There's no question they're serious about farmland preservation in Marilla. It now has 773 acres in permanent easements that can never be anything but farmland.
The process has been largely grant-funded, but the town has still had to pay 25 to 35 percent of the cost for making sure the hay and corn fields don't turn into mini-mansions. The latest acquisition cost $180,000, plus processing costs. That means it cost the town somewhere over $50,000.
In Marilla, voters have continued to re-elect the officials who have approved spending that money.
The question is: How willing are you to spend your tax dollars to assure that the farm down the road won't turn into a housing tract down the road?
--- Elmer Ploetz
