LandChoices: Opportunities for Landowners to Preserve Their Land

Land Choices: Changing Development in America

Farmcolony Greene County's Best Kept Secret

LandChoices would like to thank Dave and Linda Moore for sending us the following article. Dave and Linda are supporters of LandChoices and are realtors in Charlottesville, VA. Thank you Dave and Linda for helping to spread the word about LandChoices and the benefits of conservation subdivisions.

From the Real Estate Weekly, Charlottesville, VA

Since 1945, America has lost nearly 20-percent of its farmland. According to USDA?s National Resources Inventory, from 1992 to 1997 more than 11 million acres of rural land were converted to developed use – and more than half of that conversion was agricultural land. In that period, an average of more than one million agricultural acres – an area nearly the size of Delaware – were lost to development.

Stewards of the land have been hard pressed to come up with a solution that would satisfy both the need to preserve America's farms while at the same time accommodate the growing need for housing developments. Farmcolony, located just south of Stanardsville in Greene County, has done just that.

Farmcolony is a unique community built around a working farm, offering homeowners an opportunity to enjoy all the benefits of living on a farm without the usual worries or responsibilities. For those who have long had a dream of living on a farm surrounded by clean air, open land, and nature's critters, Farmcolony is built on a model offering just that – at a price far less than buying a large working farm.

The concept for Farmcolony came from Gilbert Edwards, a Florida real estate developer. Edwards considered farm life idyllic, but thought that owning an actual farm was impractical. For years he looked for a farm where he could live and yet still be near his business. Realizing he wasn't alone in his desire to combine country life with proximity to a metropolitan area, he developed the concept for Farmcolony.

Greene County was the site of the first Farmcolony developed in 1976. Developers purchased a 285-acre farm that had been operating since the 19th century. The farm was divided into 95 acres for homesites, 120 acres remained a working farm and 70 acres of mountain preserve with horse and hiking trails.

On the 95 acres set aside for homesites, 48 lots were carved out, each ranging in size from 1.4 to 3.4 acres. Those who purchased those lots also got a share of the remaining 190 acres and the farmhouse, livestock, and equipment. Currently there are 19 houses on those 48 lots, and 37 association members – with some members owning more than one lot.

Some things have changed in the operation of Farmcolony over the last 30 years – such as the amount of livestock and crops – but the concept has been a success.

"To me the core remains intact in that they took an existing farm and they left 120 acres as a farm," says Greene County resident and RE/Max Excellence REALTOR® Dave Moore. "It has the original farmhouse, which they use as a community center. It's available for rental for overnight guests of the residents and for retreats and events. They still have the farm buildings, tractors, and cows, so for all practical purposes it has a continuing farm feel. Just driving past it you'd think it was somebody's farm because that?s what it looks like from the road."

Moore says what he likes the most about Farmcolony is that it benefits residents who want to have the farm experience, while at the same time preserving an open space in the county.

"Normally what happens when somebody buys 300 acres of land they turn it into a subdivision and you've got a bunch of houses in what used to be productive fields," he stated. "You may look around and see the original farm house if they kept it, but the farm is gone. Here the farm is still there. There is a pasture out there where they raise hay and cows. My personal preference is that it is a better way of providing a place for people to live without destroying what existed there to begin with."

Home Values

With such little inventory, homes and lots in Farmcolony seldom appear on the market but when they do, Moore says the prices range anywhere from $250,000 to $500,000 and represent all styles of houses, from rambling cedar-sided houses, barn-type homes, to those made totally out of concrete.

"There's a lot of variation," said Moore. "It's not your typical subdivision, so you can't say that there are a lot of comparables. Each one is somewhat unique."

And so are the homesites. Some have streams running through them or border on a pond. Most are surrounded by tall dense forest. Others have spectacular views of the rolling Virginia countryside. And all of Farmcolony has been designated a statewide bird sanctuary.

"One of the nice things about it is that the lots are up on the hillside. They're not your traditional flat level lots, so it takes a little more imagination to build a suitable house, but it's done all the time around here."

Some of the current residents have lived there for almost 30 years, while others purchased the property with the intent of someday retiring there. Still others are raising young families. Moore says there is a good mix in the demographics.

Moore says a young family currently has a house under contract in Farm Colony and a retired couple "bought a house this summer... moving closer to the grandkids."

"It's just the normal mix. It's more people who appreciate and like a rural setting and the privacy that it offers," he adds.

Best Kept Secret – NOT a Commune

Although Farmcolony got a lot of press when it was originally developed, including mention on HGTV and a citation for environmental excellence from then Governor Doug Wilder, Moore says most people today aren't aware of its existence.

"People aren't aware of it as much as they are some other things but once they become aware of it, they really like it."

Part of the mystique of Farmcolony could be connected to its name. Almost from the beginning, the area was labeled a "commune" and unfortunately, that misconception spread.

"That was a few years ago but some things die hard," said Moore. "I don't know what some people's current attitudes or opinions are of it. It's indicative that people either don't know about it at all, or they have a notion that doesn't conform with reality."

Moore agrees, however, that part of this misconception goes back to the original vision of the developers. "I think they had a vision in the 70s of 'back to the land' and that may have impacted it in that way. Maybe it made more sense to them and fit in with their original concept, I don't know. But it's not exactly what it is now. I just think there are a lot of people who want to live on a farm, but really can't afford 100 acres nor do they have the time for the upkeep. At Farmcolony, you have an opportunity to buy two acres and yet enjoy 200 acres. It's like living on a gatehouse on an estate, except this isn't a country estate setting; it's a working farm. It brings the ability to own and live on a working farm within the reach of normal people, which is nice."

Benefits of Conservation

The truth about why Farmcolony did not catch on may simply be that it was a concept that was ahead of its time. Today, there are organizations and individuals actively engaged in finding creative ways to preserve farmland while still answering the need for housing developments for a growing population.

One such organization is LandChoices, a non-profit organization established to inform landowners about land protection options and how conservation subdivision design can be more profitable and less land consumptive than traditional subdivision development.

Randall Arendt, one of the nation?s foremost authorities on conservation subdivision design and a member of LandChoices advisory group, recognizes that communities can conserve farmland, wooded habitat, and natural areas and maintain landowner equity while accommodating land development. Land developers across the country have adopted Arendt's conservation design process, finding the approach actually saves on project costs and accelerates approval timelines.

"LandChoices shows developers how they can make money and at the same time have a more positive impact on the community," said Moore. "But I'm afraid we generally tend to be a cookie-cutter society and for whatever reason, this hasn't been the cookie-cutter model that's caught on."

Nonetheless, Farmcolony stands as an example of a plan that has worked, preserving a parcel of farm land in Greene County for over 30 years while giving families an opportunity to experience the kind of life most people only dream of.

To visit Farmcolony, take 29N to Rt. 230 and turn left to State Road 622. Turn right for approximately four miles and look for the Farmcolony sign. +

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