Farms Protected in Adams, Berks, Blair, Bucks, Chester, Erie, Franklin, Huntingdon, Lancaster, Lebanon, Lehigh, Lycoming, Mifflin, Montgomery, Northampton, Union, Washington, Wayne, Westmoreland, Wyoming, York counties
Harrisburg, PA – The Shapiro Administration announced today that Pennsylvania preserved 2,553 acres on 30 farms in 21 counties, forever protecting them from residential or commercial development. This investment of more than $8.7 million brings the total during 2023 to nearly $46.3 million invested to purchase land development rights for 13,663 acres on 166 farms, helping ensure that Pennsylvania farmers will have prime farmland to feed our families and economy in the future.
Preserving prime farmland is one of the critical investments Governor Josh Shapiro has made in supporting Pennsylvania's 52,700 farm families. The nearly 6.4% overall increase in the Agriculture Department's budget for 2023-24 is multiplying farmers' efforts to conserve land, soil, and water resources by investing in land preservation, equipment purchases, business planning, and farm management tools they need to innovate and grow.
"Without prime farmland, we simply don't have the resources to grow food and supply the $132.5 billion our industry feeds into our economy every year," Agriculture Secretary Russell Redding said. "Pennsylvania farm families who sell their land development rights are leaving a legacy that ensures Pennsylvania families will have green spaces and healthy farmland available to produce food, income, and jobs. The Shapiro Administration is proud to support that legacy."
Pennsylvania leads the nation in preserved farmland. Since 1988, when voters overwhelmingly supported creation of the Farmland Preservation Program, Pennsylvania has protected 6,314 farms and 632,856 acres in 58 counties from future development, investing more than $1.69 billion in state, county, and local funds.
Pennsylvania partners with county, and sometimes local government and nonprofits to purchase development rights, ensuring a strong future for farming and food security. By selling their land's development rights, farm owners ensure that their farms will remain farms and never be sold to developers.
Farms preserved today and dollars invested, by county:
Adams County – Total investment – $348,810, $299,721 – state, $24,989 county, $60,100 Township
Arentz Family #2 – 60-acre crop farm, Union Township
Bruce Pohlman and Son Hog Farm – 43-acre crop farm, Union Township
Berks County – Total investment -- $1,011,061, $451,359 – state, $559,702 county
Jerry L. and Darlene A. Berk – 89-acre crop farm, Albany Township
Dean E. and Darene B. Hartman – 140-acre crop farm, Lower Heidelberg Township
Elam G. Hoover – 133-acre crop farm, Bern Township
Blair County – Total investment – $270,127, $185,127-- state, $85,000 -- county
James R. and Linda J. Negley – 125-acre crop farm, Huston Township
Bucks County – Total investment – $143,500, state only
TNT Groundworks – 17-acre crop farm, Riegelsville Borough
Chester County – Total investment – $239,977, $9,645 state, $230,333 county
Thomas W. Morelli, Jr. – 42-acre crop farm, East Nantmeal Township
Erie County – Total investment – $165,051 state only
Shane L. and Judith A. Kosterman #1 – 92-acre crop farm, Venango Township
Franklin County – Total investment – $271,066 state only
Donald and Denise Martin #1 – 105-acre crop farm, Guilford Township
Huntingdon County – Total investment – $301,630, $256,630 state, $45,000 county
Kristen N. and Kenneth E. Snyder Jr. – 224-acre crop and livestock farm, Warriors Mark Township
Lancaster County – Total investment – $182,806, $12,046 -- state, $125,760 – county, $45,000 township
Sandra J. Witmyer – 43-acre crop farm, Warwick Township
Lebanon County – Total investment – $51,423, $26,498 – state, $24,929 county
Charles R. and Susan M. Zimmerman – 20-acre crop farm, Jackson Township
Lehigh County – Total investment – $1,474,385, $1,178,403 – state, $206,019 – county, $89,963 – township (Upper Milford)
Russell E. and Susan L. Foster – 130-acre crop farm, Weisenberg Township
Stanley A. and Carol A. George – 64-acre crop farm, Weisenberg Township
Donald A. Haas – 55-acre crop farm, Lowhill Township
Leslie H. Nonnemacher – 21-acre crop farm, Upper Milford Township
Lycoming County – Total investment – $230,423, $217,852 – state, $12,572 county
Mountaintop Real Estate Holdings – 98-acre crop farm, Cogan House Township
Gary R. and Barbara A. Womelsdorf – 81-acre crop and livestock farm, Moreland Township
Mifflin County – Total investment – $230,099, $175,830 – state, $54,269 county
Steven R. and Juanita M. Byler – 167-acre crop farm, Granville Township
Montgomery County – Total investment – $1,420,431, $902,031 – state, $302,400 county, $216,000 -- township
Andrew Dale and Tanya Joy Frankenfield – 12-acre crop and livestock farm, Franconia Township
Northampton County – Total investment – $317,682 state only
Stacey and Clayton Stine III – 42-acre crop farm, Upper Mount Bethel Township
Union County – Total investment – $464,958, $388,976 – state, $75,982 county
Luke W. and Ada Mae Hoover #2 – 25-acre crop farm, Buffalo Township
Alan C. and Chrystal L. Kaler #1 – 141-acre crop and livestock farm, Lewis Township
Washington County – Total investment – $244,893, $234,893 – state, $10,000 -- county
Charles E. Monticello #2 – 97-acre crop and livestock farm, Cross Creek Township
Wayne County – Total investment – $145,542, $132,712 – state, $12,829 -- county
Charles J., Amy S. and Andrew Theobald – 96-acre crop and livestock farm, Clinton Township
Westmoreland County – Total investment – $311,174 state only
Rosa Beth Snyder-Boyd and Kenneth H. Ofslager #2 – 86-acre crop farm, South Huntingdon Township
Wyoming County – Total investment – $147,868, $96,378 – state, $51,490 -- county
Benjamin Zdandiewicz – 68-acre dairy farm, Falls Township
York County – Total investment – $722,708, $430,317 – state, $292,392 -- county
Daniel J. and Beth A. Innerst #2 – 103-acre crop and livestock farm, Springfield Township
Christopher G.F. and Megan E.F. Lighty #1 – 138-acre crop farm, Windsor Township
These purchases continue to multiply public dollars invested in conservation initiatives, including the new $154 million Agricultural Conservation Assistance Program, supporting farmers' efforts to reduce water pollution and improve soil quality, along with Clean & Green tax incentives, Resource Enhancement and Protection dollars, and other conservation funding. Pennsylvania's Farmland Preservation Program also secured a $7.85 million federal grant from USDA's Regional Conservation Partnership Program to support climate-smart conservation on preserved Pennsylvania farms, an investment that will not only improve conservation efforts, but help measure their impact.
To learn more about Pennsylvania's Farmland Preservation Program and investments in a secure, sustainable future for Pennsylvania agriculture, visit agriculture.pa.gov.
Media Contact: Shannon Powers, shpowers@pa.gov, 717.603.2056
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