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Schoharie Land Trust Steering Committee
minutes of 14 November 1990 meeting
The regular meeting of the Schoharie Land
Trust Steering Committee was called to order by
Bob Smith at 8:04 PM at the Cooperative
Extension Office in Cobleskill on Wednesday 14
November 1990
Members present:
Elliott Adams
Deloris
Cooper
Carroll Garner
Dorothy Garner
Ken Hotopp
Dan Kelly
Ken Leaycraft
Eugene McCaffrey
Mary Jo O'Donnel
Carl
Sand
Sandra Scouten-Ford
Robert
Smith
John Townsend
Amy White
MEMBERSHIP: It was agreed to establish a $15
voting membership, additionally the
Board of Directors will establish some
higher levels of contribution.
BROCHURE: It was agreed that work should go
forward on a brochure describing the
Schoharie Land Trust.
DISCUSSION: This was a general discussion of the
pitfalls and potentials, and innovative
ideas for land trusts, including the
following:
-two interlocked agencies, one a 501-c-3 and one
a 501
-c-2
-need to look at the farm practices on land
held by trust -it is costly to maintain an
easement
-"transfer tax" a tax on the rapid turn over
of land -Vermont funnels transfer tax
revenues into land trusts -American Farmland
Trust will hold any land or easements
for Schoharie Land Trust until it is
incorporated and has its tax exempt status
-family can contribute a farm to a Trust and
have a lease for themselves and their
progeny as long as they farm
-municipalities purchase easements and give
them to a trust to administer
-small acreage could be leased for "new wave
farming" -"Agribucks" a local currency sold
at 90% of face value
in the spring redeemable at full value for
produce in fall
LIBRARY: Schoharie Law Library will make space
available for land trust information. The
consensus was that other libraries would be
more accessible. Perhaps each library should
have a small file on land trusts.
CATSKILL CENTER is sending information on fund
raising.
DEC ADVISORY BOARD lost all funding since the
environmental bond act was turned down
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NEXT MEETING: It was agreed that the next
meeting will be on 12 Dec 1990 from 8pm to
10 pm at the Cooperative Extension Office
in Cobleskill.
MINUTES of the 10 October 1990 meeting were
approved. ADJOURNMENT: The meeting was adjourned
at 10:05pm.
Elliott D. S. Adams
Recording Secretary,
pro tem.
