COMMISSION ON URBAN PLANNING, GROWTH MANAGEMENT OF CITIES, AND PROTECTION OF FARMLAND

MINUTES

October 6, 1997 - Second Meeting

MEMBERS PRESENT

MEETING IN BRIEF

Minutes prepared by Tim McDermott, Legal Counsel
Organizational staffing by Doug Adkisson, Legal Counsel

  1. Procedural Business.
  2. Agricultural Land Preservation and the World Food Prize.
  3. Land Use Inventories.
  4. American Planning Association Farmland Preservation and Planning.
  5. Regional Planning and Farmland Preservation.
  6. Commission Discussion.
  7. Next Meeting.
  8. Written Materials Filed With the Legislative Service Bureau.

COMMITTEE BUSINESS

1. Procedural Business.
Call to Order.Co-chairperson Representative Teig called the meeting of the Commission on Urban Planning, Growth Management of Cities, and Protection of Farmland to order at 10:00 a.m., Monday, October 6, 1997, in Room 116 of the State Capitol.
Approval of the Minutes. The minutes of the September 4, 1997, meeting were unanimously approved subject to changing the name of commission member "Lucille Barron" to "Lu Barron."
Staff Updates.
Committee Requests - LSB. Mr. Doug Adkisson, Legislative Service Bureau, discussed progress he had made regarding various requests by the Commission. Mr. Adkisson explained the functions the Legislative Service Bureau can provide to interim legislative committees include collecting, summarizing, and distributing information, contacting persons knowledgeable in a particular area, performing legal research, organizing meetings and public hearings, collecting testimony, summarizing proceedings, and preparing reports and legislation.
During the previous meeting a subcommission was created to consider options for financing various commission activities. Mr. Adkisson reviewed some of the issues discussed during the Finance Subcommission meeting. He said the Subcommission considered both forming a nonprofit corporation and contracting with a nonprofit corporation to allow private contributors to make donations to support the Commission's work. Mr. Adkisson identified a number of possible obstacles to incorporating and provided information relating to the experiences of Ohio and Michigan regarding contracting with a nonprofit corporation to carry out their studies.
Mr. Adkisson discussed issues regarding county agricultural land preservation. Mr. Adkisson provided information compiled by the National Agricultural Statistics Service of the United States Department of Agriculture relating to the number of farms in Iowa, the amount of land in farms, and the average size of farms by county in the years 1975, 1987, and 1996. He stated that he is currently working on summary of Iowa Code chapter 335, which relates to county zoning. Mr. Adkisson reviewed the questionnaire sent to all counties in the state requesting information involving agricultural land preservation in their counties and compliance with Iowa Code chapter 352. He stated that, as of October 6, approximately 20 percent of the counties had responded in some manner. A general overview of the responses was provided.
Mr. Adkisson provided background information on the State Interagency Resource Council and stated Mr. James Gulliford, Director of the Soil Conservation Division, Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship, chairs the council and has first-hand knowledge of the process.
In a discussion following Mr. Adkisson's presentation, interest was expressed in asking Mr. Gulliford to speak before the Commission. Also, Mr. Adkisson explained that follow-up letters would be sent to the county attorneys who had not yet responded to initial letters requesting information.
Budget - Legislative Fiscal Bureau. Ms. Deb Kozel, Legislative Fiscal Bureau, presented a proposed budget for the operation of the Commission. The proposed budget included an assumed expenditure for the hiring of a person to work exclusively for the Commission for 15 months with related expenses. The projected total amount of expenditures by the Commission of $87,750 was based on expenditure information for similar studies in Ohio and Michigan. In response to questions, Ms. Kozel stated that the assumption of a monthly expenditure of $1,000 for the salary of a person working for the Commission may be too low.
Finance Subcommission Report. Representative Fallon discussed issues relating to the Finance Subcommission. He stated that it is unclear how much money would be needed, but that it would most likely be a significant amount. Representative Fallon stated that private financial support is available; however, those sources need to be identified. He also stated that the Commission needs to identify a fiscal agent to receive donations on behalf of the Commission.
In discussion following Representative Fallon's remarks, Co-chairperson Teig urged caution in soliciting monetary support due to the many possible obstacles which may be involved in receiving such moneys.
Adjournment. The meeting day recessed for lunch at 12:25 p.m., reconvened at 1:40 p.m., and adjourned at 3:50 p.m.
2. Agricultural Land Preservation and the World Food Prize.
