Economic Development Planning for Agriculture: Loudoun County, Virginia

Economic Development Planning

for Agriculture

Status of Ongoing and Future Rural Economy Initiatives

Economic Impact of Ag in Loudoun

County?• USDA

– Value of Land & Buildings + Machinery & Equipment + Ag Products Sold=$117,000,000

• Virginia 2013 Commercial Grape Report– 1,046 tons of grapes produced

– Valued at just under $2M

– Wine valued at $35M

• USDA– 1,396 Farms

• County Land Use– 5,000 parcels; 3,000 owners

Net Cost of Community Services

• Goal

– To determine the municipal costs and revenues

associated with farmland and open space in

Loudoun.

– To determine if this sector is a fiscal NET positive

or negative.

• Mission

– “To analyze the revenues from and expenses to

Loudoun County in FY2011 from the broad land

use category of Agriculture/Open Space/Forest

Land.”3

NCOCS-Findings

• EDC’s “Unpacking the Commercial Tax

Base”

– For every $1 in Revenue:

• Commercial Costs $0.38

• Residential Costs $1.62

• REDC “Net Cost of Community Services”

– For every $1 in Revenue:

• Farmland/Open Space/Forest Land $0.79

Rural Economy Strategic Plan

• In 2000 Rural Economic Development Council (REDC) created.

• January 2011 REDC recommends BOS to authorize development of a REBDS.

• April 2011 BOS authorizes REDC to prepare REBDS.

• April 2013-BOS Approved

REBDS will recommend new strategies to support

the rural economy through:

• implementation of new and improved marketing strategies,

• research and education,

• evaluation of existing and new financial tools to support

entrepreneurs entering or expanding within the rural

economy,

• identification of resources needed to reach the level of

support required and

• development of public policy.

REBDS Committee• Fifteen sectors and leaders within sector identified.

– Agribusiness

– Wine/Grapes

– Tourism Business

– Rural Based Business

– Rural Credit/Banking

– Arts

– Traditional Livestock/Agronomy

– Education

– Culinary Industry

– Horticulture

– Young/Beginning Farmer

– Direct Markets/Farmers Markets

– Equine

– Fruits/Vegetables

Rural Business Stakeholder Outreach

• Letter of invitation to 3,000+ western

Loudoun landowners.

• 300 individuals participated in strategic

planning meetings.

• Each sector submitted a written report and

oral presentation.

Phase II-Needed Action• Loudoun County trails association.

• Self-supporting research and consulting organization.

• Web-based information exchange.

• Mentor-protégé program.

• Regular business owners’ survey.

• Enhance brand marketing programs.

• Rural business “trail” program.

• Rural business passport program.

• Loudoun Agriculture Technology Accelerator.

• Rural Policy Review Project

• Loudoun Agriculture, Wine, Culinary and

Arts Center

• Year-Round Farmers, Arts and Crafts

Market

• Retrofit existing food preparation

facilities.

• Equine Master Plan

• On-Farm Research and Consulting

Network

• General destination marketing program

enhancements

Phase III-Identification of

Successful Initiatives

Phase IV-Preliminary

Recommendations• Foundation Strategies

– Essential for long-term growth.

– Address structural issues.

– Have multi-industry or cross-industry effects.

– Allow for a high level of private and public sector leverage.

– Promotes broad based economic benefits.

• Program Strategies– Focus on both long-term and short-term needs.

– Address discrete needs.

– Seek to expand or enhance existing programs, content, ideas.

– Promotes targeted economic benefits.

Loudoun Agriculture and Rural Business

Accelerator

• Replicates the Cornell University “Tech

Farm” model.

• Focuses on leading edge business

development in food, wine, bio-

technology, manufacturing, and related

fields.

Create a peer-to-peer consulting and

research network

• Expands reach of existing programs and

the proposed Accelerator

• Expands services to local businesses

using contemporary knowledge and

experience

• Addresses decline in government

support for rural industrial support and

expands public-private partnerships

• Create a base of factual information on the equine industry.

• Integrate equine programming based on Maryland National Capital Park and Planning Commission model.

• Build collaborative partnerships to sustain and enhance the equine industry over the long-term.

Develop an Integrated Approach to Equine Industry Enhancement

Conduct Regular Rural Business Owner Survey

• High priority for making good

policy decisions

• Seeks to develop a reliable

source of information on local

industry conditions

• Will be used to refine the

strategic plan over time

Redesign and enhance rural components of biz.loudoun.gov & Loudounfarms.org

• Rebuilds and repurposes loudounfarms.org.

• Enhances rural business content on biz.loudoun.gov.

• Expands online training opportunities.

Encourage development of a Loudoun County multi-use trail system

• Creates multi-use trails focused on equine industry.

• Encourages public-private partnerships.

CLARKS CROSSING ACRES: 143.74

Approximately 3.2 miles of trails wind through the park to join the W

& OD Trail.

COLVIN RUN STREAM VALLEY (rails to river trail) ACRES: 70.90

Approximately 3 miles of natural surface/stonedust trail between

Hunter Mill Road and Leesburg Pike.

DIFFICULT RUN STREAM VALLEY (CCT) ACRES: 864.75

Approximately 14 miles of mostly natural surface trail along the

Difficult Run Creek between Miller Heights Road and Georgetown

Pike.

FRED CRABTREE ACRES: 208.52

Approximately 2 miles of natural surface trails.

FRYING PAN PARK ACRES: 102.90

Approximately 23 acres of fields and forest for cross-country riding.

Two outdoor show rings and an indoor activities center for year-

round use.

LAKE FAIRFAX PARK (rails to river trail) ACRES: 478.99

Approximately 1 mile of natural surface trail.

LAUREL HILL Laurel Hill Equestrian Area Shared-use Trails Map

RIVERBEND PARK ACRES: 409.68

Access to river, PHNST, and some internal trails.

THE TURNER FARM ACRES: 52.41

Parking, trails, novice cross-country course, arena, pony pen.

Enhance marketing programs to improve rural-urban linkages

• Expand DC’s Wine Country trail program.

• Develop a rural passport program to integrate multiple industries.

Enhance marketing programs to improve rural-urban linkages

Launched in 1994, Ag Art Wear

challenges designers to create a

piece of agricultural art for the body

derived from rural material.

Create a branded rural business awareness program

• Integrates rural industries with Visit Loudoun programming.

• Driven by the private sector.

Develop a consolidated year-round farmers market

• Creates a center of activity for rural industries.

• Improves consumer access to the local foods.

Business Friendly ZOAM

• Completed

– BNB-expanded daily & special events

• In Process

– Ag Processing

– Farm Brewery

• Future

– Zoning-Rural Recreation, Outdoor Use

– Silver Line

– Comprehensive Plan

Proactive Approach

• Policy Subcommittee of REDC

– May 2013

• Zoning Ordinance Action Group

Questions?

Kellie Boles

[email protected] 703-737-8820