Indian Line Farm

 
Community Land Trusts
 

Indian Line Farm - Model for Farmland Preservation & Conservation 
 

In a uniquely collaborative arrangement developed by the New Economics Institute, the Community Land Trust in the Southern Berkshires, the Berkshire Highlands Program of The Nature Conservancy, and farmers Elizabeth Keen and Alex Thorp joined together to purchase Indian Line Farm in southwestern Massachusetts. The aims of the partnership are to preserve the first CSA farm project in North America, to maintain it as a working organic farm, to protect the adjacent sensitive wetlands, and to provide small-scale farmers access to affordable farmland. 

Working with the Schumacher Society to draft the innovative legal documents, The Nature Conservancy acquired easements on the property to permanently limit future development, while the Community Land Trust acquired the title to the land and is leasing it to Elizabeth and Alex on a 99-year basis. The farmers themselves have purchased the house, barn, and other buildings, and will gain equity through any improvements made to the farm during their tenure. The Community Land Trust retains an option to purchase the buildings and improvements back, and to resell them at their replacement cost to another farmer. 

Addressing the critical connections between ecology, economy, and community, this model project is protecting habitat, preserving agricultural property, and keeping small-scale, organic farming viable. The participation of the two land trusts provided a way for Berkshire consumers to successfully finance the purchase of the land so that the farmers can continue to farm organically and practice wise stewardship without having to use unsustainable growing methods to pay off land debt quickly. 
(Adapted from an Orion magazine article, August 1999) 

 
A New Lease on Farmland: Assuring a Future for Farming in the Northeast 
by Susan Witt and Jay Rossier 
A guide to CLT members to ensuring that farmland kept in a trust is used productively over the long-term. 
 
In Business Article: Group Effort Saves Nation's First CSA Farm 
by Susan Witt 
 
 
From Activism to Agriculture
 by Judith Monachina, Special to the Berkshire Eagle 
 
From Farm to Front Door
 b y Mark Hawthorne, American Chronicle 
 
 
Lease Agreement
Based on leases used by the Jewish National Fund and modified over the years within Massachusetts Law. Consult with your local lawyer for application to your local laws. The object is to provide leaseholders with ownership of all buildings and other improvements on the site while maintaining ownership of the land itself within the Trust. The resale restrictions call for the leaseholder to retain the current replacement value of improvements on the site, adjusted for deterioration, without also capturing the speculative land value. 
  
PDF


 
Addendum to the Lease
This addendum is for the benefit of a mortgager of the building on leased land. It allows a mortgager to be free from resale restrictions in the event of a foreclosure. There is also ample provision for the CLT to correct any default before foreclosure. 
  Online  |  PDF

Land Use Plan 
Details the tillable land, buffer areas, and other uses of the land. It reflects the combined ecological, community, farming, and private homestead interests of the partnership. 
  
PDF
 
Land Management Plan
Developed in cooperation with the farmers, the management plan sets the requirements for crop and livestock production to ensure that the land stays in use and is farmed in accordance with organic standards. 
  PDF

Conservation Easement 
The easement protects the ecological characteristics of the farm.    
PDF


 
Notice of Lease 
The Notice of Lease, description of the property leased, and the Land Use Plan are recorded at the registry of deeds after signing.
  
 PDF


 
Bill of Sale 
  
PDF

 

Property Boundaries 
  
 PDF


 
Great Barrington Land Conservancy: Tax-exempt land conservancy's can work closely with land trusts to preserve land, which the land trust can then hold in perpetuity
 
Bylaws 
      
 PDF
  
 
Articles of Incorporation 
      
PDF 
 
All of the above documents are also available as a single .zip download. 
PDF |  RTF (for microsoft word)
 
 
Other Links: 
 
Indian Line Farm Website 
 
Community Supported Agriculture of North America 
A helpful list of CSA resources 
 
Robyn Van En Center for CSA Resources in the Northeast 
Comprehensive listing of CSA farms throughout the country as well as organizations and on-line resources 
 
Nature Conservancy's Berkshire Taconic Landscape Program 
Features Indian Line Farm