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6. AgricultureFuture Role of Agriculture in Polk County

Agriculture as an economic activity has influenced historicaldevelopment patterns in Polk County and will continue toinfluence future development patterns. Although the numberof farms in Polk County declined by 14% from 1997 to 2002,farm size increased by 10% and the number of acres inproduction was fairly stable1.

The presence of very high-quality soils in the north, east andcentral areas of the County allows agriculture to continue tobe economically viable. Lower-quality soils in the southeastsupport decreasing agricultural activity. In addition to its roleas an economic base activity, agriculture provides rurallifestyle options in Polk County. Open space needs are alsomet through the agriculture landscape. Future residents andvisitors to Polk County will be greeted by large areas ofagricultural landscape, as they are today.

Future Land Use and Economic Activity

The future of agriculture as an economic activity in PolkCounty includes three trends. First, farm families arefrequently supplementing farm income with non-farm sourcesof income from “second jobs2.” Second, agriculture in PolkCounty is becoming more “metropolitan” in nature.“Metropolitan” agriculture means smaller farms with highercrop margins3. It also means the conversion of farmland todevelopment as land values rise near urban areas. Three,traditional agriculture continues in areas further in distancefrom the core cities and with higher-quality agricultural soils.Figure 6-1, Corn Suitability Ratings, shows the areas of PolkCounty with the highest quality agricultural soils.

Future land use in Polk County includes areas that reflectboth the continuation of traditional agriculture and theplanned conversion of farmland to development. Agriculturewill remain the dominant land use in the northeast, the areamost distant from the urban core and with the best soils. Inaddition, agriculture will remain dominant in the easternmostpart of the County and in areas northwest of the SaylorvilleReservoir. “Agriculture” is the largest future land use zone in

1 2002 Census of Agriculture: Iowa State and County Data,Volume 1, Geographic Area Series, Part 15; United StatesDepartment of Agriculture, National Agricultural StatisticsService; June 2004.2 Iowa Farm Bureau, “Metropolitan Agriculture,” Powerpointpresentation, Aug. 2, 2005.

3 Ibid.

Agriculture is the mostwidespread land use in Polk

County, and the first impressionfor many visitors

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terms of area. “Agricultural Transition” areas are expected toeventually transition to urban uses in areas near expandingcities in the central and southeast portions of the county.However, during the time frame of this plan (2005-2030) it isexpected that most of these areas will remain agricultural.

During the planning period for the alignment of the NortheastBeltway transportation corridor, agriculture will remain theprimary allowed land use. Agricultural areas and AgriculturalTransition areas are indicated on Figure 3.2, the Land UsePlan map. The intended density in these areas is one dwellingunit per 35 acres.

The designation of land use areas that are primarilyagricultural minimizes the potential for incompatible land usesin close proximity. Over 127,000 acres are designated asAgriculture, and over 16,000 acres as Agricultural Transitionon the Land Use Plan map, totaling over 60 percent of theunincorporated area. Agricultural activities produce off-siteimpacts such as noise, dust and smells. Agricultural activitiesare geographically tied to area with productive soils; theycannot be located anywhere. Therefore, land uses that areincompatible with the off-site impacts of agriculture, such asdense urban areas, should be located in areas whereagriculture is not the primary land use.

Polk County will continue to support commercial, industrialand transportation land uses that are critical to thecontinuation of agriculture. These include:

Support for rural elevators and rail lines, andtransportation infrastructure connections between farmsand elevators and rail lines

Support for recruitment and location of agriculturalresearch businesses and value-added processingindustries

Support of agricultural supply and maintenancebusinesses in accessible locations in the rural areas ofthe county

Agriculture in Polk County is supported by the proximity ofhigh-quality agricultural areas to the urban core. Thisproximity provides more opportunities for synergy betweenagricultural production and agricultural processing. It alsoprovides broader marketing opportunities than more remoteagricultural areas. In addition to access to large corporatemarkets, there are opportunities for direct marketing toconsumers and the food service industry. Direct marketing toconsumers could occur through farmer’s markets, communitysupported agriculture, sale of products at point of production,and farm tourism such as wineries, corn mazes, and seasonalsales. Access to the food service industry could includemarketing of locally-grown foods in local stores and sales tolocal restaurants.

New housing has beenconstructed in manyagricultural areas.

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Agricultural Goals and Policies

Chapter Two identified two county-wide goals, with associatedpolicies, that directly relate to agriculture. In order to meetthese goals, Polk County has identified several policies, alsoincluded in Chapter Two. The Agricultural Goals and Policiesare repeated below. After each policy below, suggestions forprograms and actions to move toward the policy are included.

