Preserve Farmland, Help Tacoma?

The Pierce County Council will consider an ordinance next week that will create a program allowing transfers of Development Rights in the County.

The program strives to create a market-based system to allow owners of farmland and forests to make money off their land without having to sell to developers.

The transfer would work like this: a farmland or forest owner can sell the development rights of their land to a developer who would apply them to a different piece of land, which would be located within a designated boundary for growth.

The original piece of land is then permanently conserved as agriculture or forest, allowing the owner to make money from their land while still preserving its original use. The owner of the land that bought the development rights can now develop their property at a higher density and, thus, make more money off the project than they would have before.

Advocates of the ordinance believe it will help protect the 27,000 acres of agricultural land and 300,000 acres of privately held forests in Pierce County from endless urban sprawl.

If passed by the County Council, other cities—including Tacoma—could enter into agreements with the County that would allow the transfer of development rights to take place between properties, even if they are in different municipalities or in unincorporated Pierce County.

A builder in Puyallup could build more densely by buying development rights to forests in Elbe. A builder in Tacoma could buy the development rights to a historic church, thus allowing the church to survive and the builder to build more densely.

The program could apply to shorelines, forests, farmland, and historic structures. It gives developers a chance to make more money from projects while promoting density, preserving the environment, and curbing sprawl.

What do you think? Could it work?

If you want to see it happen, write your County Councilmember now!  The vote is on Monday.

Link to the Cascade Land Conservancy’s Fact Sheet on TDR

Link to Pierce County Council