The DeKalb County Farmland Foundation (DCFF), a three-year-old non-profit organization, wants to prevent the loss of open land and farmland to urbanization.

“We offer a one-time compensation for the privilege of holding a landowner’s right to develop or subdivide their property,” said DCFF Board of Directors member and DeKalb resident Donna Gorski.

There are times when landowners and farmers are offered large cash settlements from developers for their land. The landowners may find it less profitable to sell their land for agriculture and opt to settle for the high-paying offers that developers give them.

If this situation should occur and more money is offered by developers, DCFF often offers a one-time compensation for the difference in purchase price of the developer’s offer versus the agricultural offer.

“This is a fairly new option in Illinois,” Gorski said. “It has been offered in other parts of the country for many years now.”

The organization also offers another option. Landowners can opt to keep the land in their possession but sell their right to develop or subdivide it. The owners will receive a determined amount of money for selling their right to the foundation. The only catch is that once they do sell this right, it is permanently forfeited under a legally binding contract, even after they pass the land on to someone else.

“Sometimes, the price of the rights ends up being more than the land itself,” Gorski said.

Currently, the foundation is undergoing private discussions without assistance from lawyers with a landowner on the foundation’s possible first acquisition. If some sort of an agreement comes around, the foundation will then bring in its lawyers to handle the legal issues.

“DCFF never wants to own the land itself,” Gorski continued. “We just want to keep it in agricultural working hands.”

Gorski mentioned how landowners often believe they will get more money for their land if they hold onto it for a few more years.

“While that may be true, the landowners can take the money that they make right now, invest it and gain a profit that way,” Gorski said.

Many people overlook the benefits of having farmland, Gorski said. Not only does it provide food, but it also provides other materials such as cotton, habitats for animals and it absorbs rain water, reducing the likelihood of flooding.

The other benefit of having more farmland, according to the official DCFF Web site at www.dcff.org, is that fewer public services are needed, which results in fewer taxes.

All of the foundation’s decisions are made by a board of directors, consisting of volunteering members of the community. Not all of the foundation’s members are farmers.

Meetings are held the second Thursday of each month in NIU’s Social Science Research Institute, located on the southeast corner of 3rd and Locust streets.

For more details about the foundation, call 756-2580, or visit the DCFF Web site.