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Agricultural Preservation

Orange County · Agricultural Preservation Board
Wednesday, March 18, 2026

Regular meeting Farmland and open spaceAppointments and personnelComprehensive plan

Agenda document Minutes Watch Meeting recap

What's on this agenda

Orange County's agricultural preservation board reviewed and approved new farms for the voluntary agricultural district on March 18, the one decision on its agenda. Voluntary agricultural districts give farms some protection from nuisance complaints and a formal signal that the land is meant to stay in agriculture.

The board also discussed the single membership application it had on file and how to recruit more, took an update on the Land Use Plan 2050, and looked for agriculture-themed photographs to illustrate the final draft of its Agricultural Viability and Farmland Stewardship Plan.

Summarized from the published agenda. Read the agenda itself before acting on it.

Meeting recap

What happened, drawn from the records published after the meeting. Minutes

Orange County's Agricultural Preservation Board approved four voluntary agricultural district applications March 18 and will forward them to the county commissioners' April 21 consent agenda. They add Dawnbreaker Farms, 20.01 acres in the Caldwell district; Ten Mothers Farm, 6.3 acres of organic vegetables in Cedar Grove; La Finca, a 10.04-acre enhanced-district tract in Cedar Grove; and a two-parcel, 107.84-acre Cedar Grove tract growing tobacco and wheat, pending a signed conservation plan and forest management plan. The board also corrected and approved its January 21 minutes.

Staff told the board the legislature now requires a public hearing before land can leave a voluntary agricultural district for development, and county lawyers will draft an ordinance update to match. Members also heard that a grant application to fund a cost-of-community-services study was accepted, with an interview set for March, and that one at-large board seat opens in April when Taylor's term ends.

How the votes went

The board approved the four farm enrollment applications and the corrected January 21 minutes on voice votes, with no dissent recorded.

From the published minutes.

Speaking at this meeting

Orange County's own rules for public comment — check them before you rely on anything here.

Agenda items (5)

Discussion item · 3Minutes approval · 1Other · 1
  1. 4 Meeting Summary/Minutes: January 21, 2026
    Minutes approval
    The board corrected two errors in the January 21 minutes and approved them.
  2. 5.a VAD update and new farms for review and approval
    Other Farmland and open space
    The board recommended four voluntary agricultural district applications for the county commissioners' April 21 consent agenda: Dawnbreaker Farms (20.01 acres, Caldwell district), Ten Mothers Farm (6.3 acres, Cedar Grove) and La Finca (10.04 acres, Cedar Grove, enhanced district). It also recommended an unnamed two-parcel, 107.84-acre Cedar Grove tract growing tobacco and wheat, contingent on a signed conservation plan and forest management plan reaching the county in time.
  3. 6.a Membership
    Discussion item Appointments and personnel
    Staff reported an at-large vacancy opening in April with Taylor's retirement and asked for a new membership application this spring so commissioners could approve it before summer.
  4. 6.b Land Use Plan 2050: update and next steps
    Discussion item Comprehensive planFarmland and open space
    Staff said planning has held four work sessions with commissioners since last year's initial presentation and will restart its consultant, with new public input sessions this fall and an updated plan expected in early 2027. Members said the current draft is hard to find on the county website.
  5. 6.c Photos for the Ag Viability and Farmland Stewardship Plan
    Discussion item Farmland and open space
    Staff is working with the county's graphic design team on an illustrated final plan and will reach out to board members for a list of farm photos to use.

Agenda changes

What moved between published versions of this agenda. Item numbers shift constantly as things are inserted, so only genuine additions and removals are listed.

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