Drew Dixon
The state is preserving a 421-acre tract of rural land worth nearly $3 million via a program designed to protect stretches of farmland from development in the Sunshine State.
Agriculture Commissioner Wilton Simpson approved the preservation of the parcel of land in Alachua County that’s valued at $2.975 million. Simpson exercised the protective action through the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services’ Rural and Family Lands Protection Program.
That measure “is an agricultural land preservation program designed to protect important agricultural lands through the acquisition of permanent agricultural land conservation easements,” according to the state.
The tract of land is where Holt Agricultural hosts farming operations. Holt Agricultural is a farm north of San Felasco Hammock Preserve State Park and cultivates crops and pastureland that has several small creeks and wetlands running through the property.
“Protecting working farms like Holt Agricultural is how we keep Florida free, self-reliant, and economically strong,” Simpson said in a news release. “This easement ensures the land stays in private hands, continues to feed our communities, and supports the values that make rural Florida worth fighting for.”
The designation essentially prevents future development on the property and allows agricultural operations to continue. The state basically purchases the development rights through voluntary agreements for easements to be protected.
The state characterized the Holt operations as “irrigated row crops (that) include peanuts planted during the winter, and broccoli and watermelon during the spring and summer. The understory of the fields is composed of Bahia grass, coffee senna, hairy indigo, and scarlet creeper, among others.”
The Rural and Family Lands Protection Act was established by the state in 2001 and has already permanently preserved more than 210,000 acres of working agricultural land since its inception. Simpson himself has approved the preservation of about 146,000 acres during his administration.
