Agricultural Preservation
Scan the QR code or click the link to view Ferguson Township's graphic Farmland Preservation storymap.
The rich agricultural history of Ferguson Township makes it home to some of the most pristine and beautiful scenery in central Pennsylvania. The 2011 Community Survey identified protecting the Township's farmland as respondents' second highest priority.
In Ferguson Township, there are 30 farms currently preserved and two farms pending preservation. Centre County’s Purchased Agricultural Conservation Easement (PACE) program aims to preserve 2 – 4 farms annually.
Since 2009, Ferguson Township typically contributes from $25 to $150 an acre to preserving farms in the Township, and jointly stewards these easements with Centre County and with the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.
These are some of the tools that help protect Ferguson Township's farmland:
Agricultural Security Areas (ASAs)
ASAs protect the farmer's right to farm by protecting the area within the ASA from local ordinances that may negatively impact farm activities, nuisance complaints, and additional consideration in cases of farmland condemnation (eminent domain). To qualify, landowners of property with a minimum of 250 acres must petition the Township. The ASA must be adopted by the Board of Supervisors and renewed every seven years.
Enrollment in the Township’s more than 500 collective acres of Agricultural Security Area is the minimum requirement to qualify for the Centre County Purchase of Conservation Easements (PACE) Program. Qualifying landowners must also adhere to a conservation plan approved by the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS).
Read more about ASAs.
View Agricultural Security Area/Conservation Easement Map
Current Proposals for the Creation or Modification of an Agricultural Security Area
Property of Marion K. Sheridan - 149.43 acres
3477 Tadpole Road, Pennsylvania Furnace, PA 16865
Tax Parcel: 24-006-,007c,0000-
Purchase of Agricultural Conservation Easements (PACE)
Since its establishment in 1989, Centre County's PACE Program has preserved many of the County's best farms. Thirty of these farms are located in Ferguson Township.
Applicants for the PACE program are evaluated using Land Evaluation Site Assessment criteria. Based on these criteria, which include a land evaluation of soil quality, farmland productivity, development potential and cluster potential, each farm is scored and ranked and added to an active waiting list. Applicant farms that rank the highest are selected and approved by the Centre County Agricultural Land Preservation Board and the Pennsylvania Agricultural Land Preservation Board.
Approved landowners who agree to an agricultural conservation easement on their deed agree to accept payment for their development rights and adhere to the deed restrictions. The farmer continues to own the land, but the farm can never be developed and must continue to be used for agricultural purposes.
Ferguson Township has the highest number of preserved farms in Centre County, clustered especially in the Tadpole Road, Shingletown Road and Whitehall Road corridors.
To learn more about the Centre County PACE Program, visit the Program's website. Also, click to view the Centre County Agricultural Land Preservation Map.
View the Centre County PACE Program 2022 Annual Report and Centre County's Farmland Preservation homepage for more information.