Land use

Land use

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land use taxation would be if the owner deeded a scenic easem<%; on the land to the local governing body or to an agency of the state or federal government. “Eased land always meets conditions of the open space class,” he said. Easements are generally “in perpetuity,” he explained. “Most people think that is forever,” he said. “It is at least 33 years.”

A third way a landowner could qualify for land use taxation would be to enter into a contract with the supervisors similar to the agreement owners in an Ag District make. This would be for owners with less than 200 acres of land who do not live close enough to other owners interested in forming an Ag District to include their land in existing or new Ag Districts, Dr. Marshall explained.

The use values are ultimately the responsibility of the Commissioner of Revenue, he said, but various state agencies have recommended amounts. The values for agricultural land are determined by the Department of Agriculture, those for forest land by the Department of Forestry, and those for open space by the Department of Conservation and Recreation.

Jackson District representative Ellis Bingham commented, “A lot of land in this county is owned by investors. I cannot see the people in this county subsidizing the net worth of large property owners. I want to keep the land open, but how do we do that on an equitable basis?”

“With the present land use taxation it is possible for a developer to come in and buy a lot of land, rent it to a farmer, and sell it when he’s ready,” Hampton District representative Mike Massie said. “If with open space we also went to 10 years, that should separate the farmer from the developer.”

Earlier the supervisors approved the new six-year secondary road plan. Resident Engineer Robert Moore said that as a result of public comment at the hearing in January, work on Route 612 had been moved