Ottawa County’s Department of Strategic Impact released its 2026 Farmland Preservation Survey sent to over 1,600 owners of local agricultural properties.
“What can we, as local county government, do to support and protect what is a very significant economic driver in our county.”
Ag and Economic Resources Coordinator Becky Huttenga says the survey showed strong support for formal preservation agreements.
“Farmers in Ottawa County have the ability to voluntarily choose to permanently preserve their farmland through a conservation easement and be compensated for that loss of development potential.”
Ninety percent backed planning and zoning as key tools to curb farmland loss while 82% emphasized the need for succession planning to pass farms to the next generation.
“Having a plan to hand your land off - that does two things. It prevents it from being converted to another use, and it gives a new younger, beginning farmer access to land.
That's the biggest barrier to getting into farming is access to land that they need to grow their business and be economically viable.”
Eighty-four percent supported policies promoting the economic viability of agriculture – a factor Huttenga calls the root of preservation.
“If we could wrangle this one, we wouldn't need to talk about any of the other ones. If you can make a better living at farming, we wouldn't have to struggle so hard to protect the land.”
The survey findings will shape the county’s ongoing “Focus on Agriculture Plan,” guiding economic development efforts.
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