Mr. Herman Kilpper, Executive Director, the World Food Prize Foundation, played a videotape for the Commission on the World Food Prize. The videotape provided a background on the World Food Prize, explained the significance of the World Food Prize, and listed past World Food Prize laureates and their accomplishments. Mr. Kilpper then introduced Mr. John Ruan, Chairman and CEO, Ruan Companies, to the Commission. Mr. Ruan explained how he became interested in the World Food Prize. He stated that with land being continually taken out of production and with the world population constantly growing, the problem of feeding the world will most likely continue to grow. He stressed the need for cities to expand up and not out.
3. Land Use Inventories.
Iowa State University. Dr. Paul Anderson, Professor, Department of Landscape Architecture and Department of Agronomy, Iowa State University, presented testimony regarding land use inventories. Dr. Anderson described the purposes of land use inventories as understanding the past, managing the present, and planning for the future. According to Dr. Anderson, four basic types of land use inventories include historic land use, current land use, land use change, and model future growth patterns and policies. These inventories can be derived from numerous different data sources. Concerns in developing and interpreting land use inventories include finding current data, costs of digitizing, costs of updating, quality of data, and understanding complex land use processes. Dr. Anderson provided information on inventories of specific natural and cultural resources including National Resources Inventory, soil surveys, National Wetlands Inventory, historic vegetation, habitat, archaeological sites, and prime agricultural land. He also discussed the development and use of Geographic Information Systems technology. Co-chairperson Lundby requested the Legislative Service Bureau find out which councils of government in Iowa are active on the issue of Geographic Information Systems.
Dr. Anderson stated that some data has been centralized, but there is still a large amount of data which has not been centralized. He stated the Iowa Department of Transportation has contacted him regarding his work. He also stated that land use inventories do not address the issue of population density.
U.S. Department of Agriculture. Mr. Cory Brockmann, Resources Inventory Specialist, Natural Resources Conservation Service, United States Department of Agriculture, discussed the National Resources Inventory Program (NRI). The NRI is used to inventory the resources on the nation's farms, nonfederal forests, and grazing lands. The NRI is the federal government's principal information source on the status, condition, and trend of soil, water, and related resources. The NRI is statistically reliable at the state level, but is less reliable at the county level. The Commission requested that Mr. Brockmann submit a copy of the statistical portion of his presentation relating to the loss of farmland in Iowa.
4. American Planning Association Farmland Preservation and Planning.
Mr. William Klein, Director of Research, Mr. Stuart Meck, Principal Investigator, and Mr. James Schwab, Senior Research Associate, American Planning Association, presented information on the American Planning Association, planning statutes currently in place in Iowa, common farmland preservation methods, and the American Planning Association's ongoing project titled "Growing Smart."
Mr. Klein described the American Planning Association as a nonprofit organization which provides a number of different functions centered around planning issues. Mr. Klein encouraged the Commission to address many issues involved in urban sprawl and farmland preservation and noted that 10 other states have addressed or begun to address issues relating to urban sprawl and farmland preservation.
Growing Smart Project. Mr. Meck discussed the Growing Smart project. The project consists of three phases. The first phase focused on state and regional planning and the relationship and responsibilities that exist between state, regional, and local planning efforts. The second phase is focusing on model legislation dealing with local planning, including planning agency and planning commission structure, plan preparation, and the integration of state and federal environmental policy acts with local planning. The third phase will provide model legislation for the implementation tools communities need to manage change. The project will result in two main products: (1) a legislative guidebook, and (2) a national clearinghouse for state legislative materials dealing with planning and management of change. The Growing Smart project is based on the following general philosophies:
Statutory Reform Issues. Mr. Meck discussed a checklist of statutory reform issues for Iowa. The checklist included procedural changes, substantive changes, and special issues. The special issues identified by Mr. Meck included the use of new planning tools, the adequacy of incentives, the role of the state in technical assistance, review of subdivisions by local governments, standards for exactions and impact fees, the need for efficiency and fairness, intergovernmental planning in the state's growth corridors, and authorization for growth management techniques.
