New Castle, DE – During Delaware’s first-ever Facebook Live Town Hall this afternoon, New Castle County Executive Matthew Meyer announced that the County will save $2.5 million to preserve New Castle County farmland through a partnership with the State of Delaware farmland preservation program. Meyer announced a $500,000 contribution to preserve County farmland. This allocation saves County taxpayers $2.5 million announced under the prior county administration to purchase development rights on two farms in the Port Penn area.
“We believe that this commitment of $500,000 will preserve significant acres of New Castle County farmland at greatly reduced cost,” County Executive Matthew Meyer said today. “We feel this collaboration is the right approach to a more comprehensive land preservation program that maximizes its impact and value to taxpayers.”
New Castle County, which does not have a formally established farmland preservation program, has previously allocated funds on an ad hoc basis to preserve individual parcels of farmland. Partnering with the two-decade Delaware farmland preservation program, which last year surpassed 120,000 acres preserved statewide, leverages the state’s well established and transparent process for identifying and appraising eligible farmland and ranking parcels most appropriate for preservation.
The County will retain decision-making authority to direct which properties are selected off of the State’s list based on county funds that are allocated. In addition, the New Castle County Land Use Department is developing an innovative landscape analysis tool to guide the County’s selection of properties for preservation.
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Contact: Jason Miller, 302-545-1462