Wide open spaces

Three properties enter conservation easements, protecting land forever

by Jonathan Romeo

More than 200 acres of agricultural lands in La Plata County received forever protections from development this week after three separate landowners entered into a conservation easement agreement.

In Colorado, a conservation easement is a voluntary agreement with a property owner in which the owner agrees to limit development on the land for the preservation of scenic views, wildlife habitat and watersheds, among other values that benefit the public. While an agreement to limit development can devalue the full potential of a property, in return, the property receives a tax advantage.

This week, the La Plata Open Space Conservancy announced three landowners in different parts of the county finalized placing their land into a conservation easement, resulting in a total of 218 acres now protected.

“Land conservation is happening, and people are excited about it,” Adrienne Dorsey, executive director of LPOSC, said in an interview with The Durango Telegraph this week. “We’re seeing a ton of land-use threats, like development and climate change. So the more we can work with landowners to preserve our critical landscapes, the more we can protect the quality of life and the things that make our area so special.”

Tocayo Farm

The first property comprises 28 acres east of Durango in the Florida River valley, known as Tocayo Farm. Owned by Spencer and Sarah Schreiber, the land is highly productive in agriculture and home to grass-fed sheep. The operation also uses regenerative practices, like rotational grazing to enhance soil health.

Long Table Farm, which grows produce for local markets and communitysupported agriculture, is also located on the property. In addition, Dorsey said the land is home to woodlands, meadows, a wetland, wildlife habitat and riparian habitat along the Florida River, all of which will now be protected in the conservation easement.

“This easement conserves a lot of conservation values,” she said.

The Schreibers, for their part, have four young kids and wanted to preserve their farm for future generations.

“Although my children are too young to realize it, by placing a conservation easement on our land, my wife and I have given them a story to tell,” Schreiber said in a statement. “As development changes our rural landscape, this little piece of the Florida River Valley will look the same as when the original homesteaders first sunk their shovels here 140 years ago. That is something we are proud of and a story that will be told with pride.”

Elmore’s Corner… ish

The second newly designated conservation easement is a 160-acre property also east of Durango, near Elmore’s Corner, which has been owned by the same family since it was homesteaded in 1896. For more than 120 years, the land has been active in agriculture and is now considered a Centennial Farm.

“It feels really good to be part of conserving land in perpetuity,” Eileen Dawson, a member of the family trust that owns the land, said in a statement.

Not only will the conservation easement help ag operations, it will also protect the open space, wildlife habitat and scenic views along County Road 234. All this at a time when Three Springs, the ever-growing development on the east side of Durango, continues its buildout, Dorsey said.

“Three Springs is growing quickly and slated for even more development,” she said. “So we were pretty excited to be able to conserve that property and keep it the way it has been for more than 100 years.”

Out West

The last property announced this week is an estimated 30 acres of undisturbed open space, wildlife habitat and forest land just north of Durango West 2, about 9 miles west of town. Dorsey said the landowner wanted to make sure his property was never subdivided and built out.

What’s more, the newly designed conservation easement abuts another 70-acre conservation easement, effectively connecting a total of 100 acres that is undisturbed for open space and wildlife. Dorsey said this is a major win as devel-

Thirty acres of forest land were recently put into a conservation easement near Durango West 2. The property abuts another 70 acres of conservation easement, making for 100 acres of contiguously protected lands adjacent to the Perins Peak State Wildlife Area./ Courtesy photo opment continues to expand west of town, which is adjacent to the Perins Peak State Wildlife Area, also important wildlife habitat.

While announcing three new conservation easements in a week is not exactly a common occurrence, Dorsey said the uptick in interest among landowners to protect their land has increased amid the rising development pressure in the state.

On top of that, in 2021 the Colorado General Assembly increased the state tax credit for a conservation easement from

55% to 90% of the donated value.

In an August 2022 story in the Telegraph, State Rep. Barbara McLachlan, who voted in favor of the law, said the increased incentive could not come at a more important time as development booms across the state.

“This bill forever protects the land,” McLachlan said at the time. “It’s a good incentive for people who have a ranch and don’t want to sell it and have it turned into condos. Their land will stay a ranch forever.”

(*Although a few probably just look at the pictures.)

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