Farmland Preservation Methods. Mr. Schwab discussed a number of common farmland preservation methods. These methods included agricultural zoning, agricultural districts, purchase of development rights, transfer of development rights, right-to-farm laws, and property tax incentives. Mr. Schwab also discussed land evaluation and site assessment approaches which assess the quality of the land and determine the impact of developing the land. Mr. Schwab suggested farmland preservation methods are most effective when the benefits of the methods are coordinated to achieve a strategic impact.
In response to questions, the American Planning Association representatives stated that they have not addressed annexing issues. In addition, they stated that the legislative guidebook will include model legislation on many planning topics which are derived from sources all over the nation and will also include some original work.
5. Regional Planning and Farmland Preservation.
Dallas County Planning. Mr. Jerry Knox, Professor, Department of Community and Regional Planning, Iowa State University, discussed community and regional planning and his work with Dallas County. Dallas County is currently updating its plan for the future.
Mr. Knox stated that more nonfarmers than farmers are living in unincorporated areas in the state. He discussed population projections and the annexation situation in Dallas County. Mr. Knox stated that Dallas County is currently experiencing heavy annexation activity and suggested this trend may continue.
Mr. Knox made the following recommendations:
Farmland Preservation Issues. Professor Neil Hamilton, Director, Agricultural Law Center, Drake University, discussed several farmland preservation issues which he suggested should be considered. Agricultural exemption to county zoning should be considered since there is no limitation on the use of agricultural land and no incentive to keep the land agricultural. Mr. Hamilton stated there is currently no connection between municipal annexation and the county controlling the conversion of agricultural land to other uses. Mr. Hamilton stated annexation is a major problem in farmland preservation.
Mr. Hamilton suggested that establishing urban growth boundaries should be considered. He also suggested that Iowa Code chapter 352 is ineffective and should be reexamined. Mr. Hamilton reminded the Commission that property rights are an important restraint to keep in mind. He stated that most people who are directly affected by farmland preservation measures may not be interested in preserving farmland. Mr. Hamilton suggested that this fact is why market-based programs are important. However, he noted that voluntary programs may have a limited impact. Mr. Hamilton also suggested that conservation easements should be considered. Professor Hamilton stated that local control should always be part of the land use mix.
Mr. Hamilton suggested the following four steps in developing a land use plan:
In response to questions by the Commission, Mr. Hamilton stated that municipal zoning could make the preservation of farmland a goal; however, the problem is that there is already a large amount of land annexed and there is no incentive to entice municipalities to preserve farmland.
6. Commission Discussion.
Co-chairperson Teig requested that, prior to the November 3, 1997, meeting, members of the Commission rank in order of importance the tasks described in the memorandum regarding "Staff Progress Report -- October 6th Meeting" which was submitted to the Commission by Mr. Doug Adkisson, Legislative Service Bureau. Co-chairperson Teig instructed that task number 7 relating to the filing of an interim and final report should not be included in the ranking.
Other comments and remarks during the Commission discussion included the following:
7. Next Meeting.
The next meeting of the Commission on Urban Planning, Growth Management of Cities, and Protection of Farmland is scheduled for Monday, November 3, 1997, at a location to be announced later.
8. Written Materials Filed With the Legislative Service Bureau.
a. Mr. Doug Adkisson filed two memoranda.
b. Ms. Deb Kozel filed a proposed budget.
c. Mr. John Ruan filed a folder which contained the following:
d. Dr. Paul Anderson filed an outline of his presentation.
e. Mr. Cory Brockmann filed a folder which contained the following:
f. Mr. William Klein, Mr. Stuart Meck, and Mr. James Schwab filed the following:
g. Mr. Jerry Knox filed the following:
h. Co-chairperson Lundby requested all Commission members receive a copy of the publication published by the Sierra Club Midwest Office titled, "Suburban Sprawl Costs Us All in the Midwest."
i. Ms. Lu Barron requested all Commission members receive the following:

OTHER INFORMATION FOR THIS COMMITTEE:

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