Town of Bayfield Farmland Preservation Program
100 Point-Score Criteria for Ranking PDR Applications
- Quality of the parcel as farmland (possible total 25 points)
- A. Soils and microclimate. intent: To protect productive or potentially
productive farmland. Ten points possible, select one:
- soils and microclimate suitable for horticulture -10
- soils suitable for forage - 5
- soils not suitable for horticulture or forage - 0
- B. Size. Intent: To protect economically viable farms and to maximize open
space. Five points possible, select one:
- >20 acres clear and tillable - 5
- >15 acres clear and tillable - 4
- >10 acres clear and tillable - 3
- >5 acres clear and tillable - 2
- >1 acre clear and tillable - 1
- <1 acre clear and tillable - 0
- C. Current use. Intent: to protect present agricultural economy. Five
points possible, select one:
- >20 acres horticultural or >160 acres forage crops - 5
- >15 acres horticultural or >120 acres forage crops - 4
- >10 acres horticultural or >80 acres forage crops - 3
- >5 acres horticultural or >40 acres forage crops - 2
- <5 acres horticultural or <40 acres forage crops - 1
- 0 acres presently producing crops - 0
- D. Proximity to lands zoned for agricultural or forestry use. Intent: to
retain clusters or blocks of agricultural land. Five points possible, select
one:
- >60% of boundary with ag/forestry zoned land - 5
- >40% of boundary with ag/forestry zoned land - 3
- >20% of boundary with ag/forestry zoned land - 1
- <20% of boundary with ag/forestry zoned land - 0
- Development pressure (possible total 20 points)
- A. Proximity to the City of Bayfield. Intent: to protect farmlands from
urban sprawl and/or annexation. Five points possible, select one:
- Adjacent to the City limits of Bayfield - 5
- <0.5 mile from the City limits - 4
- <1 mile from the City limits - 3
- <1.5 miles from the City limits - 2
- <2 miles from the City limits - 1
- >2 miles from the City limits - 0
- B. Proximity to existing or planned roads, power corridors, and/or sanitary
systems. Intent: to protect farmlands vulnerable to immediate development. Five
points possible, select all that apply:
- Within existing or planned sanitary district - 2
- Frontage on paved public highway - 2
- frontage on unpaved public highway - 1
- Local power corridor fronts or crosses property - 1
- No proximity to services - 0
- C. Scenic view from the property. Intent: to protect farmlands highly
attractive to recreational or residential developers. Five points possible,
select one:
- Property affords a view of Lake Superior - 5
- Property affords a hilltop or valley scenic view - 3
- Property affords a view of meadows or creek - 1
- Property does not afford a significant view - 0
- D. Number of buildable sites. Intent: To protect farmlands that can be
divided under current zoning laws. Five points possible, select one:
- >4 buildable sites - 5
- 4 buildable sites - 4
- 3 buildable sites - 3
- 2 buildable sites - 2
- 1 buildable sites - 1
- none - 0
- Financial considerations (possible total 20 points)
- A. Landowner willingness to sell development rights below appraised market
value. (Difference may be taken as a tax deduction by the land owner.) Intent:
To encourage landowners to reduce the costs of easement purchase. Ten points
possible, select one:
- >80% below market value - 10
- >60% below market value - 8
- >40% below market value - 6
- >20% below market value - 4
- >0% below market value - 2
- Market value - 0
- B. Matching funds available from other sources. Intent: To leverage funds
from other sources to purchase easements. Ten points possible, select one:
- >80% matching funds available - 10
- >60% matching funds available - 8
- >40% matching funds available - 6
- >20% matching funds available - 4
- No matching funds available - 0
- Scenic, environmental, and historic qualities (possible total 20 points)
- A. Scenic quality of the property from a public corridor. Intent: To
protect farmlands with scenic value. Five points possible, select one:
- Property visible from public roadway - 5
- Property not visible from public roadway - 0
- B. Significant natural features of the property. Intent: To protect
farmlands with environmental value. Five points possible, select one:
- Property includes old-growth forest, streams, wetlands, or significant
wildlife habitat - 5
- Property does not include old-growth forest, streams, wetlands, or
significant wildlife habitat - 0
- C. Historic quality of the property. Intent: To protect farmlands with
historic value. Five points possible, select one:
- Property includes features such as vintage barn, other historic
architecture, brownstone quarry, or archaeological site - 5
- Property does not include features such as vintage barn, other historic
architecture, brownstone quarry, or archaeological site - 0
- D. Multigenerational farm. Intent: To protect farms that have been owned by
the same family for more than one generation. Five points possible, select one:
- Farmland has been owned by the same family for two or more generations - 5
- Farmland has not been owned by the same family for two or more generations
- 0
- Other considerations (possible total 15 points)
- A. Proximity to other protected land, e.g. parks, public forest, other
conservation easements or reserves, etc. Intent: to create blocks or clusters
of protected land. Five points possible, select one:
- Adjacent to protected land - 5
- <0.25 miles from protected land - 4
- <0.5 miles from protected land - 3
- <0.75 miles from protected land - 2
- <1 mile from protected land - 1
- >1 mile from protected land - 0
- B. Location. Intent: To prioritize for the protection of land within the
Town of Bayfield. Five points possible, select one:
- All property located in the Town of Bayfield - 5
- >50% property located in the Town of Bayfield - 3
- >25% property located in the Town of Bayfield - 1
- <25% property located in the Town of Bayfield - 0
- C. Date of application. Intent: To recognize the time-of-wait by the
applicant. Five points possible, select one:
- Earliest dated PDR application pending - 5
- 2nd earliest dated PDR application pending - 4
- 3rd earliest dated PDR application pending - 3
- 4th earliest dated PDR application pending - 2
- 5th earliest dated PDR application pending - 1
- >5th earliest dated PDR application pending - 0
At this time, 7/15/02, the Farmland Preservation Committee is considering
making a recommendation to the Town Board for a minor revision of the criteria
to include a point-score award for whole-farm applications over segmented or
part-parcel applications.