LOGAN – At their regular meeting on July 23, the members of the Cache County Council approved funding for the preservation of the Elkhorn Ranch in Nibley, but not without the usual dickering over dollars and cents.
On behalf of the Fuhriman family, the operators of the Elkhorn Ranch since 1944, the Bear River Land Conservancy was seeking county funding to support placing 115 acres west of Hwy 165 in Nibley into a conservation easement.
Under the county’s Open Space Bond approved by local voters in November of 2022, that request was reviewed by members of the Cache Open Space Advisory Committee and approved with changes.
The estimated value of the property to be preserved is about $4.1 million, according to Gabriel Murray of the Bear River Land Conservancy. In their Phase II proposal to COSAC, the landowners requested that the BRLC commit to funding 48 percent of that easement property (about $1.9 million with federal funds) and Cache County commit to funding 37% (about $1.5 million from the Open Space Bond funds). The Fuhriman family would also commit to covering the 15 percent remainder (about $615,000).
A conservation easement is a voluntary, legal agreement that permanently limits uses of land in order to protect their esthetic values from future development.
In their deliberations, members of the COSAC recommended that the county’s share of the easement amount be reduced to 25 percent (About $1.1 million), with the remaining $400,000 to be requested from the state-funded LeRay McAllister Working Farm and Ranch Fund.
Council member Kathryn Beus, a member of the CASOC, said its members agreed with Joe Fuhriman that the Elkhorn Ranch represented a priceless piece of property that should be preserved, but were concerned about stretching the $20 million in bond funds as far as possible.
Murray agreed to apply for the LeRay McAllister funds, but warned that state and federal grants funds are limited and a denial from either of those sources would scuttle the easement deal.
In the end, the council members voted unanimously to grant $1.25 million for the easement proposal, with the promise of an additional $250,000 if state funding proved not to be available.
The Elkhorn Ranch is a part of Cache Valley history, having been established by early settlers in 1855.
In 2004, the Fuhriman family placed about 60 acres of the ranch into an agricultural conservation easement. Their current proposal would expand that easement and protect the agricultural operation from future development.
The family’s proposal satisfies the majority of the goals of the Open Space Bond program, including protection of scenic vistas; maintenance of agricultural operations, waterways and wildlife habitat; and historical significance.
Cache County voters approved a $20 Million Open Space Bond in the general election of November 2022.
That ballot proposal was the brainchild of former North Logan Mayor Jack Draxler, entrepreneur Eric Eliason and Utah State University professor Steve Daniels, along with the members of an ad hoc committee who shared their vision of the need to provide a legacy of open spaces in Cache County for future generations.
Open space preservation funds can be used to purchase conservation easements, trail easements or property ownership for open space preservation or trail additions. Interested parties are encouraged to apply by submitting an application to the Cache County Development Services office.
The process is competitive and the Cache Open Space Advisory Committee will review and score each application, with the Cache County Council deciding final awards and amounts.
The application process is open-ended with no specific deadline and each application will be reviewed in the order of submission, ensuring a fair and transparent process.
Participation in the program is voluntary and all properties proposed by willing landowners will be considered.