Agriculture Goal

Polk County will protect agricultural practices in areas withprime soils and viable agricultural interests, and will work withagricultural producers, cities, and non-agricultural landownersto minimize conflicts between agricultural and non-agriculturalland uses.

Policy 1 - Agricultural Land Protection

Large tracts of prime soils are critical to maintainingagricultural practices in Polk County. The County willencourage stewardship of prime agricultural soils andwill continue to protect areas most suitable foragricultural production, by encouraging more compactgrowth in and around municipalities and throughdevelopment regulations that protect agriculturalactivities.

Polk County will protect agricultural land andimplement the land use plan map by establishingzoning districts in designated agricultural areas whereagriculture is the primary purpose of the district andminimum densities are 35 acres per dwelling unit.

The County will adopt criteria for rezoning requestsfrom an agricultural district to a residential district.These criteria will emphasize the possible impacts of anon-agricultural development on agricultural activitiesand land uses.

Polk County will also protect agricultural land throughthe designation of land use areas appropriate formunicipal expansion. These are areas around existingmunicipalities where utility and transportationinfrastructure is available or planned to becomeavailable.

Policy 2 – Agricultural Practices Protection

Minimizing nuisances requires that incompatible landuses be separated. Polk County will protectagricultural practices as the primary and preferred landuse in the designated agricultural areas to allowcontinued private economic investment in agriculturalproduction.

In addition to agricultural zoning districts, the Countyshould consider aiding in the creation of Agricultural

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Areas under Iowa Code Section 352.6. These areas arevoluntarily created by landowners and result in thelong-term protection of land as agricultural land.Agricultural Areas could be promoted in areasdesignated for long-term agricultural use on the FutureLand Use Map.

Section 352.6 Agricultural Areas 300 acres in size orgreater are exempt from special assessments forinfrastructure improvements when a road or utilitypasses through or next to the designated property. IowaCode Section 352.10 allows the County to exemptproperties of smaller size. In March 2004, Polk Countyadopted a Joint City-County Water Sewer Policy thatprovides exemptions for smaller agricultural parcels forpublic sewer and water projects. Section 7.32 of thispolicy exempts all but one acre of single family andagricultural parcels of five acres or greater from acreageassessments. Linear frontage assessments are cappedat 125 feet. The acreage and frontage assessments areabated until the property is developed.

A “rural characteristics” notification program should beconsidered for all non-farm development in areasdesignated as Agriculture on the Future Land Use Map.As a condition of approval, landowners proposing non-farm development, including non-farm residentialdevelopment, will be required to acknowledge thepotential off-site impacts of farming. This notice will berecorded on the abstract for the non-farm property.Off-site impacts may include: noise, lights, dust, slow-moving machinery, and odors. Since agriculture is theprimary land use in Agricultural areas, agriculturalpractices should be protected to the fullest extentpossible. Several counties in Iowa have alreadyimplemented rural notification programs.

In addition to the Agricultural areas, a notificationprogram should be considered for areas designated asAgricultural Transition on the Future Land Use Plan.Agricultural Transition areas are areas expected toremain in agricultural use during the planning period(twenty-five years). Because of the installation of publicsewer lines in these areas during the life of this plan,Agricultural Transition areas are expected to develop aturban densities after the planning period (twenty-five tofifty years). A term notification program would requirenon-farm developers to sign a waiver that would expirewhen the area is zoned for urban densities.

In addition to a County notification program, PolkCounty should support state legislation for theprotection of farmers against nuisance lawsuits.

New rural residents may notanticipate agriculturalvehicles and practices.

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Policy 3 - Rural Protection

Polk County will protect the rural character ofagricultural landscapes and communities by directingnon-agricultural growth to municipalities, discouragingmunicipal expansion inconsistent with the land useplan, and allowing rural communities to remaineconomically sustainable.

In addition to establishing agricultural and municipaltransition districts, Polk County will investigate and, ifviable, develop three programs that implement theRural Protection Policy. The first program is apurchase of development rights (PDR) program tocompensate agricultural landowners for placing theirland under permanent protection as agricultural land.

PDR programs are used in the Midwest, andthroughout the country, to protect agricultural land inareas of growth pressure. The rights to develop land forhousing are permanently removed in exchange for amonetary payment. The land is dedicated toagricultural uses and the title to the land remains withthe private landowner. Future landowners arerestricted from developing land where developmentrights have been removed. Although programs differ,the amount of the payment in many programs is equalto the difference between the market value of the landfor development and the market value of the land withthe development rights removed, i.e. its agriculturalvalue. Local PDR programs are supported by theFederal Farm and Ranch Land Protection Program(FRPP). The FRPP provides millions of dollars inmatching funds each year to over 25 states.

