Dear Hamilton County Regional Planning Agency,
I am writing to you on behalf of our Hamilton County members. We are an organization that works to build a future for agriculture in our Southeast Tennessee communities by addressing the barriers to entry that young farmers face.
The number one barrier to entry for farmers in both rural and urban settings is access to land. Land is often unavailable and, more often, unaffordable for someone entering production agriculture. This lack of access is further exacerbated in areas like ours, where development pressure is high.
Farmland loss and the lack of access to land for farmers put future regional food economies at risk by removing agriculture as a viable profession and by altering the character of our communities. Farmland loss can be slowed when planning efforts prioritize agricultural lands and recognize them as assets, rather than planning for every other kind of development and leaving agriculture to happen in the leftover areas.
We commend Hamilton County for the process undertaken in Plan Hamilton and recognize the delicate balance required to meet the many needs of a county and its communities—indeed, farmers also need housing and good schools. However, it is unclear to us whether production agriculture was given any priority in the current Growth Plan. Certain development strategies, such as clustering higher-density development, can help prevent farmland loss in other areas, but it is unclear whether preventing farmland loss was a goal of the current plan. Even as over 70 percent of all planning areas express a desire to prioritize farmland and green space preservation, agriculture is mentioned only briefly—and primarily in relation to tourism—while the aim of maintaining rural character is framed as a constraint, rather than a guiding principle.
We would appreciate hearing a defense of the plan as it pertains to protecting the remaining farmland in Hamilton County and to providing a pathway for future farmers to access land. If there is interest in amending the plan to better prioritize existing agriculture, there are excellent resources available through the American Farmland Trust, and we would be happy to connect you with them.
With gratitude for your service to the County,
Jess Wilson
Co-Chair, Southeast TN Young Farmers Coalition