Dear Virginia Supporter of Local Foods:
The "On-Farm Activities Working Group" is a task force put together to address the concerns about zoning, county, and state regulations that are proving burdensome to Virginia homesteaders and farmers.
The committee is seeking input from farmers who have had trouble with commerce hindering regulations and agencies that enforce them. Right now, they are assuming that Joel Salatin and Martha Boneta are the only aggrieved farmers in the state!
We request that if you have had such trouble or know about farmers who have, please submit a written summary to the Virginia Department of Agriculture through this email address: [email protected]. Please cc: [email protected] so that we have a record of your submission.
Also, please attend the final meeting of the On-Farm Activities Working Group in Richmond.
This is the meeting where recommendations to the General Assembly will be discussed.
Date: Tuesday, September 24, 2013
Time: 10 a.m. - 1 p.m.
Location: State Capitol Building
1000 Bank Street, Senate Room 3
Richmond, VA 23219 [
directions]
Here is a sample letter:
August 14, 2013
Anthony Bavuso
My name is Anthony Bavuso. I have an oyster farm in York County. My farm and property are located in the County's most rural zoning district, Resource Conservation, which permits "Crop/livestock farming" and "Aquaculture" as permitted rights.
For the past several years, York County has tried to shut down my farm arguing that I can not have an oyster farm and a farmhouse on the same lot in York County even though they admit that you can have a corn farm and a farmhouse. York County lost in Circuit Court and has now appealed to the Supreme Court of Virginia. The County's arbitrary and capricious interpretation of the zoning code has resulted in legal fees amounting into the tens of thousands of dollars. The bad faith or with malice provisions of 15.2-2314 makes it almost impossible for the court to award costs against the locality for such frivolous interpretations.
The citizens are asking for more locally grown foods. But we are suffering from the not-in-my-backyard (NIMBY) arguments. Virginia's Right to Farm Act and other provisions were specifically put in place to protect farms from these NIMBY attacks. We have seen both in Fauquier County and York that these statutes have not been up to the task and that farmers need more protection.
Please recommend changing 15.2-2314 to allow the Court to award costs against the locality if they lose in a zoning dispute. This change has been sponsored by both Brenda Pogge in the House and Mark Obenshain in the Senate. This will help even the playing field and discourage counties from just playing a game of financial attrition.
Thank you.
Anthony Bavuso
Seaford Oyster Company
Regards,
Kimberly Hartke, Publicist
Farm-to-Consumer Legal Defense Fund
[email protected]
