Agritourism Zoning Down on the Farm by Rebecca Retzlaff, AICP
Total Page：16
File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb
ZONINGPRACTICE March 2004 AMERICAN PLANNING ASSOCIATION ISSUE NUMBER THREE PRACTICE AGRITOURISM 3 ZPMar04.txt 4/7/04 10:05 AM Page 2 Agritourism Zoning Down on the Farm By Rebecca Retzlaff, AICP Imagine taking the family on a weekend excursion to a rural farmstead located just outside the edge of the city. You stay at a bed-and-breakfast and wake up back to the farmer, and that portion slipped to ues, resulting in huge rate increases for farm- to the scent of fresh organic free-range eggs, less than 12 cents for purchases at restaurants ers in recent years, particularly those located homemade soy links, and a newly opened jar and fast-food establishments. Much of the near the urban fringe. Consequently, farmers of canned applesauce. After an early morning money Americans spend on food goes toward in these areas are pressured to sell their land tour of the farm, the children try their hand at packaging (8.5 percent), transportation (four to developers. It should come as no surprise milking cows while the parents take a lesson percent), advertising (four percent), and other that farmers look for alternate income oppor- in home canning and food preservation. expenditures that take place after the product tunities to save the farm. In short, agritourism Sound like a utopian rural getaway? To hasleft the farm. Since the mid-1990s, farmers is necessary for some farmers. a planner, images of rural roads clogged Agritourism takes many forms, including with weary urbanites, non-contextual bill- traditional roadside stands, country stores, boards and signs, stores selling plastic cow and bed-and-breakfast inns, or more innova- lighters, and the ruins of historic barns may tive enterprises such as festivals, corn mazes, come to mind. The balance between agricul- corporate retreats, farm stays, ranch stays, turaltourism and the preservation of rural educational classes, and tours. character is tricky. An agritourism ordinance can be an effective way to manage this SOCIAL BENEFITS OF AGRITOURISM growing trend. Urban dwellers have much to learn from agri- This issue of Zoning Practice examines tourism, including information about food pro- how planners can balance the need to pre- duction, the rural lifestyle, and the need for serve rural character and farming practices agricultural preservation. A family vacation to a while allowing for agritourism enterprises in farm is often not more than a few hours drive, agricultural districts. It also describes the making agritourism attractions an easy alterna- need for agritourism and the benefits that can tive to conventional tourist destinations. be derived from establishing an agritourism Furthermore, produce purchased on the farm industry. Two agritourism zoning approaches can be a healthy and less expensive alternative Howard County, Maryland, Economic County, Howard Development Authority will be discussed: A comprehensive approach to the selection at urban grocery stores. Agritourism promotes sales of locally that regulates multiple types of agritourism Agritourism also can help preserve his- grown produce. Pictured here is Nathan uses, and a piecemeal approach addressing toric farm structures. Advancements in agri- Crist, grandson of former Maryland state only certain elements of agritourism. cultural technology have rendered many Senator and farmland preservation advo- older farm structures virtually useless. cate James Clark. ADDING VALUE TO AGRICULTURE Doors may be too small to accommodate For many farmers, the draw of embarking on an new equipment, structures such as corn- agritourism business is to add much-needed have been looking to capture more of the cribs and horse barns may be obsolete, and income to a small farm operation. According to income generated by their products through older barn styles, including round barns, a 2000 University of Tennessee Agricultural packaging, processing, marketing, direct sales, often are too inefficient for the modern Extension study, the farmer’s share of profits and other value-added ventures that can take needs of farmers. Agritourism provides a from food spending has steadily decreased place on the farm. myriad of adaptive reuse possibilities for over the last 30 years while the costs of farming Many small farmers also find it difficult farm structures, including overnight accom- have increased. In 1997, an average of about 21 to pay property taxes. Often, tax rates for agri- modations, festival buildings, retail busi- cents for every dollar spent on food made it cultural land are assessed at residential val- nesses, or education centers. ZONINGPRACTICE 03.04 AMERICAN PLANNING ASSOCIATION | page 2 ZPMar04.txt 4/7/04 10:05 AM Page 3 ASK THE AUTHOR JOIN US ONLINE! During