A 119-acre family farm in Webster Township will be preserved for years to come. This is part of the township’s taxpayer-funded Farmland and Open Space program.
The remainder of a family dairy farm on Gregory Road near Dexter cannot be developed in the future. This is after the family agreed to and signed a conservation easement.
The township covers part of the cost through a dedicated millage, in addition to federal, state and county funding totaling more than $758,000.
Barry Lonik is a consultant with the township’s preservation program. He says taxpayers in the township have voted multiple times to fund conservation easements. The goal is to keep the property in the hands of private ownership, while also placing deed restrictions to prevent future development.
“So, the property cannot be divided into smaller parcels. You can’t build houses on it. You can’t make a gravel pit. You can manage the woods, but you can’t clear cut it. You have to maintain the wetlands. All those kinds of things.”
This property joins more than 700 acres that is being preserved in Webster Township through the Farmland and Open Space program.
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