Celebrating Open Lands Program

Celebrating the success of the Ravalli County Open Lands Bond Program

ALAN MAKI & DAN HULS for tHe rAvALLI repUbLIc

Thanks to the citizens of Ravalli County, almost everyone traveling anywhere throughout our beautiful Bitterroot Valley has a good chance of driving by acres of open space that will remain protected forever.

The vast majority of these open lands are family farms and ranches producing food and fiber and anchoring our local economy, but also include two wonderful new riverside parks (Steve Powell Park and Skalkaho Bend Park) in the City of Hamilton, a permanent fishing site/boat launch in Conner and trail joining up to USFS land (C. Ben White Memorial Fishing Access site), and permanent access to both private and public lands for big game hunters in Sula (Lazy J Cross Ranch).

I invite you to flip through this summer’s Agricultural Magazine to read the stories behind the families who have protected the land that is home to our local agriculture, native wildlife, clean river and streams, and open space for recreation – none of which would have been possible without community support for the Open Lands Bond program.

History of Growth in Ravalli County

There have been a few notable population “booms” in Ravalli County that stand as outliers to our otherwise mostly continuous population growth. According to the US Decennial Census, Ravalli County’s population increased by 49.1% from 1900-1910, coinciding with the “Orchard Boom” - an important time when tens of thousands of acres were subdivided into 10-acre parcels, forever setting the tone of development of Ravalli County. From 1970 to 1980, a 56.1% population increase occurred, and from 1990 to 2000 a 44.2% increase. It was in the early 2000’s after seeing the latest census data that many citizens were concerned about the changes that came with such a significant pace of growth and resolved to proactively protect some of the most important resources in the valley.

A Way to Preserve Open Space in the Bitterroot Valley: The Conservation Easement

In 2005, Ravalli County Right to

Page 6 - Agriculture Magazine, Summer, 2022 Farm and Ranch board (serving as an advisory board for the Ravalli County Board of Commissioners) spearheaded a study of the importance of agriculture in the valley. In addition to showing the direct economic importance of agriculture in the valley, the study also identified the many indirect benefits of working farms and ranches, including wildlife habitat, well water recharge, and scenic open space. Ultimately, the study suggested Ravalli County create a voluntary, non-regulatory, landowner driven tool providing local farmers and ranchers an option to keep their working lands working: the conservation easement.

Open Lands Bond Program: The Beginning

At the request of the Right to Farm and Ranch Board, the Board of Ravalli County Commissioners, the Ravalli County Open Lands Bond was placed on the November 2006 ballot, with ballot language that included, “… manage growth, preserve open lands, protect water quality of streams and the Bitterroot River, maintain wildlife habitat, protect drinking waters sources…” It passed with near 60% of the vote. A citizen’s advisory board was set up to help initiate the new program and applicants were vetted by the commission for seats on the newly created Open Lands Board. It wasn’t until 2009 when all the criteria for a transparent, objective process was met that the first applicant was finally approved by the Ravalli County commissioners.

What Has the Open Lands Bond Program Accomplished Today?

Since that first project, The Wood Ranch in Corvallis (now owned by the Trexler family), 38 more projects have followed with even more on the way today. As of April of 2022, the Open Lands Program has approved projects conserving 10,367 from Florence to Sula, consisting of agricultural land and soil, big game winter range, riparian areas, wetlands and over 40 miles of streams. Some of the accomplishments of the program are readily seen up, down and across the valley, and many are discreetly pointed out by the owners with a small sign proclaiming “OPEN LANDS PROGRAM RAVALLI COUNTY: This land conserved for future generations,” the logo of which was created by Corvallis students in an art class.

It is important to note that the easements do not change the amount of property taxes collected on the property. Its productivity is valued by Montana the same, whether it has an easement on it or not. Fortunately, for the taxpayer the conserved open lands require much fewer services from the county - open fields rarely require more asks for money than schools, roads, police, fire and other necessary services that are needed by a growing community. Easements also do not change the ownership nor prevent the ownership from changing, or require public access. Easements are voluntary, they are a legally binding document, and are tailored to made to fit each owners’ unique circumstances.

More Growth Means More Need for Open Land Protection

While the census data isn’t in yet for the growth from 2020 on, so far it is suggesting a continued need for the Ravalli County Open Lands Program. Of the original $10 million bond, over $7.5 million has been spent at an average cost of only $725 per acre. This county taxpayer money was matched by over $8.5 million in non-county funding sources and over $13 million in landowner donations of the appraised easement value or fee title value. The remaining $2.5 million of the bond is set to service the potential of roughly another 3,000 acres of open lands conservation easements that are currently working their way through the county process.

Although Ravalli County is only 24% privately held land, that still equates to over 365,000 acres. According to the most current 2017 Census of Agriculture, Ravalli County has just shy of 71,000 acres of irrigated farmland. To put it into perspective of how much room there really is for growth, the City of Los Angeles proper is approximately 320,000 acres. The 2017 Census of Agriculture reports that almost 42% of producers in Ravalli County are 65 years or older. That statistic suggests that there will be a lot of land changing ownership in the near future. A common thread with many of the landowners that have placed conservation easements on their land is that they wanted to see it remain relatively unchanged (read about Wood/ Trexler easement and Farrell/Kerslake easement inside this magazine). In these instances, a driving force for conservation for older landowners is protecting the land to sell to a new generation of producers to carry on a tradition of Bitterroot agriculture.

Reader, please think about your favorite places that you have lived or visited in your lifetime. Please ask yourself, are they better now than your earlier recollections of them? The Open Lands Bond program was designed to help keep some of the best attributes of our valley for future generations to enjoy. Now and into the future, it will be known that there will continue to be local agriculture, wildlife, water and open lands for the enjoyment of all. We sincerely hope that you can appreciate many of the wonderful benefits that your support of the 2006 Open Lands Bond has generated! These lands and waters are the legacy we pass down to future Bitterroot generations.AG

Alan Maki is the Ravalli County Right to Farm and Ranch Board chairman. Dan Huls is a Ravalli County Commissioner.