I like to eat. I am really concerned when I look around and see all this wonderful farmland being turned into housing and commercial developments. These developments share idyllic names (Apple Creek, Nibley Farms, Green Meadows) â ironic because these developments have destroyed the apple orchards, the creeks have been re-channeled, and the farms covered with pavement and concrete.
Where are we going and who is in charge? Evan Olsen, a dairy farmer and local legislator for 22 years, was a visionary who often talked about preserving farmland and developing an overall plan for conservation of lands. He tried to pass a bill asking for an 8-cent local option tax to buy development rights on farmland. But it did not pass.