. Many of the more scenic and beautiful areas of the nation are beginning to get overcrowded.

When the Blount County Soil Conservation District was founded about 52 years ago, even the best educated had little idea of the need to conserve water and soil and how we would be able to do it... more

 

Foothills Land Conservancy wants to protect 25,000 acres by 2010

MARYVILLE - The Foothills Land Conservancy has set itself a goal of protecting 25,000 acres from development in East Tennessee by the time the organization reaches its 25th anniversary in 2010.

The program will be announced tonight at a $100-per-person reception, said Bill Clabough, executive director of the organization.

To be known as "25 in 25," the program seeks to add about 8,000 acres to the 17,000 the group has already secured protection for in time for the FLC's 25th anniversary celebration, he said... more

 

With a view to the future: Land conservation group raises funds to preserve property in natural state

MARYVILLE - John and Alice Conlin love the rolling 84 acres they live on in south Blount County.

And they are not interested in seeing "the land all torn up," even after they are no longer here.

So the Conlins - he is 84 years old and she 80 - have placed a conservation easement on their land so that no one in succeeding years can subdivide the land and plant houses or businesses all over it... more

 

Easement protects lakefront land from development

KINGSTON - High on the bluff overlooking Watts Bar Lake in Roane County, a bald eagle perches atop the tip of a dead tree. From a passing boat, its body seems little more than an inky scratch on a blue sky. Its fledgling young flank their nest, barely visible in a nearby pine. They do not stir.

The pontoon boat, owned and captained by Bob Van Hook, putters past a mile and a half of wooded shoreline.

"It's unusual to have two (young eagles) survive," Van Hook says. "Usually only one survives.".. more

 

Annual Meeting and Countryside Reception

Bill Clabough, Executive Director of the Foothills Land Conservancy

Sunday, October 29, 2006 • 3:00 p.m.

On the property of Dr. and Mrs. Allan Romans
5072 Carpenters Campground Road
Maryville, Tennessee

Please let us know if you will be attending by calling the office at (865) 681-8326
or emailing kconner@foothillsland.org

Directions: From Lamar Alexander Parkway, take Montvale Road 5.3 miles; turn right onto Blockhouse Road for 1.5 miles; turn left onto Carpenters Campground Road; gravel drive will be .3 miles on left and will be marked for the event.

There is no charge for the event, but donations are always welcome.

 

New Federal Law Gives Better Tax Break for Voluntary Conservation Agreements

Congress recently passed a law to enhance the tax benefits of protecting your land by donating a voluntary conservation agreement.  If you own land with important natural or historic resources, donating a voluntary conservation agreement can be one of the smartest ways to conserve the land you love and protect America’s natural heritage, while maintaining your private property rights and possibly realizing significant federal tax benefits.  

These new incentives make it easier for average Americans, including working family farmers and ranchers, to donate land.  The legislation allows:

• A conservation agreement donor to deduct up to 50% of their adjusted gross income in any year;
• Qualifying farmers and ranchers to deduct up to 100% of their adjusted gross income; and
• Donors to carry over deductions for their contribution for as many as 15 years.

These changes allow many modest income landowners to deduct much more than they could under the old rules, bringing increased fairness to the tax code.

What do you need to know to enter into a voluntary conservation agreement?  Here are the facts:

• A voluntary conservation agreement, also known as a conservation easement, is a legal agreement between a landowner and a nonprofit land trust or government agency that permanently limits uses of the land in order to protect important conservation values. It allows you to continue to own and use your land and to sell it or pass it on to heirs.

• When you enter into a voluntary conservation agreement with a land trust, you give up some of the rights associated with the land. For example, you might give up the right to subdivide your land or build additional houses, while retaining the full right to grow crops. Future owners also will be bound by the agreement’s terms. The land trust is responsible for making sure the terms of the agreement are followed.

• Voluntary conservation agreements vary widely. An agreement to protect rare wildlife habitat might prohibit any development there, for example, while one on a farm might allow continued farming and the building of additional agricultural structures. An agreement may apply to just a portion of the property, and need not require public access.

• A conservation donation requires not only a willing donor, but a qualified conservation organization to accept the donation.  That organization needs to be able to show that the donation closely fits its particular charitable mission.  A land trust will not accept a donation that does not fit its mission and purposes.

• A voluntary conservation agreement can help a landowner pass land on intact to the next generation. By limiting the land's development potential, the agreement lowers its market value, which in turn lowers estate tax. Whether the agreement is donated during life or by will, it can make a critical difference in the heirs' ability to keep the land intact.

• If a conservation agreement benefits the public by permanently protecting important conservation resources and meets other federal tax code requirements, it can qualify as a tax-deductible charitable donation. The amount of the donation is the difference between the land's value with the agreement and its value without the agreement.

• To qualify as a charitable donation, a conservation agreement must be permanent.  A landowner should get professional financial planning and legal advice before making such a major donation.

The Tennessee Agricultural, Forest, and Open Space Land Act of 1976, known as the Greenbelt Law, offers a property tax cut on land dedicated to farm, forest or open space.  A rollback assessment requires landowners whose land no longer qualifies to pay back the taxes they have saved.  To qualify, landowners must apply to their county property assessor using a form supplied by the state.

To learn more about protecting your land with a voluntary conservation agreement, call Bill Clabough at the Foothills Land Conservancy at (865) 856-3350.