Eight Culver’s locations are participating in the fundraising event to raise money for Kent County’s Purchase Development Rights Program, or PDR.
This voluntary initiative compensates farmers for accepting a permanent deed restriction on their land that limits future non-agricultural development.
Matthew Channing is Kent County’s Agricultural Preservation Specialist. He says once an easement is in place, the landowner may still sell the land, but only as farmland.
“When you’re an aging-out farmer, and you see the dollar value of what your land could go for, you have a choice to make in your retirement. You have a choice to either sell really cheaply to another farmer and put yourself into a very precarious situation or sell highly to a developer.”
According to a 2022 Agricultural Census, Kent County lost more than 13,000 acres of farmland between 2017 and 2022.
“We need to seek regionally where it’s appropriate to grow, where it’s appropriate to protect our farmland and our habitats as well.”
Ten percent of all sales from the Culver’s fundraiser will be sent to the Kent County Agricultural Preservation Fund and Grand Rapids Community Foundation. Kent County’s PDR team will then use those funds to match preservation grants from state and federal agricultural departments.
Culver’s restaurants in Lowell, Byron Center, Cascade, Wyoming, Walker, Cedar Springs, Comstock Park and on the East Beltline are all participating Tuesday from 5 to 8 p.m.
Tractors will be on display at the Lowell, Cascade, Byron Center and Cedar Springs locations