April 12–23, go online to participate in our “Ask the Author” forum, an interactive About the Author feature of Zoning Practice. Rebecca Retzlaff, AICP, will be available to answer questions about Rebecca Retzlaff, AICP, is a researcher with this article. Go to the APA website at www.planning.org and follow the links to the Ask the the American Planning Association and a Author section. From there, just submit your questions about the article using an e-mail link. Ph.D. student in urban planning and policy The author will reply, posting the answers cumulatively on the website for the benefit of all at the University of Illinois at Chicago. subscribers. This feature will be available for selected issues of Zoning Practice at announced times. After each online discussion is closed, the answers will be saved in an online archive available through the APA Zoning Practice web pages. AGRITOURISM ORDINANCES Agritourism enterprises in the county must be ters, general stores or specialty shops, and Most zoning ordinances typically allow farm- located on parcels that are at least 100 acres. rural resorts. ing and farming-related uses in agricultural As an extra incentive for preserving farmland, Loudoun County, Virginia, goes a step districts but do not recognize tourism as an agritourism also is allowed on any size parcel further by acknowledging rural tourism in the agricultural or related use. This is a problem that is subject to a preservation easement. purpose statement of the district. The ordi- for farmers wanting to open agritourism busi- Under the ordinance, the tourism use must be nance states: nesses, even if the tourism use is incidental subordinate to and support the agricultural to the farming operation. use. Agritourism may include temporary Purpose and intent . recognize that the While many zoning ordinances address events such as festivals for marketing and county’s tourism industry is interconnected agritourism on a piecemeal basis—incorporat- educational purposes provided that they are with the rural economy and rural economy ing the random provision for wineries, country limited to no more than four events per year uses in the district by allowing for tourism stores, or food processing—several communi- and no more than a total of eight days per uses related to traditional and new agricul- ties have taken a more comprehensive year. The ordinance also includes require- turaluses, conference and training center approach. The key component in preserving ments for parking, traffic control, and hours uses, and rural activity and special events rural character is that tourism businesses of operation. for tourists . must be subordinate to farming operations. A similar ordinance from Montgomery Comprehensive approaches can range County, Virginia, permits farm enterprises by Loudoun County allows for more inten- from the small-scale tourism enterprise to right in the agricultural district, as long as sive and varied rural tourism uses in agricul- those that are more intensive such as a festi- they are subordinate to the primary farming turaldistricts than many other ordinances, val. Howard County, Maryland, has an ordi- operation. The county also allows other including agri-education, agritainment, farm- nance that permits value-added processing of types of value-added enterprises as special based tourism, direct-market businesses, agricultural products, agritourism enterprises, uses in the district, including bed-and-break- wineries, corporate retreatcenters, resorts, and pick-your-own marketing of farm products fast inns, campgrounds, boarding camps, outdoor recreational establishments, as accessory uses in many agricultural zones. country inns, game preserves, garden cen- overnight accommodations, and guest farms or ranches. These uses are permitted by right Howard County, Maryland, Economic County, Howard Development Authority in the agricultural-rural district and other zon- ing districts. The ordinance includes specific regulations for each use. For more intensive uses, Loudoun County hastaken steps to guarantee the preservation of farming practices and rural character. The farm-based tourism regulations stipulate that the operator of the tourism use must also be the owner, operator, or occupant of the farming use. Another commonality of many agri- tourism ordinances is minimum acreage requirements for farms that operate a tourism A cut-your-own flower operation called Elioak Farm, regulated under Howard County, operation. While some ordinances simply stip- Maryland’s, agritourism ordinance. ulate a minimum acreage, others have varying ZONINGPRACTICE 03.04 AMERICAN PLANNING ASSOCIATION | page 3 ZPMar04.txt 4/7/04 10:05 AM Page 4 requirements depending on the type of related agritourism can flourish. Some win- Officials argue that the Peninsula tourism use or event.