Another program to investigate is the creation ofproperty tax incentives for farmers to remain infarming rather than develop land for housing. Anexample of a property tax incentive for agricultural landprotection is the recently adopted WisconsinAgricultural Area Tax Increment Financing (TIF)program [see Wisconsin Statutes Chapter 60.85]. Theprogram allows local governments to work with farmersto designate agricultural TIF areas. Agricultural TIFareas may be designated for agricultural manufacturingareas, agricultural tourism districts, or other areas withvalue-added agricultural activities. Within these areastax increments are invested in infrastructure orprograms that support agricultural production. Theseinvestments could include road improvements orfunding for a purchase of development rights program.

A tax increment financing program would be dependenton increasing tax revenues resulting from the projectsdeveloped in the tax increment area. Development of

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an agricultural manufacturing project or value-addedagricultural businesses would more clearly produce taxincrement, whereas a tax increment area with nochange in farming practices would not.

Transfer of development rights (TDR) programs, usedthroughout the country to protect agricultural areas,are another program to be considered by Polk County.Unlike purchase of development rights programs wheredevelopment rights are extinguished, TDR programsmove the right to develop from the agricultural land toanother piece of land, usually in an urbanizing area.The development right is still used, but it is used in alocation where development is desired, rather thanagricultural and other areas where development is notdesired. TDR programs are often used where there is alandowner expectation of development based on pastzoning. TDR programs allow the future protection ofagriculture but still allow landowners to receivemonetary compensation for their developmentexpectations.

TDR programs establish a “sending zone”where development rights are to betransferred from, usually importantagricultural areas or areas with otherimportant natural resources. A “receivingzone” is also established wheredevelopment is desired, usually areas tobe developed or redeveloped at urbandensities. TDR programs often requiredevelopments in receiving zones to acquiredevelopment rights from the sendingzones. The transfer benefits the receiving zone byestablishing open space in close proximity and bymaximizing public investment in urban infrastructure.Polk County may consider a TDR program, particularlyin the Southeast area where landowner expectations fordevelopment in rural areas are high and where possiblereceiving zones are nearby as cities expand.

All these rural protection programs – PDR, agriculturalTIF and TDR programs – would require significantinvestigation and, if the County chose to pursue them,significant time for program development.

Economic Growth and Agriculture Goal

Polk County will encourage continued sustainable growth of theCounty’s agricultural land uses through identifying appropriatelocations for agricultural and non-agricultural business growth,encouraging innovation in agricultural production and marketdevelopment, and linking economic investment with theresources that make the investment competitive.

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Policy 1 - Value-Added Economic Development

Agricultural production creates more economic valuefor County residents and businesses when used tosupport local manufacturing investment. Polk Countywill encourage commercial and industrial investmentsin agricultural value-added products and createpartnerships to expand and foster growth of newproduction and marketing efforts.

Polk County will encourage economic development staffto assist farmers in developing connections to localmarkets and developing new marketing opportunities.Economic development efforts should also includerecruitment and locational assistance for agriculturalresearch businesses and value-added processingindustries.

To support value-added agriculture, Polk County willdevelop zoning provisions that allow farmers to developdirect, on-farm sales to consumers and allow farmtourism activities such as farm wineries and equestrianparks. The zoning provisions could include expandingpermitted uses and creating specific developmentstandards for direct sales, pick-your-own, and farmtourism uses.

Policy 2 - Community Economic Development

Rural commercial development should support ruralcommunities and limit leapfrog commercialdevelopment. Polk County will encourage compactcommercial development in municipalities withinagricultural areas to enhance rural vitality, and willdiscourage non-agricultural commercial development inrural areas.

The creation of zoning districts that enhance smallrural communities will achieve this policy. Limitingcommercial uses in agricultural zones is also necessaryto direct commercial activities to rural towns andvillages.

Policy 3 – Agriculture and TransportationInfrastructure

Location of transportation infrastructure, the capacityof roads to handle agricultural needs, and managementof road use are important for keeping agriculture viablein the County. Polk County will guide development andexpansion of transportation in agricultural areas so asto enhance the viability of agricultural practices inregard to siting of new roads, improvement andmaintenance of existing roads, and creation ormaintenance of rail transportation options.

Local gravel road servingagricultural area.

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Polk County will plan for investment in transportationinfrastructure connections between farms and localfarm support services such as elevators and othermarkets

Roadway design and redesign should recognize theneed for agricultural equipment to share the road withother vehicles. Provisions should be made for tractorsand cars to safely move on the same road. Expandedshoulders, slow vehicle passing lanes, “Share the Road”signage, and other design features should beincorporated into new and existing roadways inagricultural areas and in primary “farm to market”routes.

Polk County will work to protect and expand the inter-modal transportation network necessary to support theagricultural economy. Protecting existing rail lines is acritical element of this inter-modal network. Elevator storage facilities depend on

adequate rail transportation