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Why Some Farmers Don't Want The Government To Save Their Land

"Aerial photo of area surrounding Chief Leschi School Administration" by D Coetzee is licensed by CC by 2.0
An aerial view of farmland in Puyallup, Washington.

Pierce County leaders are exploring a way to save more farmland from the development sweeping the Puget Sound region. But they risk upsetting some key stakeholders: the farmers. 

Every county in Washington has to decide which farms count as "agricultural resource land" -- basically farmland that can't be developed. 

No county has stricter criteria, or less farmland preserved in this way, than Pierce County. It boasts some of the nation's best soils, but about two-thirds of its farmland has disappeared since 1950 as the county's population nearly tripled. 

"A field is planted in green beans one year and the next year it's being platted for houses," said Dan Hulse, a farmer who grows organic vegetables in Orting, near the foothills of Mount Rainier. 

County leaders hired a team of experts to reviewthe county's criteria for agricultural resource land. Consultants met with farmers at three open houses last week, and could recommend that the county deem more farmland worthy of preservation.

Good news, right? Perhaps not, if you're a farmer.

Farmers say their land can represent their retirement plan and their insurance policy. And every time a farm is rezoned for preservation, there’s one less farmer who can develop their land if their health or business fails.

"It's like we're flying a Piper Cub with no parachute and no gas gauge," said Allen Scholz, who has grown rhubarb, strawberries, and other crops for 38 years in the Puyallup Valley. "You don't know when it's going to drop." 

Jake Sterino, a fourth-generation farmer in the Puyallup Valley, said the rezoning represents "a taking." He said his family's farm of lettuce, cabbage, celery, and pumpkins was zoned as agricultural resource land a decade ago. 

"They've taken our development rights from us," Sterino said. "Who are we saving this property for? For future generations. Well, they should pay us for that."

Consulting firmBarney & Worth Inc. is leading the team of experts reviewing the county's agricultural resource land criteria.

Clark Worth, principal of the firm, said consultants are working hard to balance the views of different stakeholders: farmers, land preservationists, developers, and rural taxing districts worried about their revenues.

He said the consultants expect to present a plan to the county in September. 

Credit Barney & Worth Inc.
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Barney & Worth Inc.
Among the ideas for rezoning farmland in Pierce County is the creation of four "Agricultural Production Districts," each with different criteria for Agricultural Resource Land.

Will James is a former KNKX reporter and was part of the special projects team, reporting and producing podcasts such as Outsiders and The Walk Home.