2015.02.09 Council Agenda Item 06
Summary
Order to approve a supplemental appropriation and transfer in the amount of $400,000 from the Parks Land Capital Fund to assist the Falmouth Land Trust by partially funding the acquisition of Hurricane Valley Farm, such appropriation to be conditioned upon a successful fundraising campaign for financing from other sources.
A public comment period will be included with this item (3 minutes).
ACTION: Council action is anticipated.
Description
The Falmouth Land Trust (FLT) is seeking financial assistance from the Town to purchase the Hurricane Valley Farm property, consisting of 62 acres of open fields, farmland and wetlands.
There has been some discussion of imposing further conditions on this proposed donation of funds in order to assure the intent of agricultural use of the land is maintained. Such conditions might include:
- FLT to agree that the majority of the property will be used for agricultural purposes;
- In the event FLT decides to sell the property, it must first offer the Town the right of first refusal to purchase the property; and
- In the event FLT decides to change the intended use of the land from agricultural, it must first seek agreement of the Town Council.
Attachments:
- Project narrative
- Location map
- Map of surrounding properties
- An excerpt of recent CDC minutes, discussing support for open space preservation
