Farmland Development Rights in Suffolk County, New York - Overview

Overview

The program involves purchasing from landowners what the county has defined as "development rights." Development rights are all of the property owner's rights, title, and interest in the property except raw ownership, the right of possession and the right to use the property for agriculture. The program involves the solicitation by the county of bids on a voluntary basis by property owners interested in selling the development rights of their property to the county. If a bidder's offer is accepted, the county pays to the bidder the sum of money equal to the appraised market value of the development rights by certified check, assuming that, following a title examination at county expense, it is determined that the bidder can convey good and marketable title, free of any encumbrances, to the county for his development rights.

The program does not require any bidder to offer the development rights to all of his property. He may offer such rights for all or part of his ownership. The concept provides an extraordinary opportunity for imaginative and innovative preservation techniques at minimum risk. For example, it is possible that a farmer who owns and operates his farm could readily sell his development rights to the county, retaining the agricultural title to his own land, while using the proceeds of the sale of his development rights to acquire the agricultural title to adjoining land or land within reasonable proximity suitable for expansion of his farming activity.